Cancelling a wedding

lyndizzy

Hi,

I would appreciate any advice please!! We booked our wedding in November last year and paid a £500 deposit. However we are unhappy with the service we have so far received and the attitude from the staff at the hotel. I telephoned them today to advise we were considering cancelling the wedding and the reasons why.
the Head of weddings did not understand my concerns and was (I felt) patronising towards me.
I ended the phone call by saying I would need to speak to my partner and see how he felt, I was then informed if I did go ahead and cancel I would owe them a further £400 as a cancellation fee (I felt she told me this a threat). I expected to lose my deposit, however I feel paying them £900 in total for soemthing we haven't received is a bit steep. Can they take me to court if I refuse to pay the additional £400.
(wedding is meant to be in January 2014)

duchy

What does the contract you signed say ?

Sensibility

Read through all the paper work involved (you should have a signed copy) and go through the small print with a fine tooth comb. It should state exactly what amounts are owed and the due dates.

lyndizzy

It says in the contract that more than 120 days notice of cancellation will charged at 25%, however I thought this was what the deposit was for??

Sensibility

Without reading the contract, it does sound as if you may have to pay the £400. I do hope I'm wrong though. Please do ask someone to read through the contract to ensure you know where you stand legally whatever you decide to do.

lyndizzy

Do you know how far they could persue it if I am eligible to pay the extra £400, take me to court etc?

Sensibility

yes, technically speaking they could take you to court if you didn't pay within the terms of the contract. However, I'm sure they wouldn't want negative publicity, which is what they risk if it gets to that stage. It would certainly put people off booking with them!! I think at this point you have to weigh up the pros and cons of cancelling this booking, bearing in mind that you would lose a minimum of £500 and you have to find another venue. Without reading the contract I'm not sure if you have to pay the additional £400 at this stage.

lyndizzy

Thanks, I've read it over and over and it doesn't make much sense to me. It states 25% of contract value, but then explains contract value as "the aggregate maximum quantifiable value of the accomodation reserved by the customer as shown on the booking confirmation together with the maximum quantifable value of any additional facilities or services shown on the booking confirmation".
There's no part on my contract that states "booking confirmation" just rooms required and details and rates agreed with wedding co-ordinator.

hcb42

what is 25% of contract value? in ££?

lyndizzy

hcb42 wrote: »

what is 25% of contract value? in ££?

The minimum required spend is £1711.40 so 25% of this is 427.85.

floss2

How much would your wedding cost have been for everything you had agreed with the venue?