While some wedding guests will purchase gifts on the wedding registry or send their gifts directly to the happy couple before the big day, some guests may prefer to bring their gifts and cards to the reception. Many couples assume that their gifts and cards will be safe at their wedding, but that isn’t always the case. Some gifts may get misplaced, criminally damaged, or even stolen. To reduce the chance of something happening to your gifts, here are five ways you can keep your wedding gifts safe on your big day.
Ask Someone to Keep an Eye on the Gifts
You and your spouse should be enjoying your special day, not keeping an eye on the gift table. Assign an usher or a bridesmaid to guide people to the gift table at the beginning of the reception and ask other members of your wedding party to keep an eye on the gift table in shifts throughout the reception.
If you’re having a large and extravagant wedding and are inviting many guests, you should consider hiring security for your wedding. Your wedding security can prevent someone from damaging your wedding gifts, prevent potential thieves or wedding crashers from entering your venue, and keep watch if the gifts are being stored somewhere else during the reception.
Put the Table in a Visible Place
Your gift table should be set up somewhere out of the way, but in a place where all your guests can see it so they will know where to drop off their gifts. You should consider adding a sign to clearly mark your gift table. If your guests don’t know where your gift table is, they may hand their gifts to you or various members of the wedding party, or they may even leave their gifts in different places, which will increase the chance that they will be misplaced. Keep your gift table away from doorways; this will prevent someone from quickly taking a gift and walking out with it.
Get a Card Box
It would be a shame if the heartfelt congratulatory messages from your friends and family were to be lost or stolen, so you should purchase a lockable card box to keep your cards safe. Your wedding guests can deposit their cards into the box where they can be stored until the end of the day. Some guests may put monetary gifts in their cards, and a card box will prevent them from being misplaced. Keep the card box in a visible place on the gift table where everyone can see it.
Find a Safe Place to Put the Gifts at the End of the Day
Once your ceremony and reception are over, you need to have a plan in place for where you will store your gifts at the end of the day. If you’re spending the night in a hotel, ask the manager if there is a locked cupboard where everything can be stored overnight. You should also plan on where to store your gifts if you are leaving for your honeymoon straight after the reception. In that case, you can ask a trusted member of your wedding party to take your gifts to your home. It may seem like a great idea to store your gifts and cards in the trunk of your car during the reception, but there is a greater risk of them being stolen if they are left unattended.
Cover Your Gifts with Wedding Insurance
Unfortunately, not all weddings go to plan, and there is a chance that something may happen to your wedding gifts, which is why you should purchase wedding insurance when you begin organizing your wedding. If you notice that any of your wedding gifts have been lost, stolen, or intentionally damaged, you should report it to the police immediately. You will need to provide this report to make a claim. Wedding insurance from InsureMyDay will cover wedding gifts up to £25,000, depending on the level of cover you choose.
Your gifts will also be covered for loss, theft, and criminal damage while being stored by you or a member of your wedding party at the reception and while in transit. This cover will begin seven days prior to the ceremony and end one day after. If your reception is on a different date, your gifts will be covered on that day and on the next day. For more information on what an InsureMyDay wedding insurance policy entails, please read the policy wording.
