Double Booking

September 11th, 2008 @ 12:19 pm by Mrs. Hydrangea

This week we had the unpleasant experience of finding out two weeks before our wedding that one of our vendors is booked for another event on the same day. It wouldn’t normally bother me so much, except for the fact that I need them to arrive at our hotel one hour earlier then we previously agreed upon, and the vendor threw a fit. It also bothered me a little due to the fact that we weren’t made aware prior that the vendor would be elsewhere before coming to see us.

(image from here)

The vendor had a not so pleasant phone conversation with my new wedding coordinator that, I could tell after speaking to our coordinator, left a really sour taste in her mouth. I called the vendor to try to resolve the situation myself, and also because said vendor wouldn’t speak to my coordinator. Our conversation was not-so-pleasant as well.

After reading the contract, I realized that when we spoke last month, the vendor considered the time line that we had given them at that point to be the final, agreed upon time line. We, however, did not.

We are completely willing to work with the vendor to find a resolution that fits all parties involved, but we are still worried that the vendor’s behavior will affect how things turn out on the big day. I have requested that they bring extra help, at our expense, otherwise we will have to hire another vendor to also work with us that day to make sure that everything is completely taken care of. At this point, we would have to forfeit the entire amount owed if we were to cancel our contract with them and go elsewhere.

Word to the wise—I wouldn’t commit to any specific times (except maybe your venue) earlier then two weeks before your event. Items come up and scheduling constantly changes for the day of the wedding, and this can get tricky if one of your vendors has more then one wedding booked in the same day.

Have any of you experienced time line clashes with your vendors? If so, how did you go about resolving the situation? Do you think that vendors should let their clients know if they have multiple events in one day?

*Please excuse me for not detailing the specific vendor that I’m referring to, nor getting extremely specific. I would like to keep it as anonymous as possible until the situation is resolved.

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9 Responses to “Double Booking”

Member

linzerella (message) 41 posts, Newbee

Yuck - what a crappy thing to deal with two weeks out! And they call brides bridezillas - that about vendorzillas?!

9/11/08 @ 12:34 pm (reply)

Guest

rhodeygirl

that totally sucks!

9/11/08 @ 12:39 pm (reply)

Guest

AbbieOinCO

I was just helping coordinate my friend’s wedding over Labor Day weekend and had the cake lady go nuts on me because the flowers to decorate it were not there and she had two other cakes to drop off. She was very sour to me and demanded I call the bride… who I didn’t dare upset aright before her wedding. Then, she yelled, “I’ve had enough of this crap… I’m not going to do this any more. I’m retiring!” Wow… I had never had someone act like that in front of a client and decided she’d most certainly spread herself a bit thin.

Good luck resolving your issue! Thanks for the advice, too.

9/11/08 @ 1:33 pm (reply)

Guest

Sandra

that suckz. it is not nice for the vendor to be so rude. I think you should have asked and made sure he only had one wedding that day. Have it in writing on the contract that the time will be finalized two weeks before the wedding.

9/11/08 @ 2:48 pm (reply)

Bee

Miss Sweet Tea (message) 461 posts, Helper bee

You illustrate a good point, Ms. H. We should always get it in writing that our vendors will not double-book, or will commit at least a set ‘block’ of time to us to allow for some cushion if the schedule is moved an hour on the front or back end, so that this doesn’t happen to us. This goes from venues to photographers to caterers to bands… really, every day-of vendor! While I think that it some cases it is perfectly reasonable for a vendor to do more than one wedding a day (they do have to make a living, after all), it shouldn’t be at the expense of the clients.

9/11/08 @ 5:18 pm (reply)

Guest

Jessica

This sounds really stressful! I do think that the vendors have the right to plan other events and to stick to the time-line agreed upon. I guess I just see it differently, that they have lives too and have a business with multiple customers. I can understand if they tried to change the time-line on you, but in this case he/she didn’t. In any case, I really hope you the best in finding a way to get everything sorted out! You will have a wonderful wedding for sure!

9/12/08 @ 12:13 am (reply)

Guest

Aggie

While I understand the vendor has to “make a living” - honestly, do we really care when it comes to “me” day (i.e. MY WEDDING DAY!)? It’s basically the one time in our lives that we are really self-absorbed. After the wedding, life starts and it’s a “we” thing. So, I really do hope it works out, and if not, find a new vendor that will work within your parameters (a little costly yes but, sometimes it works out better…Do you really want to work with someone who is so rigid?)

9/12/08 @ 8:21 am (reply)

Guest

cbkj

Hi! I found out on TK that my vendor had double booked for my day. I was very upset and called her. Mostly I was pissed because I spefically asked if they do this and was given a long explanation of how she doesn’t. I just did not appreciate not being told otherwise and the vendor confirming that nothing had changed with my plans- especially since most vendors are confirmed 9-10 months in advance

9/15/08 @ 11:58 am (reply)