What You Need to Know About Hurricanes and Wedding Insurance

What You Need to Know About Hurricanes and Wedding Insurance

By Meagan Phillips | Published September 14, 2023

As originally published on Marry Me Tampa Bay

Predictions for the 2023 hurricane season have recently been published. With the devastation from Hurricane Ian still fresh in our minds, it is recommended that couples protect their wedding investment with wedding insurance.

Hurricane season runs June 1st through November 30th, which means that weddings taking place almost half of the year are at risk. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is forecasting 12 to 17 named storms (winds of 39 mph or higher), of which 5 to 9 could become hurricanes (category 3, 4 or 5; with winds of 111 mph or higher).

So, what happens if a tropical storm or hurricane hits, causing your wedding venue to shut down, what if your parents can’t catch a flight to Florida to see you get married, or what if your bridal shop is damaged from a storm before your wedding date and your dress gets ruined?

There’s wedding insurance for that.

What Hurricane Scenarios Could be Covered?

Cancellation or postponement of the wedding may be covered if a hurricane were on its way to ruin your special day*. If your vendors or your venue didn’t refund your contracted deposits due to the cancellation, our policy can potentially help reimburse the lost money to you so you can begin planning another date. While in some cases it is very easy to determine that the hurricane will hit your city on your wedding date, you never know when a storm might make a last-minute path change that could impact your day. Purchase your policy well in advance of your event date to ensure appropriate coverage is in place.

* Exclusions apply if the policy is purchased within 14 days of the event date.

If you lived in Tampa Bay in 2022 during Category 4 Hurricane Ian, you’ll remember how suddenly the storm changed its course. Initially predicted as a direct hit for Tampa, instead the historic storm made landfall in southwest Florida before continuing its devastation across the state. Everyone scrambled to acquire last-minute supplies and many areas underwent mandatory evacuations. Weddings were suddenly canceled as people began driving to cities not in Ian’s path.

Special Event insurance coverage can potentially help if this happens to you or if roads are suddenly closed due to: the extreme weather; a state of emergency is declared, or if your venue can’t open due to the storm.

Coverage for cancellation or postponement may also apply If the couple or their immediate family is unable to make it to the wedding due to travel impediments caused by the hurricane, due to flight cancellations.

If the hurricane isn’t as severe as expected, and you’re able to hold your wedding, but find out that a vendor is closed due to the storm or can’t deliver the contracted services, (such as a bakery that can’t make your cake due to no power), coverage may be available for lost deposits if they chose not to refund you.

Our policies may also protect you from loss if the hurricane strikes well before your wedding date but causes you financial loss. An example of this would be the extreme damage Texas experienced after Hurricane Harvey. This storm damaged homes and businesses alike, and bridal dress shops and alteration stores were left with ruined dresses when the hurricane subsided.

What Mistakes Do Couples Make When it Comes to Getting Hurricane Coverage?

In 2017, many people were trying to buy a wedding insurance policy after they had found out that Hurricane Harvey, Irma, or Maria was heading their way. Couples scrambled to prepare last minutes in 2018 for Hurricane Michael, and unfortunately, many weddings were impacted in 2022 when Hurricane Ian made its arrival. To have extreme weather coverage, policies need to be issued at least 14 days in advance of the event date, at a very minimum, catastrophic weather event coverage will not apply once they are known events.

Even if your wedding is not during hurricane season, it is possible your venue can become severely damaged or may not have power for weeks due to the storm. This can lead to cancellations for months to come while the venue undergoes repairs. Hurricanes Maria and Irma caused so much devastation in islands popular for destination weddings that plenty of weddings were canceled during and after hurricane season while the islands rebuilt their infrastructure.

A wedding is an investment and the start of a life-long journey; don’t wait until the last-minute to protect your investment. Purchasing wedding insurance sooner rather than later gives you peace of mind from the start of your wedding planning until the day itself.

How Much Does Wedding Insurance Cost?

Through the Wedding Protector Plan, cancellation/postponement  coverage typically begins at $160, which will cover a wedding that costs up to $7,500. As the national average for weddings is closer to the $25,000-$35,000 range, policies that will adequately cover that amount will be typically $249 for $25,000 in coverage or $300 for $35,000 for Florida residents*. If your budget is higher or lower than this, we have very affordable coverage for weddings of all budgets.

While many of our claims arise from money lost to vendors or the venue due to uncontrollable circumstances, we offer optional liability and liquor liability that can be added to the policy. Some venues nowadays are even beginning to require that you carry liability coverage on the day of the wedding in case a guest has an accident or damages something on the property. If you need this coverage, liability begins at only $165 for a $1,000,0000 General Aggregate, and you can add this coverage to your cancellation/postponement coverage policy through us.

*Subject to change

What Can Be Covered?

Our policies offer protection for the contracted payments you have made to your venue and contracted vendors, such as your DJ, caterer, florist, photographer, bridal shop, etc. If these vendors happen to go out of business, not show up to the wedding, or don’t deliver the services you’ve paid for and outlined in your contract, our policy can help pay you back the deposits you’ve lost to them and can even help you pay for a replacement vendor.

Unfortunately, vendor-related issues topped Travelers’ 2022 list of wedding mishaps at almost one-third (31%) of paid claims. An example is when a national bridal dress shop, closed numerous stores nationwide, leaving many dress orders unfulfilled. With the unstable economy affecting the financial stability of a variety of businesses, it’s smart to insure your deposits.

The cost of the wedding is also protected if you had to cancel or postpone the wedding due to catastrophic weather events, such as hurricanes, or venue unavailability, such as your venue double-booking or getting damaged during a hurricane and closing for repairs. Our policies can cover the rehearsal, rehearsal dinner, ceremony, reception, and post-wedding day brunch. * The costs for all these events should be factored into the level of coverage you are purchasing.

The optional liability and liquor liability coverage can protect the couple if a guest has an injury on-premises and sues the newlyweds, or if someone breaks something at the venue and the couple has to pay for those damages.*

*Subject to policy terms, conditions, and exclusions.

When Do I Need to Purchase It?

We recommend purchasing a policy as soon as you begin putting deposits down for your wedding. Unfortunately, we have heard many stories about venues that continued booking weddings even though they were in the process of foreclosing or had begun the process of selling the venue to new owners that may not honor previous event bookings.

We have also heard plenty of tales of couples who paid a vendor a deposit and then were never able to get back in contact with that business. Once you have already found out that you have experienced a financial loss, it is too late to have coverage for that circumstance if you have not purchased a policy.

Insurance is designed to protect against unforeseen and uncontrollable losses that occur after you have purchased a policy. We can issue policies up to two years in advance of the wedding date, and we always recommend purchasing the policy sooner rather than later.

If you are not sure whether you need liability coverage for your venue, but you’ve already put a deposit down, you can purchase the cancellation/postponement coverage so your deposits are protected for potential losses like a venue or vendor bankruptcy, and you can add liability and liquor liability coverage onto our policy up until a few days prior to the wedding.

Offered through Travelers, the Wedding Protector Plan provides wedding insurance coverage for the ceremony, reception, rehearsal, rehearsal dinner, and a post-wedding brunch without a deductible. There’s also the option to add liability coverage for the many other things that could go wrong. With last year’s devastation from hurricanes, wildfires, and other storms fresh in everyone’s mind, and with venues increasingly requiring insurance, find out how wedding insurance can protect your special day. Get a Quote or Purchase A Policy when the wedding planning begins.

The information in this post is general in nature. Any description of coverage is necessarily simplified. Whether a particular loss is covered depends on the specific facts and the provisions, exclusions, and limits of the actual policy. Nothing in this post alters the terms or conditions of any of our policies. Please read the policy for a complete description of coverage. Coverage options, limits, discounts, and deductibles are subject to individuals meeting our underwriting criteria and state availability.

As COVID-19 is a known infectious disease and presents circumstances that may reasonably give rise to cancellation and/or postponement of your event, coverage will not be afforded in any way for such circumstance.

Wedding Protector Plan Provides Robust Travel Protection for Honeymoons and Destination Weddings

Wedding Protector Plan Provides Robust Travel Protection for Honeymoons and Destination Weddings

Wedding Protector Plan® has launched new travel protection coverage for honeymoons and destination weddings. The plan is now available through its partner, Travel Insured International (TII) – a leading travel insurance provider and a Crum & Forster Company.

Couples looking to help protect their honeymoon travel plans, and guests traveling to destination weddings now have a robust travel protection solution. The plan has a wide range of benefits including optional Cancel for Any Reason coverage which provides covered travelers reimbursement of up to 75 percent of their insured trip cost for cancelations.

The plan’s Travel Assistance non-insurance feature includes medical or legal referral, hospital admission guarantee, lost baggage retrieval, emergency cash advance, prescription drug/eyeglass replacement, and more. In addition, Identity Theft Resolution Services help restore an insured’s identity in case of identity theft during covered travel.

“With worldwide travel on the rise, couples are again planning honeymoons around the globe. Since honeymoon travel coverage is limited under wedding insurance policies, we believed additional options were needed to allow couples to more fully insure their travel plans,” states Meagan Phillips, vice president, program leader of Wedding Protector Plan®.

Travel Insured International has offered quality worldwide travel protection and an array of travel protection benefits for nearly three decades. Partnering with hundreds of travel agencies large and small, TII helps them to offer their travelers extensive travel protection plans, including Wedding Protector Plan’s® honeymoon and wedding destination coverage.

“Unexpected events can occur during a honeymoon or destination wedding, which is why the Worldwide Trip Protector Plan not only provides robust coverage for travelers, but also includes 24/7 non-insurance assistance services worldwide,” DeAnne Petritz, AVP, Account Management & Trade Relations at Travel Insured International. “With the Worldwide Trip Protector Plan, travelers can go away knowing that they have coverage and support when they need it most.”

Hotlines have been established in cases of an emergency for travelers covered under the Wedding Protector Plan. They can call toll-free 800-494-9907 (from the US) or call collect at 603-328-1707 (from all other locations) for assistance.

Worldwide Trip Protector Plan coverage is available to citizens or residents of the United States who have booked and paid for their trip. For more information on the Wedding Protector Plan®, visit https://www.protectmywedding.com/travel-protection/. To get a quote from Travel Insured International, call 1-855-752-8303 to speak with a licensed agent or get a quote online.

About Wedding Protector Plan®

Wedding Protector Plan® provides cancellation/postponement wedding insurance coverage for many problems, such as severe weather causing wedding cancellation or postponement, transportation shutdowns, lost deposits and other headaches that can ruin the anticipated celebration. Consumers also have the option to add private event liability with no deductible as an endorsement to their special event insurance policy.

Wedding Protector Plan® is a division of Protector Plans Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Brown & Brown, Inc.

Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE: BRO) is a leading insurance brokerage firm, delivering risk management solutions to individuals and businesses since 1939. With more than 14,500 teammates in 450+ locations worldwide, we are committed to providing innovative strategies to help protect what our customers value most. For more information or to find an office near you, please visit www.bbinsurance.com.

About Travel Insured International (TII)
Founded in 1994, Travel Insured International (TII) is one of the leading travel insurance providers, offering quality worldwide travel protection for over 25 years. Located in Glastonbury, Connecticut USA, the company offers an array of travel protection benefits including Emergency Assistance and Evacuation, Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption Protection, Medical Expense Insurance, Baggage Insurance, Airline Ticket Protection, and more.

Travel Insured maintains relationships with specialty travel providers and tour operators, as well as provides 24/7 insurance assistance that allows you to travel relaxed, travel secure, and travel insured.

For further information visit: https://www.travelinsured.com/.

Press Release: Wedding Protector Plan Provides Robust Travel Protection for Honeymoons and Destination Weddings (prweb.com)

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Why Savvy Couples Say “I Do” To Wedding Insurance

Why Savvy Couples Say “I Do” To Wedding Insurance

With an average of 12 vendors hired and $27k at stake, wedding insurance can help provide protection when the unexpected happens on, before or even after your big day. Here’s a look at key considerations in choosing a policy that’s right for you.

By Regina Burnett and Meagan Phillips

Congratulations! With a wedding on the horizon, there’s a good chance that you’ve been visiting venues, choosing menus and making dozens of decisions for a truly memorable day. But there’s more that you can — and should — do to protect your big day from the unexpected.

Planning a wedding takes time and money, with the average wedding costing $27,000[1]. Couples typically hire as many as 12 vendors for their wedding to ensure their special day runs smoothly.[2] For this reason, adding a wedding insurance policy can be an important part of your to-do checklist.

Even the most careful wedding planning can’t completely prevent the unexpected, from forgetful photographers and suddenly shuttered venues to extreme weather and sudden family illness.

Beyond counting on vendors to show up, and hoping for clear skies, obtaining a wedding insurance policy can both help protect your special day — and provide peace of mind that reimbursement is possible for a covered loss.

What does wedding insurance cover?

Wedding insurance is a special event insurance that can provide coverage when your planning or private event gets derailed in some way. This includes venues closing, military deployment, vendors going out of business or not showing up, extreme weather, unexpected sickness or injury and more.

It can protect you in the months leading up to your wedding, at the event itself, and even after, including the making of your contracted wedding video and photos. It can also help protect you from liability if one of your guests causes property damage to the wedding venue, for example. 

Consider these scenarios:

  • A perfect storm: A severe storm knocks out power and disrupts travel for days, causing a couple to postpone their wedding. Because policies are based on the total anticipated cost of the wedding, wedding insurance can reimburse for the contracted expenses of caterers, property and equipment rental, transportation and other expenses, including invitations and flowers.
    Note:
    A 14-day extreme weather exclusion applies. Purchase a policy early to ensure coverage is in place.
  • The runaway band: After months spent choosing a wedding band, the band breaks up before the big day, and keeps your deposit. Wedding insurance could reimburse you the contracted lost deposit paid, helping you secure a new band before your event, without missing a beat.
  • A second take: When the photographer’s memory card malfunctions, and he doesn’t deliver the photos as promised, wedding insurance can provide coverage for the cost of retaking new wedding photographs after the event.

How much wedding insurance coverage do you need?

Obtaining wedding insurance that spans the entire planning time will help protect you from these types of unanticipated scenarios. There are also ancillary coverages that are built into each policy to protect against incidents that may impact your special day but not actually cancel it, including the loss of deposits, videos, wedding attire, rings and special gifts.

Policies are based on the total anticipated cost of the wedding, so the coverage protects your total financial exposure. Premiums to cover your wedding can cost as little as 1% of the total cost of your wedding.

Does your policy cover your entire financial exposure?

Not all wedding insurance policies are created equal. Some cover only the day of the event, while others cover the event and the expenses leading up to it, from vendor deposits to day-of catering and photography.

Remember, the event itself is just one area of liability, which is why it’s important to obtain a wedding policy that covers your whole financial exposure. You may not realize that when you rent a venue for your event, you will be responsible for incidents that occur at the wedding as well. For example, if someone falls while dancing and breaks their leg, you may have to cover that expense.

When is the best time to buy?

Consider buying wedding insurance as soon as you begin planning your wedding, signing contracts and putting money down as deposits. You can purchase it up to two years in advance. The price of the policy is the same regardless of when you buy it, so it’s a good idea to be covered as soon as possible.

Make sure you do everything you can to have an unforgettable wedding, including obtaining insurance coverage that protects your investment on your special day. To learn more about wedding insurance, contact The Wedding Protector Plan®.

Underwritten by Travelers, the Wedding Protector Plan®. provides wedding insurance coverage for the ceremony, reception, rehearsal, rehearsal dinner, and a post-wedding brunch without a deductible. There’s also the option to add liability coverage for the many other things that could go wrong. With the Wedding Protector Plan®, you can ensure that nearly every risk is covered. Learn more about this valuable coverage and Get a Quote or Purchase A Policy when the wedding planning begins.

*The information in this post is general in nature. Any description of coverage is necessarily simplified. Whether a particular loss is covered depends on the specific facts and the provisions, exclusions, and limits of the actual policy. Nothing in this post alters the terms or conditions of any of our policies. Please read the policy for a complete description of coverage. Coverage options, limits, discounts, and deductibles are subject to individuals meeting our underwriting criteria and state availability.

[1]The Ascent “This Is the Average Cost of a Wedding in 2022,” July 2, 2022.

[2] The Wedding Wire “2021 WeddingWire Newlywed Report: COVID-19 EDITION,” 2021.