Insure Your Big Day Or You Could Lose £18,000

If you're planning the wedding day of your dreams, here's how to stop it turning into a financial nightmare.

Arranging a wedding can be a long and time-consuming project. If you're getting married next year your plans for the big day are probably well under way. If you've already booked the ceremony and found the perfect reception venue not to mention chosen the dress, the flowers and the rings, then so far so good. But have you remembered to insure the whole event? If you haven't, you're not alone. Only 1 in 6 couples get round to buying cover in case things go wrong. But with more of us getting married and the cost of the average wedding spiraling, it could be worth adding insurance to your wedding planner. There's no real consensus on how much the average wedding will set you back. Estimates suggest anywhere between £11,000 and a whopping £25,000, so taking the middle ground we could be spending roughly £18,000. What we do know is that for some of us it's going to be a pretty hefty bill, so you want to avoid any unexpected expenses if disaster strikes. You may be surprised just how comprehensive wedding insurance packages can be. Have a look at the list below for an idea of some of the benefits. You will usually be covered if: the reception venue goes out of business or can't hold your event because of fire, flood etc your wedding dress is damaged before the wedding day your photographs get damaged or can't be developed your suppliers go bust the clergy, registrar or officiator who is due to conduct your ceremony fail to attend wedding transport fails to turn up your rings, cake, flowers, presents are lost or damaged you're forced to cancel or re-arrange your wedding due to accident or illness According to new data from Debenhams Wedding Insurance, cancellations due to the illness of a close relative is now the most common reason for calling off the big day. The insurer has experienced a 50% rise in claims for cancellations over the past twelve months. Claims for damage to wedding attire and the failure of suppliers are also frequent. Wedding Cover & Premiums Thankfully, after the expenses you've already piled up, wedding insurance can be reasonably cheap. You can expect to pay around £50 for a basic policy. I've looked at how much cover is available from six wedding insurers for some of the most common claims: Insurer/ Cover Deben -hams Dream -saver Wedding Insurance E&L Insurance John Lewis M&S MRL Insurance Cancellation £9K - £30K £10K - £30K £10K - £50K £5K - £50K £5K - £17.5K £3K - £30K Re-arrangement £6K - £15K £7.5K - £22.5K 50% of costs 60% - 75% of original costs Up to 75% of original costs £1.8K - £15K Wedding Attire £3K - £10K £3K - £10K £4K - £10K £2K - £12K £2.5K - £5K £1K - £10K Failure of Suppliers £3K - £10K £1.5K - £5K £5K - £10K 40% - 50% of costs £2K - £5K £1.5K - £5K Photographs £1.5K - £5K £1.5K - £5K £3K - £10K £2K - £3,750 £2K - £3K £1K - £5K Gifts Total cover on D'hams gift list for 3 months £3K - £10K £4K - £10K £2.5K - £15K £2.5K - £5K £1K - £10K Premium range £55 - £144 £49.90 - £149.90 £25 - £260 Incl. 50% disc to 02.01.08 £46.34 - £355.22 £59 - £189 £49 - £189 Please note this table is not exhaustive in terms of insurers or cover available. Most insurers provide several different tiers of benefits which fall into the ranges shown. In this way you can select the right level of cover based on how much you've had to outlay for your wedding. Be careful though. Some, but not all, policies will expect you to pay an excess on any claims you make, so check the small print for that before you apply. Commonly you'll be expected to pay an excess of £25 for each claim you make, although a claim under public liability cover usually requires more. Also look out for any exclusions that are written into your policy. Most will only provide cover if you have inadequate funds as a result of redundancy after the policy was issued. Lack of funds for any other reason is excluded as is any illness claim that is related to a pre-existing medical condition. Is it worth it? Some say planning a wedding is the second most stressful thing you can do after buying a home, so I think there's a lot to be said for the peace of mind wedding insurance can provide. In cash terms whether it's worthwhile depends on the amount you've already shelled out up-front for your wedding arrangements. If you're planning a lavish day, the insurance premium could run to several hundred pounds. That said, if you stand to lose £50,000 on cancelling your wedding I think that's a relatively small price to pay. Just don't forget no insurance policy will cover cold feet or what insurers like to call a `disinclination to marry'. If you have a change of heart or your partner does -- perish the thought -- you'll still have to foot the bill! More: Wedding insurance won't cover your honeymoon. You'll need a separate travel insurance policy if you're travelling abroad. Visit The Motley Fool's Travel Insurance Service for a competitive quote.