It's a great idea in theory: get married on the soft white sand beaches of Destin or Santa Rosa, let the waves add a soundtrack to the smell of roses and words of marital bliss uttered by the officiator. It all seems way too mushy for me but people come from all over Georgia, Alabama, and sometimes much further, to enjoy a perfect destination wedding on the Emerald Coast.
In practice though things always go wrong at weddings. The caterer thought you said "bagels" when you really meant "beignets", or the rings girl dropped it in the sand and the entire wedding party is running around asking to borrow people's beach shovels, or maybe the bride got a little too close to the water when a wave came in and is now crying into her mother's shoulder about a ruined life. A more likely scenario might be bad weather makes you postpone or maybe the groom comes down with the swine flu. Whatever happened to the swine flu anyway?
According to an article on fortune.com, the average cost of a wedding in 2016 was over $35,000. That seems completely ludicrous but luckily the beach is usually free even if the rental house next to it isn't. There are some cool local services that provide beach wedding packages for $2,000 - 5,000 but there might also be some changes coming soon. The city of Destin is considering restricting which beaches can host weddings, which is both good and bad because not all public beaches are created equal. They claim limited parking to be the issue and require permits for groups over 25.
What if you can't rebook? How much money do you have on the line here? Or more likely, how much do your PARENTS have on the line? Consider the loss of deposits, paying the photographer for standing around, tuxedo rentals, and maybe even rented jewelry (which is apparently a thing). It's Florida, hurricanes ruin a lot of special events in the summertime (see our recent tweet about the hurricane season). People go to therapy for the stress this kind of thing causes. The financial side of the big day is the last thing you want to distract you from your dream wedding but it's the first thing you'll fight about after you say "I do."
Wedding Insurance exists and its purpose is to help offset the cost of a cancelled or postponed wedding for various causes. Wouldn't it be nice to unload that stress? Coverages include Cancellation/Postponement expense, liability, medical expense, photos, gifts, special attire, special jewelry, loss of deposits, and yes, even professional counseling. For thousands and even tens of thousands of dollars worth of coverage provided by these policies, it's worth making it part of your wedding budget.
Call us today or check out our website for more information on a quote. We're happy to say Congratulations and wish you the best!
The views expressed here are the opinion of the author and do not attempt to make any recommendation for insurance coverage. Eligibility is determined by the insurance carrier and not all applicants will qualify. Please contact your licensed insurance agent regarding your area's coverage and eligibility.