What is wedding insurance?

What is wedding insurance?

Wedding insurance can protect you against a range of unfortunate and costly event, from losing the ring, to suppliers going under or the entire wedding being cancelled.

With wedding insurance premiums relatively small, and the cost of a wedding averaging over £18,000 - excluding rings and honeymoon - getting covered could make sense.

However, you may already be covered by other insurances and consumer protections.

Do you need wedding insurance?

Not necessarily. Paying for anything more than £100 and up to £30,000 with a credit card means you can claim your money back from your credit card provider through Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, if there is a problem with goods or services that constitutes a breach of contract.

This could include your reception venue being double-booked or the wedding cake not being delivered.

You could also use chargeback rules to get refunded, if you paid by Visa or MasterCard credit card for an item that costs less than £100, or you paid by debit card. Through this process, your provider can try to get your money back from the retailer on your behalf, but it isn't legally obliged to.

Also check your home contents insurance policy - some policies increase cover for one month before and one month after the wedding of someone in the household to cover wedding gifts and sometimes items bought for the wedding.

Travel insurance is essential if you're getting married outside of the UK, although it won't cover problems with wedding suppliers or the venue.

Consumer rights

The Consumer Rights Act covers products and services you buy - and weddings aren't exempt.

That means if the venue, DJ, food, dress, photos and other services aren't of satisfactory quality, or as described, you're entitled to some or all of your money back.

Our wedding consumer rights guide includes template letters for complaining to suppliers.

• Find out more: weddings and consumer rights explained

How much does wedding insurance cost?

According to comparison website GoCompare, if you're spending £19,000 on a wedding with 99 guests you can expect wedding insurance premiums to start at £133, as of September 2023.

Average premiums in each month varied between £143 up to £188 in the 12 months prior.

A higher premium buys you higher levels of cover, as well as overseas and marquee cover. However, cheaper policies may suit many people.

As with other types of insurance, you'll get cheaper wedding insurance by getting quotes from a comparison site. Knowing your budget - the total cost of your wedding - is the starting point when seeking a quote.

You could also estimate how much the different parts of your wedding are likely to cost - such as the value of rings, flowers and transport, and make sure an insurance policy offers enough cover.

• Find out more: 18 ways to save money as a wedding guest 

What does wedding insurance cover?

Your policy could include cover for some or all of the following:

Cancellation

In case you have to rearrange the wedding or reception due to accident, illness (providing its not pre-existing) or bereavement within the main wedding party. Cancellation cover also covers instances were the venue cancels on you.

In some policies, extreme weather that prevents 50% of your guest from attending will also be covered.

You won't be covered if you change your mind or can't afford to go ahead. Make sure the policy limit reflects the entire cost of rearranging your wedding.

Attire

In case the wedding dress, suits or other outfits are lost or damaged beyond repair while in your possession. The cover starts when you buy the outfits, or 24 hours before they're hired.

Gifts

You should be covered if gifts are lost, stolen or accidentally damaged, provided they haven't been left unattended. Be aware that this cover only applies a short time before the wedding and there may be specific limits for individual items, and limits for cash and cheque gifts.

Photographs and videos

If your photos or videos can't be developed or the photographer doesn't turn up, this cover will pay for you and the wedding party to hire outfits and get the photos retaken. However, it doesn't cover poor quality photos.

Rings

In case the rings are lost, damaged or stolen. However, be aware that this cover only applies for a short time before and after the wedding so you should add rings to your home contents insurance.

Flowers

These are usually covered until the start of the reception. They'll need to be packed properly while they're being transported to the wedding.

Transport

In case the transport you've arranged to take you to or from the wedding doesn't turn up, you'll be reimbursed for any deposits you've already paid and additional costs to rearrange transport.

Supplier failure

In case a supplier doesn't deliver or goes bust, you'll be covered for any deposits you've paid and - in some but not all cases - any additional costs you incur. 

This is an important distinction:  if the florist goes out of business the week of the wedding and you need to pay over the odds to get last minute flowers that cost a lot more than originally planned, it's unlikely the insurance will cover the higher amount.

Make sure you have a written contract with the supplier.

Marquee and swords

If your wedding involves either of these, you'll typically have to get extra cover or pay for a superior policy. 

Marquee cover is useful where you put a marquee up on your land or hired land where the owner doesn't also own the marquee. It will pay for any accidental damage to the marquee, staging, chairs, tables, lighting and flooring.

Ceremonial swords are typically expensive and so insurers will require extra cover.

Liability

Covers the bride and groom if they're liable for injury to a third person or damage to a property, such as the venue. 

However, basic liability cover may not extend to injury or damage caused by guests - for that you'll need public liability cover.

Legal expenses

Similar to liability cover, this means the bridge or groom's legal expenses if they're taken to court because of an injury or damage they've caused.

What about insurance for weddings abroad?

Although standard wedding insurance policy won't apply to weddings abroad, many insurers offer specialised cover.

Even with wedding insurance, travel insurance is still essential to cover the bride, groom and guests before and after the wedding.

And, if you plan to go abroad on your honeymoon, travel insurance is also essential.

• Find out more: Best travel insurance 2024 

How do you complain about your wedding insurance provider?

If you have a problem with your wedding insurer, take these steps:

1. Complain in writing to your wedding insurer
2. If you're not happy with the response, or they don't respond within eight weeks, you can take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman service (FOS)
3. The FOS will investigate what happened and, if it agrees with you, order the insurer to make things right, potentially including compensation. This can take several months
4. If you don't agree with the FOS decision, you can ask for a final decision from one of its ombudsmen
5. If you're still unhappy with that, it's possible to take your complaint case to court