Have weddings been affected by the credit crunch?

Everywhere we turn we’re confronted by news of the credit crunch affecting yet another area of our lives. So, it’s hardly surprising that the wedding market is taking a good, hard look at itself. A survey conducted by the National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) has found that there is no increase in wedding cancellations due to the economic climate but a little less than half of respondents did find that wedding spending was decreasing. More than half said that couples were avoiding Saturday premiums by getting married on Friday or Sunday which sounds like an easy money-saving tactic to me!

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Jessica Hagy reminds couples why spending less is a good thing

If the frequent reports of £20,000 average wedding spend annoys you or you don’t want to say ‘I Do’ to a massive overdraft, this picture by Jessica Hagy is a great reminder when you’re tempted to splurge.

Hagy’s book ‘Indexed’ full of witty doodles is $8.80 at Amazon [via Manolo for the Brides]

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Debenhams offers 70k wedding insurance plan

Wedding insurance is probably one of the least romantic parts of wedding planning but if you’re forking out the cash, you should make sure your deposits and final payments are fully refundable in case of any unforeseen circumstances. Debenhams have raised their insurance cover to a whopping £70,000, making it the highest level of cover available in the UK. The Diamond Plus policy costs £330 online and £354 over the phone, in comparison to Gold cover for £55 for cover up to £30,000.

So who’s spending all the money then? Debenhams say ‘many enquiries are from the Asian community, where elaborate ceremonies with many guests – often flown in from overseas – push the costs up way above that of more modest ceremonies.’

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Personalised credit cards

Last month I told you how you could personalise your chequebook with a wedding photo and now I find that you can personalise your credit card as well.

If nothing else it’ll be a good reminder not to spend too much until you’ve finished paying for the wedding!

Related: Debates – money | Debate – asking for money

British Tory party propose tax incentives to encourage couples to wed

The Tory party have got their eyes on marriage as a key party of tax relief benefits should they ever get in power again. The tax break is a whopping £20 a week (that’s roughly £1000 a year) and might help couples who have one partner stay at home to care for children or other relatives.

The report states that the tax breaks would “indicate that marriage is valued because of its benefits to children and wider society”. £20 must go quite a long way in some parts of the country if they think that’s an incentive… However, as marriage is in constant decline, according to national statistics, it seems of little importance to many of today’s couples. Plus with the average cost of a wedding coming in at £17,000, it’ll take 16 years to break even. [via BBC]

Would you get wed to take advantage of an extra £20 a weeK? Thought not…