# Wedding insurance in Germany: when the celebration cannot go ahead

> A wedding in Germany easily runs to five figures, and much of it is paid in deposits months ahead. Wedding insurance (Hochzeitsversicherung) pays cancellation fees and extra costs if the celebration has to be cancelled, postponed or cut short for an insured reason. Only a handful of German insurers offer it, and their terms differ a lot.

Quelle/Source: https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-wedding-insurance.php  
Updated: 2026-11-07

## Do I need wedding insurance in Germany?

It is not compulsory. It makes sense once a large share of the budget is booked and your venue, caterer or band charge high cancellation fees. It pays for named reasons such as serious illness, accident or death of the couple or close relatives, never if you split up or change your mind. Read your supplier contracts first: if you can cancel for free until shortly before the date, you hardly need it.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory?:** No, voluntary cover for a single celebration
- **Premium:** around 1.5 to 2 % of the sum insured, one-off, plus 19 % insurance tax
- **Maximum sums:** EUR 25,000 to 30,000 depending on the insurer, higher on request
- **Never insured:** splitting up, a change of mind, usually bad weather
- **Providers:** few insurers and underwriting agencies, hardly any comparison tools

## What wedding insurance pays for

The policy covers what you owe third parties under contract if the celebration falls through: venue hire, catering, photographer, music, flowers and decoration. You set the sum insured yourself from the services you have booked, and anything left out of that sum is not covered.

Besides cancellation before the date, some tariffs cover abandonment once the celebration has begun and postponement, paying the extra cost of a new date instead of cancellation fees. A few also pay if a key supplier becomes insolvent.

## Why travel cancellation cover does not protect the wedding

Many couples already have trip cancellation insurance and assume the wedding is covered too. It is not. Trip cancellation pays the fees for a booked trip, such as the honeymoon or guests travelling in. The venue, food and band are not a trip.

The reverse also applies: wedding insurance generally does not pay for the honeymoon. To protect both you need two policies, and the cancellation reasons should match.

## A small market with big differences

In Germany only a few insurers sell wedding insurance, alongside underwriting agencies that write their own terms for brokers. Maximum sums are EUR 25,000 or 30,000 depending on the provider, and larger budgets or weddings abroad are only accepted on request.

Deadlines vary as well. One tariff must be taken out no later than 30 days before the celebration, another prices the premium by a waiting period of one or three months. Stag and hen parties or the eve of the wedding are not included everywhere.

## Rings, dress and gifts

Some tariffs offer add-ons for damage to the wedding dress, lost wedding rings or rings that are not ready in time. Without such an add-on, German household contents insurance (Hausrat) often helps: it covers jewellery and gifts at home and, with limits, away from home.

Damage you or your guests cause at the venue falls under personal liability insurance. Rented rooms are not included in every tariff, so check the terms before the day.

## What is covered

- Cancellation fees if the wedding is called off for an insured reason
- Serious illness, accident or death of the couple, depending on the tariff also close relatives and witnesses
- Extra costs of postponing, depending on the tariff
- Abandonment of a celebration that has already started, depending on the tariff
- Insolvency of a key supplier, depending on the tariff
- Major damage to the couple's property, such as fire or burglary, depending on the tariff
- Add-ons for the wedding dress and rings, if agreed

## What is not covered

- The couple splitting up or changing their minds
- Bad weather on the day, as a rule
- Illnesses already known when the policy was taken out, depending on the terms
- Costs not included in the sum insured
- Stag and hen parties with some providers
- The honeymoon, which needs trip cancellation insurance

## Who needs it

- Couples who have booked and paid deposits on most of the budget
- Couples whose venue and caterer contracts carry high cancellation fees
- Couples with a seriously ill or very elderly close relative they would not marry without
- Couples paying most of the costs themselves who could not absorb a cancellation

## Who does not need it

- Small celebrations with low deposits and free cancellation until shortly before the date
- If parents or family would cover the costs anyway in an emergency

## What it costs

The premium is paid once for the celebration and depends on the sum insured, meaning the insured costs, and with some tariffs on the waiting period between taking out cover and the wedding. Published German tariffs come to around 1.5 to 2 percent of the sum, plus insurance tax.

| Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- |
| Celebration up to EUR 2,500, flat tariff with EUR 250 excess | from EUR 55 |
| Celebration costing EUR 5,000, one month waiting period | EUR 76.91 net, about EUR 92 with tax |
| Celebration costing EUR 10,000, one month waiting period | EUR 153.83 net, about EUR 183 with tax |
| Celebration costing EUR 30,000, one month waiting period | EUR 526.81 net, about EUR 627 with tax |

**What drives the premium:**

- Sum insured, meaning the booked costs of the celebration
- Waiting period between taking out cover and the wedding
- Insured reasons, such as supplier insolvency
- Excess per claim
- Add-ons for rings, dress or gifts
- Location of the wedding, Germany or abroad

_Figures from published premium tables of German providers, as of November 2026, tax at 19 %. Reasons, exclusions and excess differ by tariff; your premium is only fixed in the quote._

## The policy levels on the market

- **Flat tariff for small weddings:** Fixed premium for a limited budget, usually with an excess. Covers cancellation for the core reasons, rarely postponement or supplier insolvency.
- **Cancellation cover by budget:** Premium based on sum insured and waiting period. Cancellation, abandonment and postponement for insured reasons, depending on the tariff with supplier insolvency.
- **Cancellation plus add-ons:** Also covers the dress, rings or gifts. Offered by few providers, often through underwriting agencies and brokers.

## How to recognise a good policy

| Criterion | Minimum standard | Strong policy | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Sum insured | venue and catering | every booked cost of the celebration | Anything left out of the sum is not paid. |
| Insured persons | the couple only | couple, parents, siblings, children and witnesses | Weddings are often called off because a close relative falls seriously ill or dies. |
| Postponement | cancellation fees only | extra costs of a new date included | Many couples would rather celebrate later than cancel. |
| Supplier insolvency | not covered | deposits and the extra cost of a replacement | If the venue goes bust, deposits are often lost. |
| Abandonment | cancellation before the date only | also abandonment of a celebration under way | Otherwise an emergency on the day itself is not covered. |
| Deadline and waiting period | taken out at least 30 days before | taken out right after booking, short waiting period | Taking it out late means no cover or a higher premium. |
| Additional events | the wedding day only | eve of the wedding, registry office and church ceremony | Many couples celebrate on two or three dates with separate costs. |
| Territory | wedding in Germany | weddings abroad included | Some providers only accept weddings abroad on request. |

## Insurers on the German market

Only a few insurers in Germany sell a dedicated wedding policy, alongside underwriting agencies with their own terms for brokers. The honeymoon, rings and gifts are a matter for travel and household contents insurers. This list is a market overview, not a promise of cover.

- **Waldenburger**: wedding insurance priced by sum and waiting period, sold through brokers
- **HanseMerkur**: event and wedding insurance, including a flat tariff for small weddings
- **Zurich**: wedding insurance since 2017, sums up to EUR 25,000
- **ERGO Reiseversicherung**: no wedding product, trip cancellation for the honeymoon
- **Würzburger**: no wedding product, trip cancellation for travel by the couple and guests
- **Allianz**: household contents with cover away from home for rings and gifts, personal liability

95 insurers supervised by BaFin, the German regulator, are licensed for this class of insurance. (Finanzielle Verluste, Gewinnausfall). Source: BaFin company database, 2026-09-18; EU insurers without a German office excluded.

## Typical claims and who pays

- **Bride in hospital with appendicitis** (cancellation fees, often EUR 5,000 to 15,000): Serious illness of the couple is the core case of any wedding insurance. A medical certificate belongs with the claim.
- **Venue files for insolvency** (lost deposit, often several thousand euros): Supplier insolvency is only covered by some tariffs. If you pay large deposits early, look for it.
- **Wedding moved back six months** (extra cost of the new date): Simple tariffs only pay cancellation fees. Strong ones cover the extra cost of celebrating later for an insured reason.
- **Grandfather dies a week before** (cancellation fees for the whole day): Whether grandparents count as insured persons varies by tariff. Some insurers also check whether celebrating after a period of mourning would have been reasonable.
- **Rings not ready in time** (replacement rings or a rush job): Only a few tariffs have an add-on for this. Pure cancellation cover does not treat it as a claim.
- **The couple splits up** (all cancellation fees): Splitting up and changing your mind are never insured, not even under the strongest tariff.

## Myth or truth

- „My trip cancellation insurance also pays for a cancelled wedding party." ✘ Wrong. Trip cancellation covers a booked trip, such as the honeymoon. The venue, food and band are not a trip and need separate wedding insurance.
- „If we split up before the wedding, no insurer pays." ✔ True. Every wedding insurance excludes splitting up and a change of mind. Only unforeseeable reasons such as illness, accident or death are covered.
- „If it rains on the day, I can cancel and get my money back." ✘ No. Bad weather is generally not an insured reason. If you celebrate outdoors, plan an indoor fallback.
- „Stag and hen parties are not covered by every wedding policy." ✔ Correct. One provider excludes them explicitly, others include the eve of the wedding. If side events have their own costs, compare this point.
- „Wedding insurance covers exactly one celebration." ✔ True. It is not an annual policy but covers the booked date, with one provider for a term of up to 23 months. The premium is paid once.

## Common mistakes

- Treating trip cancellation insurance as cover for the whole wedding
- Taking out cover too late and missing the deadline or waiting period
- Counting only the venue and catering in the sum insured
- Forgetting the eve of the wedding or the registry office if they have their own costs
- Assuming rain or a break-up is covered
- Insuring a wedding abroad with a tariff limited to Germany

## FAQ

### Does wedding insurance pay if we split up?

No. Splitting up and changing your mind are excluded by every wedding insurance. It only pays for the reasons named in the terms, such as serious illness, accident or death.

### Is my trip cancellation insurance enough for the wedding?

No. It only pays cancellation fees for a booked trip, such as the honeymoon. The venue, food, band and photographer are not covered by it.

### How much does wedding insurance cost in Germany?

Published tariffs come to around 1.5 to 2 percent of the sum insured, paid once, plus 19 percent insurance tax. For EUR 10,000 one provider charges EUR 153.83 net with a one month waiting period.

### When do I have to take it out?

Each tariff sets its own rule. One provider requires cover no later than 30 days before the celebration, another prices the premium by a waiting period of one or three months. Ideally take it out with your first bookings.

### Is bad weather covered?

As a rule, no. If you celebrate outdoors, plan a marquee or an indoor fallback.

### What if the venue goes bankrupt?

Some tariffs pay lost deposits or the extra cost of a replacement if a key supplier becomes insolvent. Not every tariff includes this, and it is one of the most important points to compare.

### Are the wedding rings covered?

Only if the tariff has an add-on for them. Otherwise household contents insurance may help, at home and away from home, within its limits for jewellery.

### Can I insure a wedding outside Germany?

With some providers, on request. Check the territory before you sign: some tariffs only cover celebrations held in Germany.

## Legal basis and sources

- [Insurance Contract Act (VVG, German)](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/vvg_2008/)
- [BaFin company database (licensed insurers)](https://portal.mvp.bafin.de/database/InstInfo/)

## Request quotes

We obtain quotes and come back with a comparison, free of charge. You can write in English. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-wedding-insurance.php#anfrage

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