Skip to main content

Post content has been hidden

To unblock this content, please click here

T
Super April 2021

Have You Ever Gotten a Partial Refund?

Tiger Bride, on June 14, 2021 at 9:51 AM Posted in Community Conversations 0 16

So...it happened, I asked a vendor for a partial refund.

It was always my plan to do all of our flowers myself, but I ended up chickening out two months before the wedding and hired a florist to do my bouquet, DH's boutonniere, moms' corsages, dads' bouts. During consultations with her, she asked for a deposit before sending a detailed proposal, which I thought was weird and refused - I always get a contract before sending money.

Fast forward to wedding weekend. My girls and I made all their bouquets with grocery store flowers, and they turned out amazing. Super vibrant colors and the arrangements looked great. The next morning, we sent a groomsman to pick up the flowers from the florist. As soon as I see my bouquet, I'm disappointed - the flowers look dull, the way the greenery is arranged makes it look like weeds. But I told myself it's because they're from a farm, my expectations were probably just off.

Two hours before the wedding, I get a call from one of the GM's wife that one of the dad bouts is missing. No idea if it even got picked up. So my FIL didn't have a bout. I thought to myself, maybe the GM wasn't paying attention - again, not the florist's fault.

Well. We got our pics back, and I saw the straw that broke the camel's back. I had specifically requested a certain color of rose because it was the color my grandpa always got my grandma. This year is 15 years since he passed, and my grandma, who I was extraordinarily close with, passed in September. This particular color of rose (not a very unusual color either) was an absolute requirement and the florist knew that. Get the pictures back, and what do you know...they aren't there.

I finally sent her an email, asked about the bout, asked about the roses, and asked about why there weren't any Shasta daisies, which are my favorite flower, which I had requested, which she put in the proposal. She tells me those daisies aren't in season, she used a gerbera instead. I looked closer and okay, there is a gerbera - you can barely see it because of how the flowers are arranged, but it's there. But why put Shasta in the proposal if you know they won't bloom then?

She said the flower shop was "busy" when GM came to get them, she doesn't know if the boutonniere made it in the box and she took responsibility because she didn't check herself to make sure everything was in the box. And the roses. The color wasn't blooming that day, and the ones she ordered arrived dead. So they just did not include them - no warning before the fact, no reaching out after the fact. I guess she thought I wouldn't notice?!

Well, I did. And remember the BM bouquets we made, with grocery store flowers? The store(s) had the roses, in the right color. And we didn't buy them, because I paid $200 for a bouquet from a florist who put in the proposal the color of roses I asked for and didn't let me know they couldn't be done.

So I have asked for a partial refund. If you were in my shoes, how much would you think was fair?

Thanks for making it this far... Smiley smile

16 Comments

Latest activity by Lisa, on July 19, 2021 at 8:48 AM
  • Lisa
    Rockstar July 2022
    Lisa Online ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content

    I'm so sorry to hear about all of this! I would certainly at least ask to be refunded for anything that they messed up on: the missing boutonniere, the roses, and the Shastas (or at least, if the Shastas were more expensive than the gerberas, a refund for the price difference). Especially if these were all listed in your contract.

    • Reply
  • C
    Super July 2020
    Cool ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    I mean, you can ask but it’s highly unlikely you’ll receive any money back. Florists cannot control what flowers are in season when and there is currently a massive nationwide flower shortage. I definitely understand wanting flowers super specific because that was really important to me too. I got a bit annoyed about a few things similar (a flower I loved and she said she would include wasn’t) but… what’s she supposed to do? Magically make peonies appear in September OR go outside of the original budget? Sorry, it sucks but I’d move on.
    • Reply
  • T
    Super April 2021
    Tiger Bride ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment

    Well, what she could have done was called me a day or two before the wedding, or whenever she realized the roses weren't going to work out, told me she had a problem with them, and I would have had my mom buy a bunch from the grocery store while she was picking up the rest of the flowers we bought. I understand wanting a unique, expensive flower that's hard to find/grow/buy, but this wasn't that. It could have been fixed if she had let me know there was a problem.

    If the Shasta daisies weren't in season, then they weren't...but why put that in the contract if you know they're out of season? Why not be transparent from the beginning?

    • Reply
  • T
    Super April 2021
    Tiger Bride ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment

    Thank you Lisa! I'm having a hard time putting a price on what to ask for back. The bout was $15, so I think I will ask for that. As for the bouquet, I really don't know. Shastas are wildflowers, so can't be ordered. They bloom where I live (CT) in May/June, my wedding was in SC so I thought maybe they would bloom earlier there. If they don't, they don't, but why put that in the contract? Surely you'd know that in February, when we signed the contact?

    There were garden roses in my bouquet, just not the right color. I don't know how to put a price on that. As I said to a PP, these were not rare or expensive flowers, just ones with a lot of personal significance.

    • Reply
  • C
    Super July 2020
    Cool ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment
    Sometimes they may expect something to be in season but it doesn’t turn out to be. Regardless, no point in arguing with me which is kind of what I was saying with the whole situation. You can be mad (obviously you are) but you are unlikely to get a refund. Flowers, nature, covid, supply chain issues… lots of unexpected issues. Even if she just blatantly didn’t include them - I just don’t think it’s worth getting yourself so worked up over when you likely won’t find resolution.
    • Reply
  • Lisa
    Rockstar July 2022
    Lisa Online ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment
    Totally agree with you that they should not have put it in the contract if they couldn't guarantee it! I know they put roses in the bouquet, but they still weren't the agreed upon roses. The florist should have contacted you to let you know about any issues ("we weren't able to get the color roses you wanted, would you be OK with [alternate color] instead?", or "the Shastas aren't going to be able to make it into your bouquet. Are you OK with gerberas instead?"), especially since they knew the specific color of the roses had a special significance to you. As for coming up with a price, definitely ask for the full $15 for the boutonniere since you never received it, and I would maybe ask for at least a 50% refund (or more) on the cost of the bouquet? Since they still provided a bouquet, but it wasn't the one you agreed upon and they did not try to contact you to get your approval on the changes?
    • Reply
  • T
    Super April 2021
    Tiger Bride ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment

    I was asking about how much I should ask for, given the details I provided. But thanks for your input.

    Mostly upset about the roses. No reason to leave them out when there's bunches for sale at a Publix 5 miles away.

    • Reply
  • T
    Super April 2021
    Tiger Bride ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment

    This is helpful, thank you!!! I was coming up with anywhere between 15% and 50% so I will probably ask for somewhere in there.

    Just some communication would have gone a long way!

    • Reply
  • Lisa
    Rockstar July 2022
    Lisa Online ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment
    Communication is always good! Best of luck, I hope they are willing to agree to refund you what you ask for!
    • Reply
  • Kimistar
    Dedicated March 2021
    Kimistar ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    Did your florist have a flower substitution policy in the contract? Mine did and it gave them the right to make substitutions where necessary. So while peonies were added to my proposal, it wasn’t guaranteed that I would have them (my wedding was a tad early for peony season) and they had the right to use something similar in place without needing to contact me for approval. I hope you sort it out with your florist and get the refund you deserve but make sure to double check the contract and proposal separately to have your bases covered.
    • Reply
  • Suzie
    Super October 2021
    Suzie ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    Most florists have a substitution clause, since they can’t control what their vendors have, what flowers are available, etc. My florist did call and tell me that anemones were (unseasonably) not available for my bouquet, which was disappointing, but what can you do. Mine did substitute for a similar look though. Some things are completely beyond their control. She could have communicated more and made sure your order was complete. I honestly don’t think this warrants a 50% refund, but perhaps a partial one due to the missing items. Unless you were charged an increased amount for shipping in special ordered flowers, you likely were still charged fair market (I would hope).
    • Reply
  • T
    Super April 2021
    Tiger Bride ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment
    There wasn't a substitution policy, she just sent me a proposal that said here's what's in the bouquet with some general colors and two specific flowers (the daisies and the roses). I would understand if this was a rare, exotic, out of season flower (assuming she warned me about that) but like...it's a rose, they had them at Publix and Trader Joe's and probably other places too. It just seems like a problem that was SO easily fixed if she had just told me what was happening 😭
    • Reply
  • T
    Super April 2021
    Tiger Bride ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment
    I didn't want to copy and paste the whole thing but I just responded above! She didn't have anything about substitutions. Tbh if she said she couldn't guarantee the daisies and roses I might not have booked with her.
    • Reply
  • Suzie
    Super October 2021
    Suzie ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment
    Def sounds like she dropped the ball on communication all around. Hopefully she works with you to refund at least something.
    • Reply
  • T
    Super April 2021
    Tiger Bride ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    Just wanted to follow up and provide an update on this, in case someone else had a similar issue.


    She offered to refund me $100, which covered a full refund of the boutonniere ($15) and a little more than 40% of my bouquet. I thought this was fair to both of us and accepted. It subsequently took her a couple of weeks and one more reminder to actually send the refund, but at least it's over.
    We did do another shoot and I made my own bouquet, which I was very happy with.
    • Reply
  • Lisa
    Rockstar July 2022
    Lisa Online ·
    • Flag
    • Hide content
    View Quoted Comment
    Glad to hear that you were able to reach an agreement that is fair to both you and the florist!
    • Reply

You voted for . Add a comment 👇

×

Related articles

WeddingWire celebrates love ...and so does everyone on our site! Learn more

Groups

WeddingWire article topics