If you are ready to end your marriage, you undoubtedly know you must divide the marital estate. In Florida, divorcing spouses usually receive an equitable share of it. While this approach may not necessarily leave you with half of everything you and your spouse own, your should end up with what you fairly deserve.
You should not forget to address the house, cars, cash, and retirement assets. Still, because your accrued credit card rewards are likely to be valuable, you should also remember to include them in your settlement negotiations.
Who legally owns the credit card points?
If you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse have credit cards in your own names, you may believe each of you owns the rewards points you have accrued. This may not be true, however. If you accumulated rewards points during your marriage, they are probably marital property, regardless of whose name is on the credit card.
How much are credit card points worth?
Determining the value of points when credit cards give cashback to customers may be simple. If your rewards points provide you with other perks, though, calculating their worth is likely to be more challenging. For purposes of planning your divorce, it may be useful to estimate the value of each reward point to be $0.01.
When can you split rewards points?
Dividing your credit card rewards with your husband or wife may not be possible. After all, many credit card companies expressly prohibit the transfer of rewards points in their user agreements. Still, you may be able to negotiate a usage agreement for the points or give up other assets to keep the points you have personally accumulated.
Ultimately, while your reward points likely have some value to you and your husband or wife, your options for dealing with them during your divorce may hinge on the restrictions that automatically come with using your card.