What Is Wedding Insurance and Should You Buy It?

Weddings have become very expensive. The average cost of a wedding in 2022 was $30,000, according to The Knot. With weddings putting such a big burden on your checking account, it's not a surprise that wedding insurance is available. 

But what exactly is wedding insurance, and do couples need to buy it before their big day? Here's what you need to know before you put wedding insurance premiums on your credit card. 

What is wedding insurance?

Wedding insurance provides coverage for different things that can go wrong when the major event happens. Insurance policies can differ slightly from one carrier to another, and depending on what kinds of protection you want to buy. 

In general, however, wedding insurance can be broadly divided into two different categories: 

• Wedding cancellation or postponement: This provides you with coverage if your wedding must be canceled or postponed for a covered reason. Typically, this only pays out if the cancellation happened for a reason beyond your control, such as an extreme weather event or if the bride or groom become very ill. It can reimburse you for costs like lost deposits.
• Wedding liability insurance: This can provide coverage for property damage or injury that occurs on the wedding day. It could cover both injuries to guests as well as damage to the venue. Some venues will actually require couples who are getting married on site to purchase this kind of protection.

There could also be add-on riders available on some wedding insurance policies. For example, couples could get coverage for theft of or damage to gifts; for problems with special event attire such as the dress shop going out of business; or for cancellation of the wedding if the bride or groom is called up to active-duty military service.

The different kinds of coverage that are available are designed to protect against the most likely issues that could arise and impact the ability of the wedding to move forward as scheduled, at the agreed-upon venue, and wearing the planned special occasion clothing. 

Is wedding insurance worth purchasing?

Wedding insurance can cost anywhere from around $100 to as much as $500 or more. The costs are impacted by:

• The cost and size of the wedding
• The location where the wedding is taking place
• The amount of coverage being purchased
• Whether the couple chooses to add any riders onto the policy

If a bride and groom choose a venue that mandates liability insurance, they will need to make sure to comply with this requirement and put protection in place. If no wedding insurance is required, it may still be worth purchasing -- especially if the wedding is a large and costly one and there is a high risk of problems (such as for couples who decide to get married in Florida during hurricane season or when one person could be called up to serve in the military at any time).

Spending a few hundred dollars for a wedding insurance policy could be a small additional expense when having a big wedding, but it could be a lifesaver if something goes wrong. On the other hand, couples could also opt for a much less expensive, scaled-down wedding so they wouldn't be putting as much money at risk, and then wedding insurance might not be necessary after all.