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To-Be-Bride Checklist: Wedding Insurance

Basics of Insurance October 24th, 2023
Wedding insurance should be on every bride's checklist.

India’s Big Wedding season is just around the corner! Who doesn’t love attending a grand Indian wedding, resplendent with glamour, grandeur and glitter? The swish of silk clothes, the scent of flowers and perfumes, the tinkling of anklets and the laughter threading conversations.  

Right after Diwali, the great Indian wedding season is set to begin! We know how Indian households await the wedding season, don’t we? The excitement starts months in advance! Talk weddings and there are bright smiles all around! The adage ‘weddings are made in heaven’ still does the rounds, even as a popular Netflix show on Indian marriages reveals many social and cultural layers that complicate the entire decision-making process.

From questions such as how much a wedding costs in India to how much is wedding insurance in India, we try to decode the complex maze of the matrimony industry and why insurance matters for the most important decision that Indian families take. Gone are the days when it was as simple as two families agreeing on a suitable date to conduct a marriage ceremony. 

The wise words of Diane Sawyer spring to mind, “A good marriage is a contest of generosity.”

Wedding postponed? Get Insurance early to avoid financial distress!

We all know that Indian weddings bring glorious moments to bask in and cherish forever but an unexpected cancellation is a hard reality to consider. During COVID-19, we know that many weddings had to be postponed or called off entirely, causing considerable grief and financial hardships to Indian households. Life is unpredictable, and insurance is not, which is why wedding coverage is essential. Simply put, it has the potential to make life easier for couples who have to postpone or cancel it.

The increase in disposable incomes, and preference for a more personalised setting when it comes to choosing marriage partners and matrimony services have paved the way for a flourishing industry - yes, the rise of online dating apps and matrimony services in India. However, nothing eventually prepares couples for the shock and trauma in the case of a cancellation. Added to this, the expenses on both sides of the family would have to be considered.

Is Wedding Insurance necessary and how much does a wedding cost in India?

Nearly every Indian family waits with excitement and anticipation ahead of the wedding season to enjoy the fun and the feasting, besides the joy of grand dressing! Wondering how much a middle-class Indian wedding cost in India? It’s definitely based on your appetite to take all your savings and use it for the most important occasion worth splurging on. It could be in lakhs and crores, or it could be as simple as you want it to be. 

But let’s face the reality - a majority of Indians want the entire grandeur of a great Indian wedding. Think of your favourite films and how marriage functions are portrayed on screen - elaborate feasts, grand festivities, opulent stages and of course, gold jewellery and the most gorgeous clothes that are a part of the bride’s trousseau. 

Renowned jeweller Kalyanaraman makes a valid observation when he pinpoints that gold is not merely a fashion accessory for Indian families, it represents something more. As a jeweller, he further told CNBC in a media interaction that parents in Indian cities tend to buy gold for their daughters from birth and they keep adding to the gold jewellery collection as they grow older. We know how expensive gold is and that gives an inkling of how much Indian households are willing to spend on weddings.

The flip side is that a grand wedding can take a toll on our financial aspirations. 

How Big is the Wedding Market in India?

A TOI report in October 2022 cites how India’s wedding industry isn’t merely one industry; several small and big industries make it what it is. The report titled “Wedding is the 4th biggest industry and still so underdeveloped and unorganised” also pegs the matrimony industry at Rs 3.75 lakh crore. It further demarcates the segments such as catering and venue services taking about 30%, gifts taking 19%, decoration 14%, event planning 12%, logistics 9%, honeymoon 8%, photography 3%, makeup 3%, and invites 2%. 

Are Weddings a Big Deal in India?

Undoubtedly, Indian families are bullish about grand wedding celebrations right from getting an invitation designed to the final day of the marriage function. 

Take a look at some of the innovative wedding invitations you have personally seen and you will know how wedding planners are making it more ‘niche’, which is something that one has to pay a premium for.

If we start calculating the value of the jewellery that is bought for the wedding, it pegs it at about 60,000 crore worth annually. The same report cites that nearly 5000 crore worth of hotel rooms are booked annually, besides 10,000 crore worth of clothes and apparel that are bought every year as part of the gifts for the wedding. 

A balanced approach would be to assign a percentage to each phase of the wedding to come up with your own final budget. Minor tweaks can help a couple save for their big day in every aspect of their marriage expenses. However, let’s not forget that the great Indian wedding is a micro-economy that is subject to many fluctuations and real-time dynamics.  

In 2016, KPMG published a report pertaining to a Market Study of Online Matrimony and Marriage Services in India. A few notable insights include:

  • One-fifth of the wealth of an average Indian during their lifetime is spent on their child’s matchmaking, wedding and matrimony services industry.

  • In the last few years, India has emerged as one of the largest Asian markets for dating apps and classifieds.

  • In the coming years, the emphasis on communication is likely to be directed towards individuals, not parents. 

What Does a Wedding Insurance Plan Protect You Against?

Be it for Indian families or for two individuals planning to tie the wedding knot, the biggest nightmare happens in case the marriage has to be cancelled or postponed. For both families, the expenses would have gone through the roof during preparation. 

Besides the trauma of processing the wedding they planned for will not happen, the financial woes are likely to hit much harder. And that’s why wedding planning should include wedding insurance as well.

Here are some of the things wedding insurance covers:

  • Postponement due to unexpected disasters such as fires, perils, and so on

  • Advance money paid for hotel room bookings, catering, wedding arrangements 

  • Stolen gold jewellery

Notably, most wedding insurance plans in India are easily affordable. 

What Does a Wedding Insurance Plan Not Cover?

There are several exclusions that wedding insurance policies come with. Therefore, it is essential to understand what the exclusions are and whether it can be a dealbreaker or not.  a set of exclusions which typically include non-arrival of the priest, cancellation by entertainment artists, caterers, event managers or financial disputes between the families.

  • Non-arrival of the priest who has to conduct the marriage

  • Cancellation by artists who had been paid to provide some form of entertainment

  • In case of financial disputes between the families or the couples who were to marry

Weddings are Fun: But Insurance is Forever!

Not all grand weddings navigate through the choppy waves that come their way, which is why it is important to stay financially secure. Increasingly, it’s no longer about the number of guests you are inviting - it’s more about the quality of the overall wedding experience you are offering guests. Most wedding insurance policies in India provide cover for up to two years. For InsurTechs, the future lies in knowing their customers better and enabling coverage that renews their confidence as they steer towards new beginnings with new goals and aspirations with their life partner. After all, we believe that insurance is forever, and so is trust. 

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