Superstitious couples have contributed to a dip in Surrey weddings.

That was the verdict of Surrey County Council, which has announced that the number of people tying the knot in civil ceremonies at either a register office or hired wedding venue in the county fell last year.

County council register office staff have put the 3.5% drop in marriages down to people putting off getting hitched in the year 2013, to steer clear of the number 13.

The council said the finding came from feedback it received from couples wanting to wed in Surrey.

But a spokesman said that despite the fall, wedding and citizenship ceremonies still generated a combined £2.5 million for the county council to re-invest in front-line services.

Helyn Clack, Surrey County Council’s cabinet member for community services, said: “It would seem that the superstition surrounding the number 13 saw quite a few couples postpone their nuptials.

“But clearly many more ignored the unlucky tag to tie the knot, giving the happy couples a day to remember as well as helping to generate £2.5 million that we’re re-investing in services.”

The council said that from April 2013 through to last month, 3,696 couples tied the knot in civil weddings, with 3,826 the year before. Comparing calendar years, there were 3,218 in 2012, compared to 3,090 in 2013.

There were also 81 civil partnership ceremonies in the year 2013 to 2014, with 109 the previous year.

Meanwhile, 3,150 people became British at formal citizenship events from April 2013 to March 2014 - up from 2,517 the year before.

Surrey has more than 100 licensed wedding venues, from hotels, racecourses and golf clubs to historic houses, Denbies vineyard and Brooklands Museum.