When you’re planning your wedding day, you more than likely envision an event filled with gorgeous flowers, smiling faces, delicious cuisine, a stunning gown and a towering cake. Insurance is probably the farthest thing from your mind, but according to many financial experts, wedding insurance is something that you simply can’t afford not to have.
Take a moment and imagine that you have your entire wedding planned and paid for and the monumental day is just three days away. As you make the final phone calls to your vendors to ensure they’re ready, you soon discover that the florist you hired has recently closed their doors and filed for bankruptcy. Not only are you faced with the dreadful reality of having no flowers at your wedding, but then it hits you that the florist also walked away with the money you paid for their services – and there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it because they’re protected under bankruptcy laws.
This scenario is all-too-real for many newlyweds and with the state of the economy, it’s happening more and more often these days. Wedding insurance is designed to provide you with the peace of mind you need during one of the most exciting and frenetic times of your life and with the average cost of a wedding exceeding $27,000 and the cost of a policy ranging between $150 and $500, it’s money well spent. Coverage does vary, but most policies cover the following:
- Extreme weather
- Illnesses or death of bride or groom
- Illness or death of immediate family member
- Unexpected military deployment of bride or groom
- Wedding gifts
- Wedding photos
- Damaged or lost wedding attire
- Damaged or lost wedding rings
- No-show vendors
- Damage caused by vendors
- Alcohol-related accidents
- Bodily injury accidents
- Wedding site property damage
The Better Business Bureau recommends the following advice for purchasing wedding insurance:
- Shop around for wedding insurance before making deposits on any wedding services to make sure the expenses are covered
- Pay close attention to the fine print. Like most other insurance plans, wedding insurance policies do have limits on claims and deductibles that must be met
- Try to avoid purchasing coverage for services that may already be insured by the vendor or your credit card company
- Maintain good records and keep all of your receipts for the insurance company in case you have to submit a claim for reimbursements
- Take the time to research wedding insurance companies and vendors through the Better Business Bureau to increase your chance of finding reputable providers of services
By purchasing wedding insurance, anything that can possibly go wrong with your special day will be covered. On a day this monumental, should it be any other way?