Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com
INDIA, October 18, 2010: When Ankita Muthanna, a technology expert in Bangalore, started planning her wedding, she realized it was a difficult decision. Her father had not left much by way of property or assets, and the wedding would be expensive. “I could not afford to spend all my hard-earned savings. I needed some kind of financial security. So I started asking people,” she says. Muthana ended up at the office of an insurance agent.
Insurance has always been about security, or protection from losses. Thus far, life insurance, property insurance and accident insurance have been the talking points in the industry. But now, wedding insurance, though nascent, is growing fast enough to merit dedicated products by insurance majors. In a country of big fat weddings this is fast becoming the norm. Since marriage is usually a one-time event, major insurance companies are offering it as an event insurance product , which can be customized to suit the needs of a wedding.
In a country where the groom might not turn up if dowry is not paid, the insurance company will compensate for cancellation of wedding and even for postponement. The other risks covered by this kind of insurance policy are accidental death of a close relative of the bride or bridegroom, who was critical to the marriage taking place; burglary of jewelry and other valuables; and damage to marriage halls. But if the wedding is cancelled due to a dispute between the marriage parties, the insurance company will not pay the claim.
Most of the wedding insurance requests, however, are received not from individuals like Ankita, but from the event management companies, which organize wedding ceremonies.