Newlyweds need to be newly covered

8th May 2009

• Wedding gifts can easily add thousands to the value of newlyweds’ home contents overnight
• 3% of wedding guests will spend a recession-busting £500 or more on a wedding gift

Research from Direct Line shows that newlyweds could add several thousand pounds to the value of the contents of their home once married, with guests at their wedding spending an average of £79 on each gift.* As a result, a wedding with just 50 guests could mean £3,950 worth of gifts, while 150 guests could give a massive £11,850 in presents.

Some newlyweds will be even luckier with their gifts, with 3% of guests saying they will spend a recession-busting £500 or more on a single wedding gift. All of these gifts, plus the typical £4,000 of items the newlyweds will have bought in preparation for the wedding, mean that there will be a much higher value to the total contents of the home once the newlyweds cross the threshold.

Andrew Lowe, Head of Home Insurance at Direct Line, says:

“The value of home contents can quickly rise around the time of a wedding, so Direct Line gives its customers an extra boost to their cover before and after a wedding to give them time to evaluate the new value of their contents. We recognise that no one wants to worry about insurance when they’re thinking about a wedding, whether they’re attending the celebration or planning the most important day of their life.

“The costs of the wedding dress, flowers, jewellery and outfits for the wedding party can easily run to many thousands of pounds, so it will be a shrewd newlywed who checks their insurance policy to make sure that all of their purchases and gifts are protected in the event of loss, damage, or theft.

“People should make sure they are adequately covered by their home contents insurance policy, and should contact their insurer if they have any questions about their level of cover.”

Direct Line raises its contents cover automatically for the four weeks immediately surrounding the wedding of the policy holder or their family member. This is by £5k or 10% of the contents sum insured (whichever is greater) with a Home Insurance policy, and by 20% of the contents sum insured with a Home Insurance Plus policy.

For further details on home insurance from Direct Line, visit www.directline.com

For more information contact:

Erica Nelson

Direct Line Press Office
0208 313 5830
07919 218 045
Email: Erica.Nelson@rbs.co.uk

Notes to Editors

*Opinium Research carried out an online poll of 2,016 British adults between 7-9 April 2009. Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria.

**Cost estimates used, as taken from www.weddingsday.co.uk:
Rings: £630
Bride’s outfit: £1,590
Groom’s outfit: £200
Outfits for attendants: £575
Photos: £905
Gifts for wedding party: £205
Total: £4,105

Direct Line

Started in 1985, Direct Line became the first UK insurance company to use the telephone as its main channel of communication. It provides motor, home, travel and pet insurance cover direct to customers by phone or on-line.

Direct Line is part of RBS Insurance, the second largest general insurer in the UK and is wholly owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland Group. Customers can find out more about Direct Line products or get a quote by calling 0845 246 3564 or visiting www.directline.com

Direct Line Insurance plc is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Registered office: 3 Edridge Road, Croydon, Surrey CR9 1AG. Registered in England and Wales no. 01810801. The Financial Services Authority's Register can be accessed through www.fsa.gov.uk/