It comes as a surprise to many brides and grooms to learn that there is such as thing as wedding insurance. Many people will probably dismiss it out of hand, but stop and think about all the other kinds of insurance policies you might buy: car, home, apartment, flood, hurricane, life, business, business interruption, fire, vacation, and cruise.
When you consider that you purchase insurance to protect your investment in all those things in the unlikely event of something going wrong, why wouldn't you consider insuring your wedding? Does knowing that the cost of the average wedding is more than twenty two thousand dollars and rising make you give wedding insurance a second thought?
There are many things that can go wrong on or before the special day that can trigger a couple to file a wedding insurance claim. If the weather is severely uncooperative and prevents the bride, groom, or other key member of the wedding party from reaching the destination and the wedding must be postponed, this is a coverage event. Another covered item would be the gifts including cash and assorted presents. The value of all the gifts a couple receives can easily reach into the twenty thousand dollar range. If thieves were to make off with these items, the couple would be out of luck if they did not have insurance.
Another big-ticket item that could be listed on the policy is the wedding gown. If it were somehow ruined and irreparable prior to the ceremony, the policy would provide for replacement costs. Reimbursement for lost or stolen rings would also be on the list.
No-show vendors which are essential to the day such as caterers, photographers, and videographers would entitle the couple to payment for changing the wedding date. Videography and photography usually are covered under another clause as well if somehow the video and pictures are ruined and unrecoverable.
One interesting note is that the policies cover events which are beyond the control of the participants. Merely changing one's mind the night before the marriage is set to take place doesn’t usually cut it (even if that is beyond the control of the future spouse).
Like the cost of cruise vacation insurance, wedding insurance policies are available for a fraction of the cost of the event itself. Depending on coverage levels, policy prices range from a couple hundred dollars to about five hundred dollars. Taking into account that the average wedding costs twenty thousand dollars, insurance cost would only be one to two percent of the total.
This article is for informational purposes and does not replace qualified legal advice or financial advice. Seek the opinion of a licensed professional insurance agent or wedding insurance broker for more details.
