Brits fork out hundreds of pounds going to weddings

The average Brit shells out £386 to attend a wedding, splurging on gifts, clothes, accommodation, travel and reception drinks. Of this, £130 is often spent before the wedding day itself on stag and hen parties.

As the wedding season gets into full swing, new research by CreditExpert.co.uk reveals the cost of other people’s nuptials – even if we don’t really know or like the person getting hitched. In fact, a fifth (20 per cent) often attend weddings of people they barely know (such as a distant family member or friend of a partner), leading to one in seven (16%) of us actually resenting the investment.

The research, conducted to highlight the financial implications of wedding fever, also exposes that Brits are likely to significantly underestimate the cost of their own wedding, believing it will set them back only £9,000, whereas recent research shows that the actual average cost of a wedding is £17,000.

This disparity may be due to the increasing coverage of celebrity weddings where costs regularly spiral into tens of thousands of pounds.

Conducted between 7 and 12 June and based on a survey of 1,500 British adults, the study also found:

6 per cent of Brits (1.6 million people) have gone into debt so they could attend a wedding – for Londoners the figure is 9 per cent

45 per cent of Brits have felt pressured by family and friends to attend a wedding

Despite the growing trend for overseas nuptials, over one in four (44 per cent) guests will be there under duress, claiming they resent having to attend

“Weddings are a time to celebrate but it’s clear that people are increasing their financial stress and spending money they don’t have simply in order to be there,” says Jim Hodgkins, Managing Director of CreditExpert, the credit monitoring and identity fraud protection service from Experian.

“The cost of getting married and attending other people’s weddings is often underestimated, but it’s a significant outlay that often hits hardest those who are first time property buyers or those still burdened by student debt. As a result, attending lots of weddings in a short space of time can mean your credit rating is adversely affected.

“If you monitor your spending and credit status with a service such as CreditExpert, you’ll find it easier to know what you can afford and when you’re in danger of being carried away. You can get a free 30 day trial at www.CreditExpert.co.uk.”

Where does it all go?

Stag and hen dos are the most expensive elements of a wedding with Brits forking out £130 on average to attend the pre-wedding bash. When it comes to the big day itself, weddings gifts are the most costly ingredient, with Brits spending an average of £70 on presents for the bride and groom.

The full breakdown is as follows:

1. Stag / hen party - £130
2. Wedding gift - £70
3. Outfit / Clothing - £64
4. Travel - £49
5. Accommodation - £48
6. Drink - £26

Under pressure

Over four in 10 (45 per cent) Brits often feel pressurised to attend the weddings of other people, with 20 per cent saying they frequently attend the nuptials of people they don’t know. 16 per cent say they resent having to spend money to attend weddings, with a further one in seven (13 per cent) going so far as refusing to attend certain weddings on the principle that they cost too much. The trend for overseas weddings and stag/hen dos is also causing bitterness, with over a third (34 per cent) saying they resent attending nuptials abroad.

The age barrier

Perhaps indicative of the rising costs of weddings in general, more over 65s (15 per cent) than any other age group would refuse to attend a wedding if they thought it would cost too much. By contrast, over one in twenty (7 per cent) of this age group would be prepared to spend over £500 on a wedding gift.

Lavish Londoners and thirsty Scots

Asked about the last wedding they attended, three per cent of Londoners revealed a lavish streak and admitted they spent between £400 and £500 on a wedding gift and almost one in ten (8 per cent) said they would spend in excess of £300 on an outfit for the day. However, when it comes to buying drinks, nobody can compete with the Scots. Over one in twenty (6 per cent) claim to have spent between £100 and £200 on drinks alone at the last wedding they attended.