Welcome Back! It’s been a while since I have written to you. I’m still here but have been observing some disturbing things. As this virus comes and goes couples and their weddings are left in a state of confusion. Some have lost large sums of money due to the closing or cancelation of their venue. Couples are left without the ability to have the wedding of their DREAMs. As a Planner/Consultant, I advise my clients to invest in insurance. Some take advantage of the advice others don’t. Although it is written for planners, I found the following article, by Lindsey Nickel of Lovely Day Strategy for Wedding Planners, to be one of the best and easiest reads I have found. With her permission, I am sharing it with you in its entirety.

Even though engaged couples don’t want to think about the worst-case scenarios for their wedding, the truth is worst-case scenarios do happen. As a wedding planner, it is your job to be informed and help them to protect their wedding investment. 

One year I had a couple that called off their wedding about five months before the wedding date. She had a wedding dress, the venue was booked and the vendors had all received their first payments. They had not purchased their wedding cancellation insurance yet (though not all policies cover “change of heart”), so they were not able to get back any of the money from their vendor and venue deposits. That same year, there was a planned power outage and the power was out at the wedding venue starting three days before the wedding. The father of the bride rented at $10,000 generator. They had wedding insurance and were able to get some, if not all, of that cost, covered.

There are basically two types of wedding insurance: liability insurance and cancellation insurance. Liability insurance helps to protect against financial loss from a wedding accident, damage, or incident. Most venues require clients to have liability insurance for their wedding. Cancellation insurance is for canceling or postponing your wedding. 

Why might a wedding be canceled or postponed:

  • Death (a fellow planner had a groom die suddenly a few months before the wedding)
  • Illness (sudden illness ranging from cancer to shingles can cause a wedding to be canceled or postponed)
  • Injury 
  • Natural disasters such as wildfires, earthquakes or an avalanche. During the 2017 fires in wine country, wedding venues burned down, vendor’s homes and studios burned down.
  • A venue shuts down
  • A vendor closes

Also, consider these scenarios:

  • The bridal shop with your dress burns down, damages or losses your wedding dress
  • Gifts and cards with cash are stolen
  • The groom’s custom tuxedo is lost by the airline on his way to the wedding
  • The photographer loses the film with your wedding photos or the memory cards with your photos are damaged

Basically, wedding insurance provides peace of mind for the unexpected. Like any insurance, you purchase it hoping you will not have to use it.  Be sure to check the contract with the venue to make sure that you are purchasing the correct amount and type of liability insurance. Buy early! The sooner you purchase the insurance the sooner they are covered from a worst-case scenario. Update July 2020: COVID-19 and shelter at home are not typically covered by cancellation insurance, so be sure to ask about those before purchasing. Every wedding and insurance policy is different. Be sure to do research and talk to an insurance provider.

The take away: buy early and purchase both liability and cancellation insurance.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, please don’t hesitate to email us at dreamcatchers114@gmail.com.