Reaching a divorce settlement agreement is mostly about dividing marital assets. After all, there’s the home, vehicles, bank accounts, stock portfolios, cash, art, etc.

And, then some of you who are in the process of getting a divorce might be wondering who gets certain marital assets like airline miles. This might seem a bit trivial, but it also can be important to those who fly frequently.

Some of you might think that something like airline miles seems trivial compared to other marital assets like real estate, bank accounts, stocks and bonds, furniture and vehicles. However, for those of you who spend a lot of time flying, those airline miles could really pay off and help you save money. Hundreds of thousands of frequent flyer miles can help contribute to numerous travel trips.

So, how exactly do the airline miles get sorted out? The first step you should take when attempting to divide airline miles is to check the rewards program’s terms and conditions. For example, some programs specifically state in their terms and conditions that points cannot be transferred from one spouse to another in a divorce settlement.

If this is the case, it may be wise to assign a value to the rewards points and then negotiate something of equal value. There may be other ways to divide the miles. Some programs provide cash outs for points, in which case you can collect the cash and then split it. Maybe you can see if the program will divide the points into two separate accounts.

When it comes to negotiating a divorce settlement, airline miles really do come down to money. Think this through completely; don’t be hasty about your decision. If you make a good financial move elsewhere, you might just find you can still take a special trip that you will enjoy.

If you’re going through a divorce and have questions regarding dividing your assets, including your frequent flyer miles, a family law attorney might be able to help you come to a divorce settlement that you can both agree to.

Contact the family law office of Holstrom, Sissung, Marks & Anderson, located in Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. We might be able to help you negotiate issues such as division of property, child custody, child support and spousal support in a more amicable manner than you would have otherwise.