Thread: Do you return money if somebody cancel the show the same day?

Hi, i just want to know if some of you pass throught what im happening now. I have an event for today , and was a so quick event, the person contact me the day before yesterday and came to pay yesterday for today show.

But now just missing a few hours for the show, she wants to cancell it , for a personal reason, and the party that i will be dancing will be cancel. So she ask me that if i will returnt the money casue the event is not wil. be make.

The thing is that i already paid to the second dancer, and to the photografer, and i cant take that money back. And we have 3 day preparing this show, even i move some of my classes to do it.

So , i want to know if you give the money back, if not, or if you refund a part , how much? Help me Please.

PD. The problem now is that we couldnt make a contract duet to the soonest request for the show.

It sucks when a client has to cancel for whatever reason, but unfortunately, it happens all the time. As a professional, I was always taught by my instructor to be prepared for these occurences. This is why you must always have a contract that protects not only the client, but also your investment (time, rehearsals, costuming, makeup..).

To save yourself from this, always ask for a non-refundable deposit. Generally (around my area) this is 50% of the total cost.

When last minute gigs (1-0 days notice) come up, I explain to the client that in order for me to reserve that time slot for them, they must agree to full payment (regardless of any emergency). I also e-mail them the contract and ask that they sen it back with an electronic signature.

This is how I've handeled past experiences, but analyze the situation and see what works best for you and your clients.

But to answer your question: Assuming she was well aware of the terms...No, I would not return the funds. Because wether you could of been booked for something else or not, you have already dedicated and reserved that time just for that event.

Hope this helps =)

Originally Posted by amidabellydance

It sucks when a client has to cancel for whatever reason, but unfortunately, it happens all the time. As a professional, I was always taught by my instructor to be prepared for these occurences. This is why you must always have a contract that protects not only the client, but also your investment (time, rehearsals, costuming, makeup..).

To save yourself from this, always ask for a non-refundable deposit. Generally (around my area) this is 50% of the total cost.

When last minute gigs (1-0 days notice) come up, I explain to the client that in order for me to reserve that time slot for them, they must agree to full payment (regardless of any emergency). I also e-mail them the contract and ask that they sen it back with an electronic signature.

This is how I've handeled past experiences, but analyze the situation and see what works best for you and your clients.

But to answer your question: Assuming she was well aware of the terms...No, I would not return the funds. Because wether you could of been booked for something else or not, you have already dedicated and reserved that time just for that event.

Hope this helps =)

Hi thanks Amida for your advise , the client just called me an hour ago , telling me that the party was cancel so that the performance too, and the show was today at 8 o'clock . Imagine that i already paid for the photos, and the other dance mate , and all they separate the time, for today.

And now the client, is telling me that is unfair that if i dont make a partial refund for the show, its telling that practically im stealing, but i guess she is not seen the time preparing, the other person that i pay, the make up, hair do , and everything that is involve.

So i'm guessing that due to the cancelation today the same day, i maybe return the client a 25 % of the total price that pay. My husband said that its not fair that i give back that money cause i spend time preparing everything and work everything , that if i still get back the 25 % the client still will be thinking that im being unfair.

Im just a little confuse on what should I do.

it's pretty standard that payment is only refundable before a certain date, usually if they cancel more than a week before. so unless the norm is particularly difference in the Dominican Republic then you are perfectly within your rights to keep the money.

I know this won't help with your current situation, but next time you should have the client sign a contract (spelling out your refund policy among other things) before you consider yourself booked.

My policy is a 50% non-refundable deposit upfront (even if you book me a year an advance), and any cancellations within 24 hours of the gig have to pay the balance as well. This is spelled out in my contract, which as others have pointed out is a very good thing for a dancer to have. I would probably make an exception for an emergency, like say the guest of honor went into the hospital the day of the event. But otherwise, no way.

By booking you, she took you off the market for accepting another gig that would have paid full price. She should not be shocked - I would doubt that any caterer, DJ, florist, etc. on this planet would give her a refund, so why should you?

must cancel in 24 hr before...but deposit is not refunded...especially if you did not accept others gig's due to this one.

I agree w/ everyone here... no refund (and make sure you do a contract next time). Maybe you could offer her a slight discount on a future performance or something if you feel bad.

Originally Posted by bellyrina86

Hi, i just want to know if some of you pass throught what im happening now. I have an event for today , and was a so quick event, the person contact me the day before yesterday and came to pay yesterday for today show.

But now just missing a few hours for the show, she wants to cancell it , for a personal reason, and the party that i will be dancing will be cancel. So she ask me that if i will returnt the money casue the event is not wil. be make.

The thing is that i already paid to the second dancer, and to the photografer, and i cant take that money back. And we have 3 day preparing this show, even i move some of my classes to do it.

Because you moved your classes and paid others, and they are canceling on such short notice, you are within your rights to keep the money.

I am wondering why you had to pay the photographer, though. That seems strange to me.

My opinion is that this customer is focused only on her own self. You could try telling her that a show is not a shirt that can be returned. An invoice for your expenses might work better though, since you don't seem to have a written contract protecting you. List your expenses for this show, including the money paid to the other dancer and the photographer and then charges for the time you spent preparing for the show (charge by the hour!) plus any losses to you for having to move your classes. Make the costs fair to YOU, because this client has no intention of being fair on her side... she just wants her money back. Then make the list into an invoice, and subtract the total on the invoice from the amount of money she gave you and give that to her as her refund... IF there is any left over :) And remember, you are not a shirt!

Despite our best efforts, we occasionally have customers that manage to slip through the contract cracks, so don't take it personally. We had one last month. So I added a page to the website with Paypal buttons for deposits and a note stating deposits were non-refundable.

PS My oldest daughter is a photographer who is expected to hire her own supplementary staff (models, muscle, additional photographers) when she is on a photoshoot; her customers expect her to organize the entire event, not just her own cameras. This makes it very unpleasant when the customer stalls on payment... making non-refundable deposits especially important for her peace of mind.

Originally Posted by maurazebra

My opinion is that this customer is focused only on her own self.
Despite our best efforts, we occasionally have customers that manage to slip through the contract cracks, so don't take it personally.
.

As usual, great down-to-earth business advice from Maurazebra!
Rule 1: Don't take it personally
Rule 2: Remember rule 1
No need for long-winded explanations, tears, accusations. Making an invoice with costs should help with this problematic customer.
I just did a gig (2 hour workshop/demo at wicked fancy resort!!) today. The client contacted me by email less than one week ago.
I did all the negotiations by email, including contract (an electronic contract agreed to in email by parties involved is valid, depending on local rules - and anyone can in fact challenge any contract, but are very unlikely to do so). The deposit was for the travel fee ( area not close to me, so a hefty fee) plus 50% of total. Non refundable if cancelled; event was contracted less than 7 days in advance.
If I were in your shoes & if client had some serious emergency, I might refund a small portion as a gesture of goodwill, and express my sympathy.
Everyone's business model varies slightly, I use the "just the facts ma'am" approach, but with my warm personality kinda permeating through. It works for me, but I have experimented with various ways and found what works for me, in my area. Made a lot of mistakes. Probably will make some more, but less.
I study up on business a lot. Well, I have a business and accounting degree lol, - but I starting doing this way before I got business degree. Most of what I learned to run my Bellydance world is from common sense, trial and error, and accepting reality. I did my own research about business part.
And not taking it personally.

No. Not only no, but HELL no.

One hour prior to the event? No way. Keep the money it's yours, don't feel bad either! And since you paid the other dancer and photographer do a photo shot.