DOES MY HUSBAND HAVE TO SUPPORT ME FINANCIALLY

Hi
Hope someone can help with this . My husband left this weekend, we havea joint bank is wage goes into but he''s changed his bank and told me that''s where his wage will be paid , I have rheumatoid arthritis and don''t work because of it, I can get ESA cut that''s only £74 a wk , I can also get housing benefit but I can''t live on £74 a week , we have no children . Does he have to support me financially if not I will have to look for a lodger .

I think you''ll get some answers if you provide a bit more information like - if there''s a house involved, income/expenditure of both parties, ages of you both etc.... Do you rent or is there property to sell and does your stbx have a pension ? X

No we don''t own the house it''s rented. There is no pension other than the state pension . He''s 45 I''m 53
Hope this helps

I know there''s lots of questions but it helps others to comment and give their view if they know the full facts - I''m presuming there isn''t any children involved as you don''t mention any? Was the marriage a long one? and have you applied for all the benefits you can re: housing benefit, council tax releif etc.?? you say you will possible take in a lodger for extra income - I rent and on my rental agreement I am not allowed to sublet to I suggest you check your agreement before doing this as it might cause a problem?? Just a thought? Hope you get the help you need but you don''t many your STBX income - these things are only considered depending on a lot of variants - one being the difference in income, earning potential and length of marriage. You say you are on ESA is there any chance you would be able to work part time or are you in the support group? I know there are a lot of questions but there is a lot to consider - have you taken any legal advice and given the full facts?

In a nut shell spouse maintenance or Maintenance Pending Suit which is sometimes paid until the divorce and finances are finalised depends on whether there is a big discrepancy in incomes, the needs of the lower income spouse and the ability to pay of the higher income spouses.

Clearly if there is evidence you were dependent on your husband and can''t work because of health problems you have the need so it is a case of whether your husband has a large enough income to have the ability to pay after meeting his own living expenses.

Just for your info if you''re going to take this to court it''s a long hard struggle - well was in my case - I''m on benefits similar to you unable to work for health reasons - my ex earns £85k a year and the courts awarded me £1 a year. No idea why and I''m still fighting it! I was originally awarded interim maintenance of £800 per month but at the final hearing the judge who was extremely biased changed it to £1 a year. If your pursuing things through the court it is extremely expensive - so if you could sort out an arrangement between yourselves its better. It doesn''t always go on the ability to pay - judges appear to have their own views? Good Luck - hope you get sorted.