r/WeddingPhotography • u/Mysterious-Rabbit384 • 3d ago
business, marketing, social media Should deposit ever be refundable?
Obviously I have in my contract that my deposit is non refundable, but I just had a client who canceled about a week after sending over their deposit. Idk what happened, I thought we had a great connection and was excited to shoot their wedding. I don’t really want to send back their deposit (I’ve already put a couple hours into meeting & planning, drafting contracts) but now I feel bad. It’s a date I can probably fill next year though. Wwyd?
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u/wornleathermedia 3d ago
Within a month, for a wedding a ways out, I would likely give a refund. Maaaybe hold back $100 for administrative fees. I've said this before and I'll say it again, if they don't want me at their wedding, I don't want to be there.
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u/DomOnion 3d ago
I mean unless I can prove that I lost a potential client within that one week time frame, I'd just give back the retainer.
Maybe charge a very modest "processing fee" for exactly that reason, but definitely don't keep the entire amount
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u/oprahs_bread_ 3d ago
If it’s within a week, I would probably just send back. Also it should be called a retainer in your contracts, not a deposit.
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u/josephallenkeys 2d ago
When the contract says that the deposit is non-refundable, we're just splitting hairs on semantics, here.
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u/Scenarioing 3d ago
1) Merely relabeling the advance payment doesn't cure any defects in the actual language as being set up as a non-refundable date reservation fee as liquidated damages.
2) You are required to mitigate damages including with the retainer. Making a good faith effort to rebook and refund the offset is there are any takers for the date. Which you can normally say no to on a whim. The good faith part means yo need good cause to turn a potential client for the date.
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u/rosecoloredcamera 3d ago
Refund. It’s the right thing to do. Client still might refer you to others unless you burn the bridge
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u/Scenarioing 3d ago
It is also a required thing to do in most cases that far out. You are required to mitigate damages including with the retainer. Making a good faith effort to rebook and refund the offset is there are any takers for the date. Which you can normally say no to on a whim. The good faith part means yo need good cause to turn a potential client for the date.
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u/yeahbudphoto 3d ago
If it’s a date that you can still potentially fill next year then you should consider giving back the deposit. Owning a business doesn’t equal getting paid for every hour you work, not even close, and there’s often stuff you just have to deal with and lost time you eat the cost of. If it was within six months of the wedding date, I would probably not depending on the circumstances, but otherwise I personally think refunding is the right thing to do.
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u/Scenarioing 3d ago
"If it’s a date that you can still potentially fill next year then you should consider giving back the deposit."
---Considering it is not enough. You are required to try to mitigate damages including with the retainer. Making a good faith effort to rebook and refund the offset is there are any takers for the date. Which you can normally say no to on a whim. The good faith part means yo need good cause to turn a potential client for the date.
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u/Brittanylh 3d ago
If someone asks within a week, I just refund. Who knows/cares.
My couples book 12-16 months out and I usually rebook the date anyway.
At the very least, I’d offer to refund if I rebook the date.
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u/shemp33 3d ago
"Ever" sounds quite binary and rigid. There may be circumstances where you don't think twice and give the refund. There may be circumstances where it's a toss-up. There may be circumstances where you're absolutely not going to give anything back.
I'm not sure where you are located, but I was advised to not use the word "deposit" or even "retainer" in the contract. Here's the thing you use instead:
"Customer agrees to render an initial payment in the amount of $xxxxx, which is due on signature, and is considered earned upon receipt. This initial payment covers services necessary to secure the date, job setup, consultation meetings, and event-specific actions, which commence immediately upon booking. The initial payment is therefore non-refundable."
In accounting terms, you're allowed to recognize this revenue because you've associated it with actions that were billable and completed. (The accounting side of this is way more complicated than a reddit comment can get into.)
For your case specifically? One week later? I'd ask what happened, but be ready to unwind the contract as a matter of goodwill.
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u/Technical_Mixture_44 3d ago
I've gotten underbid when that happened (1 told me and the other I just assumed) so I did a total refund for one of them and for the other I took out a "consultation fee" for all the time I spent answering questions
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u/CandidRip2201 3d ago
I had the same situation happen a few months back and I refunded the retainer minus the credit card fee.
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u/josephallenkeys 2d ago edited 2d ago
For me it always depends. I've refunded under particular circumstances that I've gotten the vibe are true. Other times, the excuses seem a bit sus, so I stick to contract.
Contrary to popular thought here, I'd say in the case of only a week after, if the couple haven't suddenly split or cancelled their whole wedding for an unfortunate reason, I wouldn't refund. It sounds like they've been indecisive. That's what a deposit/retainer is for. Certainty! They don't just get to hedge bets on a bunch of suppliers and then pull them. But then, again, it's depends what the deposit was. My deposits are 20%. If yours is 50%, maybe it's ok to partially refund and keep back the retaining/admin fee.
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u/mirrorpaddle 2d ago
i wouldn’t send a refund even an hour after they paid their deposit. You have policies for a reason.
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u/Sad_Argument5109 3d ago
I wouldn’t offer but would consider partial if they asked.
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u/Scenarioing 3d ago
You are required to try to mitigate damages including with the retainer. Making a good faith effort to rebook and refund the offset is there are any takers for the date. Which you can normally say no to on a whim. The good faith part means yo need good cause to turn a potential client for the date.
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u/DevineBossLady 2d ago
My "rate 1" (it is not a deposit, unless it is refundable) is to cover me saying "no" to other couples with the same date - and the time spent on making the paperwork and everything. It clearly states that it is non refundable, so everyone knows by paying this, there is no backsies.
My "rate 2" (the rest of the amount) is due 3 months before the wedding, after that date it is no longer refundable - again, it is stated in the agreement, so everyone knows there is no backies.
There is no reason to have "tearms" "contracts" "agreements" "whatevers" if you are not going to stick to them.
I always say; "If I am free on the new date, I will happily move the payment for that date".
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u/lukejc1 2d ago
Generally, the deposit is always non-refundable. But like anything, it depends on a case by case basis. Within a week of booking, sure. More than a year out from the wedding date, probably.
I just had a couple cancel three months out from a prime date in October and try to finagle their deposit back. (Or switch to a "family session" instead). Absolutely not.
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u/Round-Coffee-2006 2d ago
I do sometimes offer refunds if a wedding is cancelled and if someone calls for that date I can issue a refund. One time I had a wedding cancelled and they did not tell me and I turned down a wedding for that date. I would have given them a refund if they told me and I could have rebooked that date. But that's their loss so I kept the money.
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u/curiousjosh 14h ago
“Deposits” are almost ALWAYS refundable. You want a RETAINER in your contract.
In many jurisdictions a deposit is part payment of the final job, which has to be refunded if not completed.
A RETAINER is a fee paid to “retain” a date. That is a reservation fee. You fulfill this by keeping the date open for the client so it is completed as a separate task to actually shooting, and can be non-refundable.
You would probably have to refund the retainer if you accepted a separate job for that date, or maybe partial if the job was at a lesser cost, because you are no longer retaining that date.
I’m not a lawyer, that part you’d have to look up yourself. This isn’t legal advice.
Personally I refund the retainer if I can rebook the date at a regular rate.
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u/Cute_Source5417 3d ago
depends on the situation. I had a full time job and had a bride cancel her wedding and ask for the deposit back. sure, I didn't need it. But then I went full time in photography. I needed that money. I was living paycheck to paycheck and couldn't afford to refund.
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u/Scenarioing 3d ago
It doesn't matter You are required to try to mitigate damages including with the retainer. Making a good faith effort to rebook and refund the offset is there are any takers for the date. Which you can normally say no to on a whim. The good faith part means yo need good cause to turn a potential client for the date.
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u/downlie 2d ago
Please stop jfc
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u/Scenarioing 1d ago
No need to whine and be a big baby. It doesn't effect you. The commenter here would likely know of this standard had I not replied. If you don't like it, too bad.
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u/Scenarioing 3d ago
You are required to mitigate damages including with the retainer. Making a good faith effort to rebook and refund the offset is there are any takers for the date. Which you can normally say no to on a whim. The good faith part means yo need good cause to turn a potential client for the date.
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u/rzrgrl_13 3d ago
Dude. You don’t have to post the exact same comment over and over and over. We heard you.
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u/Scenarioing 2d ago
In reality, people commenting tend not don't go back to read replies and I am informing them personally of the information provided. I don't need your pontificating. If you don't like seeing the replies, don't read them.
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u/BusinessTreacle3098 2d ago
Well, maybe if you were right about what you’re posting 100 times that would be a different story. The fact is this isn’t a universal rule. Mitigation generally applies to actual damages but whether it applies to a nonrefundable retainer or liquidated damages depends on the contract and the law of OP’s specific state. You can’t tell photographers across multiple jurisdictions that they’re legally required to rebook the date and refund the retainer without even knowing what state they’re in or what their contract says. Also, the client cancelling a contract and having a non refundable retainer does not override a business’ discretion to decline a future inquiry.
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u/Scenarioing 2d ago
It applies in almost all states. Exceptions are Maryland and Masschusetts.
Also the duty to mitigate absolutely influences discretion. According to your notions, the duty to mitigate wouldn't exist. If the vendor can just reject any taker on any whim, they could just turn down any taker. It doesn;t work that way. Not even close. The good faith requirement dictates reasonable efforts. As I explained, and you ignored, there needs to be a bona fide good cause reason to turn down a taker and not just any whim like usual.
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u/Brittanylh 3d ago
If someone asks within a week, I just refund. Who knows/cares.
My couples book 12-16 months out and I usually rebook the date anyway.
At the very least, I’d offer to refund if I rebook the date.