Changing Names after a Second Marriage

Cassie’s Story

When looking into changing my name after my second marriage, I felt overwhelmed before I had even started! Knowing the amount of work it involved the first time around, I was not enthralled by the thought of doing it all again. I am a busy wedding professional and although it was important to me to change my name, I just couldn’t face the hours of administration that I knew accompanied it.

Deciding on names for a second marriage can bring in lots of discussions and of course; family opinions! I do feel it is important to discuss as a couple and do what is right for YOU.

I feel that with my second wedding, family were actually less opinionated and actually I don’t think it would have mattered if they were, as when you are older and have got the t-shirt, you care less what people think. I think the whole affair is less stressful, I learnt the meaning of marriage and was so thrilled to be marrying the love of my life that everything else was inconsequential. We ditched so many traditions - we didn’t do speeches, we had a celebrant led ceremony to make it more ‘us’ I was wholly more relaxed and therefore loved the day for all its quirks and flaws.

I think there is a definite vibe of ‘oh, you are getting married again’ surrounding couples that have been married before and it is so unnecessary! The vows of marriage did and do mean everything, but who is to say what goes on behind closed doors? You don’t, so be kind and trust that persons judgement that they made a decision that was good for them.

This time, we did ‘Us’, we invited our loved ones, had a smaller ceremony and danced away to our favourite songs. The wedding music was all films we loved – including the theme music to Top Gun because I am the number one fan!!! Did everyone love that? Probably not, do we care? Absolutely not!

We married in October last year at the end of a very busy wedding season, and we had previous discussion on what I would be changing my name to. I was currently using my previous married name and I was not keen on the way my new name was sounding with my first name. So not only was I going to be changing my name, I wanted to double barrel it with my maiden name!

Magical Flowers Created by Paper and Bloom

Making it Official

After a google search, which made it sound easy (I was not convinced as previously it was anything but!) I knew I needed a solution that would help me navigate it smoothly with no stress and that I could have complete confidence that it would be comprehensive and legally binding.

This is when I came across ‘NameSwitch’. I reached out and the communication was swift and comprehensive, and I immediately felt reassured that this company knew their stuff!

A link was sent over and you pop on to the website and fill in your details and details of where you want to change your name. The process took about half an hour, and then I double checked all of the information as it needs to be 100% correct in order for NameSwitch to be able to prepare all of your documentation.

The documents arrived in a smart folder and with clear instructions of next steps and I was impressed! Even more impressive was the fact I didn’t need to do a separate deed poll to change it – it was all in the pack!

Could you do all this yourself with the help of a search engine? Probably, but if you are time poor and looking for a comprehensive solution then this is the answer! I was delighted to have been gifted the product but in my opinion I would be happy to invest in the service as I really did find value in it and would definitely recommend to my brides in the future.

Image Courtesy of Steve Woods Photography