What Happens if My Wedding Venue Goes Bankrupt?

What Happens if My Wedding Venue Goes Bankrupt?

Listen carefully, because I’m going to tell you a very important item to add to your Wedding Planning Checklist.

From the moment you got engaged, you likely started googling, pinning, screenshotting, and saving all things wedding and marriage to prepare for your upcoming nuptials. Everything from what you and your bridesmaids will wear as you get ready on your big day to what song you and your soon to be spouse will dance to first has probably been on your mind at some point. However, there are a couple of items that likely aren’t on your checklist that you need to add as soon as possible.

We’ve talked before on the blog about pre-nuptial agreements and the reasons why taking care of drafting and signing a pre-nuptial agreement is in your best interest before saying “I do”. There is now something else you should add to your checklist, and the need for this additional item was recently brought to light by a certain chain event venue closing its doors for good.

Approximately 7,500 brides and grooms all over the country were struck recently with a nightmare situation when they found out that the Utah based chain wedding venue Noah’s Event Venue had gone bankrupt, closed its doors at locations across the country, and would not be hosting their upcoming weddings, even though many had already paid in full. These brides and grooms had weddings scheduled in the coming weeks as close to home as Little Rock, Arkansas.

Couples left in shambles by Noah’s Event Venue will be able to file as non-secured creditors in the bankruptcy proceedings, prioritized behind secured creditors, but they will likely only see pennies on the dollar in recovery, if they recover anything at all. And that will be after their wedding date in most instances. The company does not dispute that these couples are owed money. It’s just unlikely that the couples will see any of the money they are owed under the circumstances.

There are a few different ways to handle this situation. You should talk to your attorney about what the best way to avoid such a situation might be for you. One option you may choose is to take out a wedding insurance policy to help you breathe a bit easier if you are going to pay for a wedding venue in full in advance.

Taking care of this situation is without a doubt something you should add to your Wedding Planning Checklist.