What is wedding insurance?

It can take a lot to arrange your dream wedding, from the venue to the guest list, but you can only plan so much. Wedding insurance helps cover your losses if something goes wrong. 

This guide explores whether you need wedding insurance, how much it costs, and what coverage you can get. 

Not sure of your budget yet? Read our blog about the average cost of a wedding.

Wedding insurance isn’t essential, but it protects you if the cost of cancelling or postponing your wedding could hurt you financially. 

Whether or not you need wedding insurance depends on your circumstances.

Wedding insurance may not be needed for smaller, less costly events or if you have flexible agreements with your venue and suppliers that let you cancel or rearrange at little or no extra cost. 

If you’re planning a big wedding, getting married might be your most expensive life event. There are a lot of costs involved, and you could lose money if you’re uninsured and something goes wrong. In this case, wedding insurance can offer financial protection and peace of mind. 

If you’re planning a large event with high-value items, you can expect to spend more on insurance. However, the cost of being uninsured could outweigh the cost of having coverage. 

There are various levels of wedding insurance, covering different losses and events. 

Wedding insurance usually covers the following:

• cancellation or rescheduling – due to unforeseen illness, injury, or extreme weather

• venue and supplier issues – such as damaged goods or suppliers going into shutting down

• lost, damaged, or stolen items – like wedding attire, gifts, cake, and flowers. 

Wedding insurance doesn’t cover things like: 

• changing your mind – about getting married or about details like the venue or date

• pre-existing conditions – such as health or weather-related issues that you knew about before buying insurance

• injury or deaths – these are covered by personal liability insurance

• your honeymoon – this is covered by travel insurance. 

Wedding insurance isn’t a legal requirement for overseas weddings. 

If you’re having your wedding abroad, travel insurance can protect you against certain problems, like loss or theft of bags, flight cancellations, and medical care. 

You can find out more in our travel insurance guide.

Travel insurance won’t cover you if you have venue or catering issues, including if the company goes bankrupt. You need special coverage for wedding-related problems.

In many cases, you can get UK wedding insurance with overseas cover add-ons. This usually covers many countries around the world, but check your policy details for exclusions. 

Wedding insurance costs vary depending on the cost of your wedding and the level of coverage you choose. UK wedding insurance can cost as little as £20. Typically, insurance for more expensive weddings costs more. 

Shop around and compare insurers to get the best deal for your needs.  

You can read our guide to learn How much the average wedding costs.

It’s a good idea to choose coverage that fits with your wedding plans and budget. 

Start by working out what it would cost to cancel or rearrange your wedding, considering expenses like the venue, catering, and other services. 

This should help you understand how much coverage you need. 

It might be useful to write a list of ‘must haves’ for your wedding insurance, like venue cancellation and illness protection, to make sure you choose the right level of cover. 

There are various levels of wedding insurance coverage and add-ons to think about, protecting you against different losses and eventualities. The cheapest deal might not be the best for you. 

When you know what you need, shop around and compare what insurers can offer to avoid paying too much.

Check the policy details to make sure you know what is and isn’t covered. 

You can read our guide to learn How to create a wedding budget.

Public liability is usually an optional add-on. It covers you if a guest or supplier claims they have been injured or had property damaged at your wedding. This could include anything from damaged furniture to accidental death. 

Wedding public liability insurance isn’t a legal requirement, but some venue owners may ask for it. 

Check your public liability policy details for overseas weddings. It might not apply to certain countries, such as the U.S. or Canada.

Find out more in our guide about what kind of protection insurance you need.

Our Wedding ideas on a budget guide includes helpful advice about how you can save on the cost of your big day.