Planning a wedding is incredibly exciting, but it can also be very stressful. Once the planning is underway, couples often start finding “what if” scenarios around every corner. In their quest to plan every detail perfectly, they are suddenly hyper aware of everything that could potentially go wrong. Anyone who had a wedding planned for June 2020 can attest to the fact that such worry is not without merit.
When the world is not scrambling its way through a once in a lifetime pandemic, weddings often actually go quite well. There are so many resources available to couples that they usually are able to bring everything together for a great celebration. One thing that offers peace of mind in planning for the perfect special day is to protect it with an insurance policy.
How Does Wedding Insurance Work?
There are two types of insurance that most couples should consider for their wedding. An event cancellation policy allows the insured party to recover expenses and deposit funds if the wedding, or one of its accompanying events, must be cancelled or postponed. Liability insurance covers responsible parties for injuries and damages sustained during the events.
Right now, cancellation policies are popular because of Covid-19 uncertainty. But this is not a new type of coverage. Since most weddings are planned for a year or more prior to the day, couples pay many expenses well in advance. They may also need to pay nonrefundable deposits with balances due on the day of the wedding. Weddings unfortunately get cancelled or postponed for many reasons, so these policies help couples recoup funds to make alternative plans. Sometimes, other events surrounding the wedding need to be cancelled, such as the rehearsal dinner or post-wedding events. Or, if a single vendor goes bankrupt prior to the event, the insured parties can recover deposits.
Cancellation policies also provide certain coverage even if the wedding is not cancelled. For example, damage to tuxedos and gowns, wedding jewelry, photos, videos, and wedding gifts can all be covered under a cancellation policy. The amount of coverage will depend on the overall wedding budget. To maximize protection, couples should look into cancellation insurance as early in the planning as possible.
Liability insurance is actually required by many venues. Though businesses have their own insurance, they require the people responsible for the event to share in the liability for their own guests. A liability policy may or may not cover the rehearsal dinner, wedding, and reception depending on certain factors. Before issuing a policy, agents will need to know the schedule and the location of every group event associated with the wedding.
If the venue requires liability coverage, they often provide a list of what must be included. If the wedding will include alcohol, the hosts need to be covered in case of any alcohol-related damages or injuries. The most important thing in wedding liability insurance is to make sure the coverage extends to the couple as well as the venue. The venue only requires that they be covered, but couples should make sure they are also protected.
Protect Your Special Day with Wedding Insurance
While no one wants to think about the possibility of anything going wrong on their wedding day, life happens. It is not tempting fate, manifesting, or being of little faith to obtain insurance for a wedding. It is a wise and practical step in the planning process to protect the effort and expense being poured into a very special day.
At Smyrl Insurance, we want your wedding day to go perfectly to plan. But we also want to make sure that any problems you might experience are not exacerbated by being under-insured. We educate, nurture, and empower our clients through insurance to help reduce the risks in planning life’s big events. Contact us today to protect your wedding or other major event. We serve clients in Hatfield, Lansdale, Souderton, Harleysville and throughout Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
