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How to protect your financial future if your partner is a gambler

Analaura Luna

One of the most difficult things for any couple to go through is addiction. This is especially hard when one individual’s addiction is causing severe problems for their partner and the rest of the family. One of the most difficult addictions for a family to deal with is gambling. A gambling addiction can take a large nest egg, or an entire family’s savings and cause it to vanish in nearly no time at all. Many families have lost everything, including their home, because of one person’s problem gambling. So, how do you go about protecting your family’s finances when your partner has a gambling problem?

In Australia, according to the Australian Productivity Commission’s Inquiry into Australia’s Gambling Industries, about 2.1 percent of the Australian population has a severe gambling problem. That amounts to 293,000 people. By extension, an average of seven other people are affected by their behavior and that amounts to 2,000,000 Australians.

Determine who owns what

When you are in a relationship with someone who has a gambling problem and you want to protect your assets, then you need to determine who owns what. A gambler who has a severe addiction will not think twice about mortgaging a house or putting up a car for money. 

The best way that you have to protect anything is to keep it in your name or have everything under both of your names. That way, they cannot mortgage or sell something like a vehicle without you giving permission as well. To determine who owns what, you will need to look at:

• Mortgage papers to see whose name the house is under.

• Vehicle registration to see who the vehicle belongs to.

• Receipt on other purchases to determine who bought what.

One piece of good news is that if there is something owned by the gambler, then you as the non-gambling spouse or partner can claim and equitable interest if you made a financial contribution to the asset. This will allow you to prevent the sale of a house or car as a result.

Protecting the house

If you want to protect the house and it is in the name of the gambler, then you need to get the titled registered under your name. One of the best ways to do this is to talk with the gambler during one of their more clear moments and convince them that transferring the title is in the best interests of the family. If the transfer has to be done through a Family Law court order because the gambler does not want to transfer it, then the transfer will be completely exempt from stamp duty, which would cost about $8,992 on a home worth $300,000.

Many severe gamblers may not be willing to transfer the home so you will have to look at going to court to ensure the transfer by showing the court that it is in the best interest of the bank to transfer the home to you.

Car registration

If the car is registered in their name, then their name then that is evidence that they own it. You should attempt to have the registration voluntarily transferred to you, but again you may have to look at getting a court order to protect the car from being sold.

Open a bank account

One of the smartest things you can do to protect your financial future when you have a problem gambler in your house is to open a secure bank account in your name only. Then, as you make money through your job you can have the money put into your bank account where it cannot be touched by the gambler. 

If possible, you can even try to get the gambler to transfer their pay checks over to you during their clearer moments so that you can secure money into that bank account. This is one of the most important things you can do to protect money from a problem gambler because there is no way that they can get this money out of your bank account. There is the chance they may physically threaten you but don’t let yourself be strong-armed into giving in. They have no claim on that money in your bank account.

Where to go for help

When you want to talk to someone about your partner’s problem gambling or you want to try and get them help, you can go to these websites.

• Australasian Gaming Council        http://austgamingcouncil.org.au
• Gambling Impact Society of NSW www.gisnw.org.au
• Gambling Research Australia       www.gamblingresearch.org.au
• Gambling Treatment Clinic           www.psych.usyd.edu.au
• Problem Gambling SA                 www.problemgambling.sa.gov.au
• Problem Gambling Services         www.problemgambling.net.au

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Tags: problem gambling, couples money planning, gambling problem

Author's Biography

Analaura Luna is an author, wealth adviser and founder of Your Family Your Money. Your Family Your Money’s goal is to simplify traditionally complex financial strategies, demystify financial jargon and debunk common financial myths, becoming every family’s first stop for financial advice, information and inspiration.