Wedding Insurance - reckon I need public liability cover?

I went with Ecclesiastical Wedding Insurance as they cover all of the above and also cover any liabilities caused by your guests (e.g. if they damage an expensive piece of furniture in your wedding venue). Also, you can tailor the policy to your needs (we are not having wedding cars so we removed that and lowered the cost) and it goes into great detail about what is and isn't covered. Even though the venue should be covered for public liability, I went for a policy which included it just to be on the safe side - an extreme example of needing it would be if the hairdresser got injured at your house, whilst doing your hair and if you are liable - you are covered. Don't go below £5m for public liability because £5m is usually what is awarded to people who have sustained very serious injuries (horrible thought but there you go).

Whatever you do, DO NOT buy Debenhams wedding insurance - my friend at work used to sell it and she said it was not worth the paper it was written on as they have got lots of sneaky loop holes and they will do anything not to pay up. I'm an event manager myself so I'm used to reading through contracts and legal stuff etc. and I read through their policy and wasn't very impressed with it as it is rather vague in parts.

With regards to the question around what is and isn't covered in the John Lewis policy, I would read through the policy wording carefully and call their helpline if you need clarification. My policy covers a lot more stuff than both of these policies. It cost £98 but I think it is worth every penny for the peace of mind. Also, the items I booked before I took out the policy are all covered which I don't think is offered on these two policies.

Out of the three policies you summed, the Events one definitely sounds the best.

Hope this helps x x x

Oh dear, I bought Debenhams, because it was the only one I could find that would insure us since we're not UK residents! Hopefully we won't have to claim on it!

Oooh I'm really sorry if I have worried anyone who has purchased it. I'm just passing on advice from my friend.

Just make sure you know what is covered x x x x x

I'm going to be getting ready at the venue and I know it's only an example and a very good one too but I'm still struggling to see a reason for public liability cover. With the venue being a converted barn, there isn't any expensive rugs, paintings, furnitures out on display. Sure they supply tables and chairs and outdoor seatings but that's probably all.

Thanks for the advice so far, it's been really helpful and I'll call John Lewis up and ask a few more questions and look into Events a bit more.

if you wanna use these guys, get in quick as they're stopping new policies at the end of this month

Public Liability cover wont just cover any damage to the property that you are in, it will also cover any fees/costs associated with any medical care if someone has an accident within your venue. So if someone injures themself on an aspect of the proeprty (ie a floor tile that is not flat etc), your PL insurance will cover any costs for this.

Some venues will provide this cover within your hire agreement, others will request that anyone hiring their venue will provide their own PL cover, so best to check. For the sake of a few pounds, I would go with the one that provides £5m cover just to be on the safe side.

Thanks for all your help! I've now crossed all 3 suppliers I was considering off the list and have decided to go with Ecclesiastical afterall.

I phoned John Lewis up about their public liability insurance and after speaking to them, it still sounds like personal liability as it doesn't cover third party properties or anyone apart from the bride and groom plus the guy kept back tracking on it. I really think anyone consider John Lewis should know that the public liability isn't quite public liability... very misleading!

Although Event offers more for my money than Ecclesiastical, I feel that there was still some loopholes in their policy wording. With Ecclesiastical - I felt quite reassured reading the policy wording so I guess I should pay that extra few pounds and go with my heart.

So thank you to you all especially Chickster, you've all been great help!