Here I am.

I was 50 years old in April. I told myself (and my husband when we first started dating) that I was never getting married again.

Yet, there I was. June 6, 2020. D-Day, literally.  Ha ha!

First, I love to host. Having family and friends over, making food & drinks, is my thing. Whether it’s just having the kids & grandkids over for “Sunday Dinner” or putting on something more formal, like a graduation reception, I love it.

The planning, the decorating…I love ALL of it! I’ve done it many times. And I want everything to be perfect.

Every. Single. Time. 

So, planning a wedding and reception shouldn’t be a big deal for me.

Right?

We’re “keeping it simple”.

Hmmm…Yeah, right.

That’s how it started out anyway.

Our first thought was to go to the courthouse. It’s a second marriage for both of us so we didn’t need to make a big production. As we announced our engagement, we realized our families really wanted to be there for us.

We started out planning a small outdoor wedding at a local golf course. The clubhouse holds maybe 50 people. Once we started counting heads, we knew that a small wedding wasn’t going to happen.

My fiancé, Dan, is 1 of 9 children, in a roundabout sort of way. There is nothing small about that, but that’s a story for another time.  So, we moved on to a bigger venue, which means more $$$.

More to decorate, more to feed, and much more to potentially go wrong.

I told him I thought wedding insurance was something we should look in to since our wedding was not so small anymore.

His response was, “Is that really a thing? So… if you change your mind and get cold feet, I can get a refund?” 

Well, not exactly.

Every Bride Wants Her Day To Go Off Without A Hitch

I’m guessing most weddings have something minor happen, but the guests generally don’t notice, or don’t care. However, unexpected things can happen, anytime, anyplace. Floods, fires, and in 2020, we have the COVID19 messing EVERYTHING up.

All we wanted was a simple wedding. And that’s exactly what we got. A backyard wedding with just our immediate family and everyone else was able to watch via Facebook Live.

We ended up having a smaller reception later this summer, and it was very nice. Just not what we planned.  

The Best Laid Plans…

Now that states are opening up again, people are more conscientious about planning. More and more venues are requiring event insurance. In 2017, the average wedding cost over $30,000.

According to the Wedding Wire Newlywed Report, couples on averge hire 15 vendors! These include the venue, photographer, beautician, and cake designer, just to name a few.

This same article stated that while many couples start out with a budget in place before they contact vendors, approximately 54% of those couples INCREASE their budget to allow for things they want to include in their special day.

It is an investment for sure. So why wouldn’t you insure it?

You wouldn’t go without insurance on a vehicle that costs that much, so it makes sense to protect this investment as well. Therefore, wedding, and private event insurance is a necessity. 

Outside of the coronavirus, other crises still occur. Many couples were in a panic when the Younes Conference Center in Kearney, Nebraska flooded in July 2019. So many businesses were affected by the flood. Couples suddenly had to re-plan. Imagine finding a new venue, postponing the date, and possibly finding a new caterer or photographer, just to name a few.

Think of all the deposits lost.

It made me wonder, what would we do?

This winter, I fell on the ice and had 2 fractures in my tibia. I had the fun of wearing a boot on my leg for 3 weeks. Dan and I love to dance, so what if that had happened closer to the wedding date and we needed to postpone? Dan said we’d still be getting married, even if it was in the hospital!

A Wedding/Private Event insurance policy can provide affordable event liability insurance coverage, no matter how large or small your event is.    

For example, the Cancellation or Postponement of an event can provide coverage for certain deposits.

If the venue is inaccessible, or sudden illness prevents honorees, parents, grandparents, or children of honorees from attending, this coverage can reimburse you for deposits lost. This also includes an honoree being unexpectedly called to military duty.

In addition to dancing, we also love good food and drinks. That brings up the question of what if someone has a little too much fun at the reception and something gets broken or someone gets injured? These are real possibilities that we don’t give as much thought to as we should. And unfortunately, we live in a world where people like to sue for damages.

• Liability/Bodily Injury/Personal Injury/Property Damage endorsements can provide coverage if someone is injured. For example, if someone slips and falls at the rehearsal dinner, ceremony, or reception or someone breaks property belonging to the venue or rental company.
• The Liquor Liability Endorsement is designed to protect you and your immediate family against alcohol-related accidents. For example, if an accident is caused by an intoxicated guest at the event site, that could result in liability for you.

Lately, I’ve seen posts on Facebook about a certain DJ accepting deposits and then not showing up for the event.

Kind of made me want to just set up a Spotify playlist for the evening.  

I see a lot of “photographers” posting their services along with beautiful photos they have taken. What if my photographer’s film/digital card is defective or damaged or lost?

And I can totally picture my sister heading out to the car and falling down the steps, damaging the precious gifts we were given!

• Lost Deposit Coverage can provide coverage if a vendor goes out of business, declares bankruptcy before your event, or simply fails to show up. If your DJ or limo provider bails on you, this coverage can reimburse your lost deposit.
• Event Photographs and Video coverage can reimburse you for the cost of reconvening your wedding party to take new photos or video.

When you think of all the time, planning, and deposits you have put into your event, wedding or otherwise, wouldn’t you feel better knowing you have some protection in case something goes wrong?

 I wish I could get this kind of protection for Sunday Dinners when the grandkids come over….