FAQs
Our FAQs should answer most questions about our wedding insurance.
If you have any other queries, please call us on 0845 777 3322. We’re open from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).
In a nutshell, what does Ecclesiastical wedding insurance cover?
What would happen if my wedding venue double books my reception?
What happens if one of the suppliers we’re using goes bankrupt?
Are we covered if the wedding dress or groom’s suit is damaged?
What if there’s a problem with our cake, flowers or stationery?
What happens if one of the wedding couple decides not to get married?
The bride or groom is in the armed forces – will you cover us?
My reception is on a different day to my wedding ceremony – is this covered?
What is a wedding insurance policy?
A wedding insurance policy is a speciality insurance package that provides financial protection for certain losses relating to your wedding, such as, cancellation of the wedding, theft of rings, damage to wedding attire and loss of deposits. The policy covers you for a defined period, including your wedding day.
Why do I need wedding insurance?
Your wedding day should be one of the best days of your life. However, it‘s also quite likely to be the biggest event you’ll ever organise. And with the average wedding now costing around £20,000*, it will also probably be the most expensive.
So if disaster does strike, it won’t just be painful memories you’re left with – your bank balance could suffer too.
Ecclesiastical wedding insurance is there to pay out when things go wrong. Of course, it can’t stop the upset if your day is cancelled or spoiled, but it can help limit your financial losses, or put you in a better position to put things right.
*You and Your Wedding Magazine research, June 2008.In a nutshell, what does Ecclesiastical wedding insurance cover?
Ecclesiastical wedding insurance protects you against the many things that can go wrong with your wedding plans.
It includes cover:in case the wedding has to be cancelled due to any cause beyond your control (except certain exclusions)
in case the wedding is cut short due to any cause beyond your control (except certain exclusions)
for problems with your wedding transport
if you have a problem or dispute with any of your wedding suppliers that the suppliers won’t resolve for you
for various losses or damage to wedding outfits, wedding gifts, gifts for bridesmaids and ushers, wedding rings, cakes, flowers, the official photographs and video, wedding documents
for loss or damage to your wedding marquee.
What if we have to cancel our wedding?
Our wedding insurance covers you if your wedding is cancelled or cut short for a reason beyond your control. If this happens, you may have to pay for suppliers or goods that you’ve booked but cannot use. Under this cover, you would be able to claim for these costs.What would happen if my wedding venue double books my reception?
You can include legal expenses cover that covers you if you have a problem or legal dispute with any of your wedding suppliers, including your venue.
Specialist solicitors will attempt to resolve the dispute for you so that you get the products or services you are entitled to on the day or compensation if the issue cannot be resolved before your wedding.What would happen if one of our suppliers let us down?
You can include legal expenses cover that covers you if you have a legal dispute with any of your wedding suppliers, including your venue.
Specialist solicitors will attempt to resolve the dispute for you so that you get the products or services you are entitled to on the day or compensation if the issue cannot be resolved before your wedding.What happens if one of the suppliers we’re using goes bankrupt?
You can include a cover called failure of suppliers in your policy.
This covers you if any of the suppliers you’re using for your wedding go into liquidation or become bankrupt.
It covers you for the cost of any deposits you lose. It also covers the additional costs you have to pay to re-arrange any products or service you lose.Are we covered if we lose our wedding rings?
Yes – you can include wedding ring cover, which will cover you for loss or damage to your rings from seven days before the wedding to one day after the reception.Are we covered if our photos get damaged?
Yes – you can include photograph and video cover, which covers you for the cost of re-taking your photos or video for either of the following reasons:because the professional photographer or video person doesn’t turn up
because the original photos or video are lost or damaged.
What happens if our wedding cars don’t arrive?
You can include transport cover, which will pay for the cost of lost deposits, or additional costs to re-arrange wedding transport following failure to provide wedding transport as set out in the provider's agreement with you.What if our wedding gifts are lost, damaged or stolen?
You can include cover for wedding and attendants’ gifts, which will replace the gifts, or pay the cost to replace them. We include cover for money and gift vouchers in this with a limit of £1,000.
If the gifts are damaged and can be repaired, we will pay the cost to repair them.Are we covered if the wedding dress or groom’s suit is damaged?
You can include wedding attire cover, which covers you for loss or damage to the wedding outfits of everyone in the wedding party.What if there’s a problem with our cake, flowers or stationery?
You can include cake, flowers and stationery cover, which covers you for repairs or replacements to these important parts of your day if they are lost or damaged.What if someone loses our wedding certificate?
You can include wedding documents cover, which covers you for the cost of replacing documents if they are lost or damaged whilst they are being looked after by someone in the wedding party.
This cover runs from one day before your wedding to one day after.Can I get cover for the marquee we are hiring?
Yes – you can add marquee cover that gives you cover for loss or damage to the marquee you’re using for your wedding.
You can choose from two levels of cover: £30,000 or £50,000.Is there a policy excess?
Yes – The amount you must pay towards any claim is an excess of £50 for some of the events your policy covers. You should read our wedding insurance policy document, and your policy schedule for full details of the excesses.Is our honeymoon included?
No – our wedding insurance does not cover claims that are to do with your honeymoon. We recommend that you get separate travel insurance. You can get 10% off our travel insurance when you buy our wedding insurance.What happens if one of the wedding couple decides not to get married?
Unfortunately, this isn’t covered. We call this disinclination to marry in the policy document.What if someone falls ill before the wedding?
The policy covers you if anyone in the wedding party falls ill and this means that you have to cancel, cut short, or re-arrange the wedding.
If they fall ill because of a pre-existing medical condition that you or they know about when you take out your wedding insurance, you will not be covered.When should we take out wedding insurance?
You should take out our policy as soon as you make any bookings or pay any deposits towards your wedding.
We cannot insure you’re wedding if it is 14 days or fewer away.The bride or groom is in the armed forces – will you cover us?
Yes – but we can’t cover you for cancellation or re-arrangement of the wedding because of an occupational posting overseas that you know about when you take out your policy.My reception is on a different day to my wedding ceremony – is this covered?
Our standard policy covers one reception after the wedding ceremony, as long as the reception is within two days of the wedding.
If you’re having more than one reception, or your reception is more than two days after your wedding, you can add cover to your policy.
There will be an additional premium for each reception. We include a wedding breakfast, and dinner or buffet, as a single reception as long as they happen on the same day. You cannot insure additional receptions that you're holding in the USA or Canada.Does your policy cover overseas weddings?
Yes – we can cover your wedding no matter where in the world it takes place.
If you plan to get married in the USA or Canada, and you want to include public liability cover, you must add it separately. There is an additional premium for public liability cover in these two countries that reflects the relatively higher level of public liability claims there.I live abroad – can I take out a policy?
As long as the applicant and at least one of the people getting married is a permanent UK resident, you can take out a policy.Can you cover my engagement ring?
Unfortunately we do not cover engagement rings in our wedding insurance policy. You should check what cover you get from your home insurance. You can get 10% off our home insurance when you buy our wedding insurance PLUS an additional 10% if you buy our home insurance online.
We do cover your wedding rings for damage or loss from seven days before the wedding to one day after the reception.
How can I pay?
You can pay using Visa, Visa Electron, Mastercard, Maestro, Solo, or by cheque.What happens if I need to claim?
If you need to report a claim you can call us on 0845 603 8381 – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If calling from abroad please call us on +44 (0) 1452 872 701.
When you tell us about a claim, we will aim to:Respond to your claim, on the phone or in writing, and take action within five working days
Respond to all correspondence within 10 working days.
Who are Ecclesiastical?
We’ve been around for over 100 years and provide insurance and financial products and services. We were one of the first insurance companies to offer Wedding Insurance back in 1998, and over the years we’ve developed lots of experience in protecting couples that are getting married.Where are Ecclesiastical based?
Our head office is in Gloucester, and we have other offices throughout England and Ireland too.
All of our customer service staff are based in the UK, so when you call us, you’ll be speaking to someone in the UK. We do our best to keep the amount of time you have to wait to a minimum, and we’ll give you as much time and information as you need.Don’t Ecclesiastical insure churches?
We started out by protecting churches and the church community – that’s where we got our name – but today we insure much more, including weddings and homes.
We also provide personal financial advice service, and have recently launched a range of socially responsible investment funds through Ecclesiastical Investment Management Ltd.Is Ecclesiastical a charity?
Ecclesiastical Insurance Office plc is not a charity, but we do donate all our available profits to charity.
We’re also a corporate partner to The Children’s Society, and we support them with fundraising, sponsorship, donations and other activities. Every member of staff gets one community day every year when they can do work for one of the many charities we’re involved with.Is Ecclesiastical an environmentally friendly company?
We aim to help protect the environment through continually improving our environmental performance and reducing pollution.
Our Environmental Strategy Group is chaired by our Managing Director, and is currently putting together our new environmental strategy.
