What is Wedding Insurance? and .... Do I need it?
Wedding Planners know to ‘expect the unexpected’, and that backup plans and contingencies are essential. Therefore we advise you to purchase Wedding Insurance.
Wedding insurance is a way to protect yourself against the unexpected. Outside of buying a house or car, weddings are often one of the largest investments an individual, a couple, and their families will make in their lifetimes. If you do not think twice about insuring your home or your car, you should not think twice about insuring your wedding.
Types of Insurance
There are two main types of Wedding (or Event) Insurance and variations within those insurance policies. Most couples buy them together.
CANCELLATION INSURANCE - covers lost deposits and payments for a host of reasons, such as vendor bankruptcy and vendor no-shows (excluding COVID-19), accidental injury or illness of an immediate family member, cancellation or postponement due to extreme weather, unexpected military deployment, loss or damage to your wedding photographs and videos, lost or damage to wedding gifts, lost wedding rings, and damage to wedding-day attire, including the bride's wedding dress. We advise you to purchase CANCELATION insurance if you are planning events in:
destination locations subject to natural weather-related concerns (ie. fire, earthquake, hurricanes, storms, etc.),
within a timeframe of heightened health concerns (i.e. Covid), or
with high dollar vendor or venue expenses (over $10k).
Wedding (or event) cancelation insurance protects you from losses due to various factors, such as vendor no-shows, damages, postponement due to illness, travel delays, bankruptcies, lost or damaged rings, and more. Insurance protects the funds you've saved and invested in your event.
PLEASE NOTE: COVID-19-related issues and wedding postponements will not be included since the ‘pandemic’ in currently a ‘known’ threat. :(
Please note that most wedding vendor contracts typically include a clause for force majeure to address what would happen if the unforeseeable happened. When reviewing Cancellation Insurance Policies, please carefully read the stipulations around Force Majeure clauses to ensure that this is addressed and not overridden if/when a vendor has a Force Majeure clause in their contract.
2. LIABILITY INSURANCE - protects you if there is damage to the venue caused by themselves or a wedding guest, or coverage for attorney fees if you get sued. Most venues will require you to show proof of this insurance to protect themselves or the property further. This is also referred to as Event Day Insurance. It's also common for your venue to request or require a certificate of insurance (COI) to cover the liability of hosting your event. Wedding (or event) cancelation insurance protects you from losses due to various factors unforeseen events causing damage or injury at a wedding and external event(s) beyond your control that may prevent your wedding from happening.
Where Do I Purchase Wedding Insurance?
We suggest first contacting your current insurance company - yes, the same one you get your car, house or rental insurance through. Based on a trusted relationship, you can often get your best rate through your current insurer. If your insurance company does not provide wedding or event insurance, or you want to rate shop, other great options are:
The Event Helper, or
eWed.
How Much Does Wedding Insurance Cost?
If you include the Cancelation Insurance, for most weddings it can cost about 1 percent of your total wedding budget for both cancellation and liability insurance or up to $1,000.
For just Liability or Event Day Insurance, it ranges between $150 - $200.
It’s also important to ask each vendor if they have their own vendor/business proof of insurance so you can know that they are additionally covered. We always advise to assemble a team that is insured. When checking a vendor policy, ask about liquor liability and whether or not you will be covered if a guest who drinks at your event has an unfortunate accident after leaving. Ask your vendors, especially if you are hosting an event at home, to name you as an additional insured on their policies, as an additional layer of coverage.
When Should I Purchase Wedding Insurance?
We recommend clients get cancellation insurance after they identify their wedding day budget and before they book their first vendor. Almost all wedding vendors require an upfront 25 percent or more nonrefundable deposit, this is why you want your insurance to begin before you make those investments.
We recommend clients get Liability Insurance about 50 days out from their wedding date.
Where Does Covid-19 Fit In?
Unfortunately, getting wedding insurance post February 4th, 2020 will not secure coverage for COVID-19-related loss and won't retroactively grant coverage for once-unforeseen circumstances. Insurance, by definition, is protection of an unknown risk. Currently, this pandemic is a known issue. The insurance companies we have researched consider COVID-19 a 'known condition' and will not insure weddings that have to be postponed for that reason. A couple's best protection is to discuss the possibility of postponement with each vendor and reach an agreement that deposits and contracts will be honored at a later date, assuming availability. We have had several weddings postpone due to the coronavirus, but so far, no financial losses have occurred as a result of good-faith negotiation with vendors.
