Top wedding insurance claims of 2011
Do you remember your wedding day? It was likely a lovely affair, meant to share the love of you and your spouse with your friends and family. Today’s weddings accomplish the same, though the price tag is ballooning. The Average cost of a Canadian wedding rose to $23,330 in 2011 (from $20,129 in 2010) and that’s low by American standards. In the U.S., the average wedding costs $27,021 with prices soaring even higher in New York ($65,000) and Chicago ($53,069). Canadian brides do, however, spend more on their wedding dresses than their American counterparts ($1,798 in Canada compared to $1,100 in the U.S.)
So with so much money invested in a single day, wedding insurance is becoming as important for many couples as a wedding registry is.
U.S.-based Travelers Insurance recently analyzed its wedding claims from 2011 and found that vendor and venue problems are the most frequent cause of wedding day mishaps. The insurer says 31 percent of all wedding claims it received were due to these two issues.
The most common vendor- and venue-related problems include the facility or vendor going out of business, flowers and photos not being delivered and DJs not showing up. Sickness, injury and mishaps accounted for 19 percent of the wedding insurance claims and catastrophic weather-related problems accounted for 10 percent. Vandalism and theft represented 13 percent of claims, a new category revealed in the 2011 analysis. Other problems, such as military duty/deployment, unavoidable cancellation of weddings and issues with attire accounted for an additional 17 percent of the claims.
Travelers said the amount of vendor and venue issues can be a learning experience for the recently-engaged.
“Given that the leading causes of wedding claims continue to be a result of vendor and venue issues, couples should seriously consider the financial risks associated with planning a wedding and protect their investment and budget accordingly,” said Chantal Cyr, Vice President for Travelers Wedding Insurance.
