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Sharon Naylor, the author of "The Complete Outdoor Wedding Planner," strongly recommends wedding insurance for the simple reasons that you're dealing with a host of vendors and there's a lot of money at stake. Plus, we live in a society in which people will sue for just about anything.
How strong is her recommendation?
"If you're having an outdoor wedding and you don't have insurance, you're a moron," Naylor says. "When you look at the amount of money it is, it's worth it. The big benefit is the peace of mind."
But be sure to read the policy thoroughly to make sure it meets your needs. Naylor says she's seen some odd kinds of coverage. "One policy covers you if the photographer is kidnapped," she says.
Don't overlook the 'other' policy
OK, you bought a wedding insurance policy. But you're not through with your insurance agent yet.Brides and grooms almost certainly will need liability coverage. This insurance is separate from the standard wedding policy, which covers money you've shelled out on products and services for your wedding. Liability insurance covers you in the event of an accident or injury related to your wedding.
Since liability is additional coverage, you'll pay extra for it, but it's a cost you'll have to bear. Your wedding won't happen at most venues without liability coverage, says certified wedding consultant Joyce Scardina Becker, the founding director of the Wedding Consultation Certificate program at San Francisco State University.
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If you want to get married at some very romantic place -- an antebellum mansion, vineyard or the Nixon Library (Karen Sandau says it requires a $2 million policy) -- you can bet you won't put a pinky on the property without a policy covering things such as damage to the hall or an injury to a guest or a staff member.
Then there's the alcohol issue. If a guest has too much to drink and then gets in an accident or a brawl, the bride and groom almost certainly will be among those named in a lawsuit.
"I don't care what wedding it is, people will leave drunk unless you don't serve alcohol," Sandau says. "It's so scary."
Couples planning an at-home wedding should review their homeowners-policy liability limits. Naylor says many policies won't cover private special events.
"You have to look at your home from a risk-analysis perspective," she says. "Talk to your agent. It's very important to check your insurance because that's Lawsuitville."
Vetting your vendors
Brides and grooms can avoid many of the problems covered by wedding insurance, Scardina Becker says, by carefully reading contracts and only using licensed and insured vendors.Scardina Becker has worked on hundreds of weddings in her other capacity as president of Events of Distinction, a San Francisco special-event planning firm. She won't take on clients who want friends or family members to bake the wedding cake, take the photos or provide some other wedding service. All it takes is one person to get food poisoning, trip over a camera tripod or claim they burst an eardrum because Uncle Louie's band was too loud.
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You want each vendor contract to contain a "hold harmless" clause that releases you from responsibility if something happens because of their negligence. The contract also should provide indemnification. That means that if you get named in a lawsuit (and as the host, you probably will), the vendor involved in the litigation will pay for your defense. They'll want you to do the same for them.
Scardina Becker cites a case in which an inebriated wedding guest died in a fall as he left the reception. The bride called the following day to express her sympathies, but the widow wouldn't talk to her. Instead, the bride was named as a defendant in a lawsuit.
"Who may be implicated in the litigation?" Scardina Becker asks. "A number of potential people: the bride for issuing the invitation, the wedding planner who planned the event, the venue for hosting the event, the bartender who served the alcohol beverage.
"Who should have insurance? Everyone."
This article was reported and written by Pat Curry for Bankrate.com.
Published Sept. 19, 2007
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