Wedding Vendor Won’t Refund Your Cancellation? Letter of Demand

You booked a wedding vendor — venue, photographer, caterer, florist, DJ, dressmaker, celebrant, anyone. You paid a deposit, sometimes a substantial one. Then circumstances changed: the wedding was cancelled, postponed, downsized, the vendor became unavailable, or there’s a pandemic-style force majeure event. You asked for the deposit back. The vendor said no.

Wedding-vendor disputes are some of the most emotionally charged in Australian consumer law. They also have surprisingly clear legal answers.

What the contract actually says

Most wedding-vendor contracts have a “non-refundable deposit” clause. That clause is not automatically enforceable. Australian courts (and tribunals) look at:

• Whether the clause amounts to a penalty (extracting more than the vendor’s actual loss) — which is unenforceable
• Whether the deposit was a true deposit (a small earnest payment) or a part-payment dressed up as a deposit
• Whether the vendor has been able to mitigate their loss by booking another customer for that date
• Whether frustration of contract applies (a force majeure event making performance impossible)
• Whether the cancellation came with reasonable notice in line with industry practice

In practice, vendors usually keep their actual costs and out-of-pocket expenses, and refund the rest. A 100% retention of a large deposit when the vendor has booked another wedding for that date is generally not enforceable.

The Letter of Demand

The letter:

• References the booking (date, deposit amount, services)
• States your reason for cancellation and the notice given
• Cites the legal position on penalties, mitigation, and frustration
• Requests a specific refund (often partial, accounting for legitimate costs)
• Sets a deadline (typically 14 days)
• Names the next step — tribunal application or Fair Trading complaint

What’s reasonable to ask

The strongest position is usually: “We accept you’ve incurred costs of [$X]. Refund the balance of [$Y].” Asking for 100% back when the vendor has done legitimate work or had real costs weakens the claim. A reasonable demand letter is more persuasive than an aggressive one.

Flat fee

The wizard asks about the booking, the cancellation, what the vendor has refused, and the refund you’re seeking. Our Programmatic Algorithms draft a measured, legally-grounded letter as a PDF and send it to the vendor.

The few that don’t get a Final Demand or face a tribunal application — both available through the same dashboard.