AT THIS time of year - St Valentine's Day was only yesterday - many people's thoughts turn to marriage. Each year hundreds of thousands of couples get married, and the Millennium saw an increase in people tying the knot.

However, the cost of true love never runs cheap and the average wedding with all the trimmings can set couples back in excess of £8,000. This is no small investment and those getting married this year may wish to consider whether they need to take out wedding insurance to insure their wedding arrangements against possible disasters.

Wedding insurance policies have been available for a number of years and can cover almost every potential problem with the exception of a change of heart.

Insurance companies who specialise in wedding insurance cover a multitude of situations such as having to change the date of the wedding, losing the wedding ring or dropping the cake. However, York Trading Standards advise that if you are considering wedding insurance, it makes sense to shop around as premiums and levels of cover varies between insurers.

Most insurers will offer set limits which can be increased for the appropriate increase in premium payments.

Illness often is the main cause for having to postpone a wedding. Problems with caterers, florists, car hire, photographs and the wedding dress account for most of the rest of insurance claims made.

Wedding insurance policies will include public liability insurance, typically £2 million.

This will cover the happy couple for their legal liability in situations such as drunken guests damaging the hotel or hall where the reception is held. Many reception venues will insist that couples have adequate insurance cover before they will hire out their rooms.

Most policies will cover eventualities such as photographers failing to turn up or the theft of wedding presents. However, re-staging a church service is not an option.

A lot of effort and planning goes into making the perfect wedding day and although disasters may never happen it may be worth considering insurance for extra peace of mind should the worst happen, and to safeguard your investment.

Weddings can be very expensive affairs, things can and do go wrong and although disasters may be something to laugh about in later years, having to pay for them on the day may not be the best start to married life.

If you would like further advice on this or any other consumer matter contact Consumer Advice at York Trading Standards on 551562 or call in at the reception at 9 St Leonard's Place, York. The fax number is 551511 or email is trading.standards@york.gov.uk