*UPDATE* Wedding Disaster - What to do now?

I am so so sorry You should get your money back! You likely have wedding photos evidencing their failure to meet their obligations as proof too. That is so horrible and unacceptable. Remember: even if these things weren't written in a formal contract, their verbal promises and casual emails/texts to you all count as contracts. Contracts are just promises; you don't need a signature. Since they told you they would be doing these things to fix the property and failed to deliver, they breached an agreement.

I am so very sorry! That had to be horrible. I would def ask for all of the money back. They obviously didn't provide the services. If they don't reimburse you, I agree with the PPs, ask for legal advice.

*UPDATE*

1: I did call my guests and apologize for the negative experience and while most of them did not know what all had gone on and by some miracle thought that it was such "a cute simple wedding" (too bad that wasn't my intent), some of them told me more horror stories. One couple asked if there was more food in the back and were snapped at by a waiter saying they had already refilled the food trays once. One couple said they were bitten by fleas (not mosquitos) and that they actually saw the fleas on them (I get that it is an outdoor wedding venue but we have bug guys come to our house once a month and that handles about 90% of our indoor and OUTDOOR pest issues). One lady said the sink in the bathroom was stopped up and if people washed their hands it overflowed so most women couldn't wash their hands (GROSS) and I found out that when my grandmother arrived the bathroom was so nasty that she actually went and found cleaning supplies and cleaned it because it was embarrassingly disgusting.

2: So I went to meet with them this morning. I e-mailed them last week and told them I was coming today and I called this morning to ask if it was a good time to come still because I had to pick up a decoration and my planner had told them they had to pay me back for decorations that were paid for but not supplied. The secretary said yes and I said I would like to speak with one of the owners when I arrived. Once I got there she handed me a decoration that I had left behind and an envelope with "money for the drapes that weren't put up" I opened the envelope to find a whopping $100 in there...so I asked if the manager or owners were there and she told me they were in meetings for the rest of the day..............so I told her (loud enough for the other couples waiting to hear) that my wedding day was a disaster and I listed all of the things that had gone wrong. I told her that I needed to speak with someone on how this was going to be handled seeing as I had not gotten anything (even an apology) from them and the drapes were not the only decorations that they did not supply. I then felt really guilty for getting sassy with a secretary so I apologized for getting sassy and asked for the e-mail addresses of the owners and managers. I also had her e-mail me with a refund receipt showing that they only gave me $100 back for the drapes and not any money for the other decorations. I also videoed myself opening the envelope and taking out the $100. I almost told them to keep the money until they could fully reimburse me. I called my mom and DH after I left and bitched some more and we decided that we were not satisfied with them blowing me off like that and not reimbursing us for AT LEAST the decorations and chairs that we paid for and were not supplied. I am now typing up an e-mail with all of the things that happened on our wedding day and what I feel like needs to be done. I am requesting a sit down meeting with the owners and DH and I so that we can discuss it in person...while it is recorded.

We have decided that even though they messed up a lot of our pictures by not having things set up and my bouquet breaking repeatedly and all the other nonsense that went on, that we only want reimbursement for the things that they promised and I paid for buy they did not supply. So we will be requesting reimbursement for the chairs and seating that was not provided, additional decorations that were not provided, part of our flower payment (because I was not able to use my bouquet for any pictures and it was still falling apart as I went down the aisle, also because I had to use a bridesmaids bouquet for pictures one of my bridesmaids had to use my toss bouquet in group pics and it is obviously a big difference and noticeable in pictures), part of the payment for chair covers and table clothes back because they were wrinkled and dirty, the money back for grooms table extras (mints and nuts were paid for but not provided), and money back for part of the food. We had about 20 people who said they did not get certain food items because they ran out so we are asking for the money back for those specific food items that ran out for 20 people. I feel like the food is certainly justified because we ordered food for more people than we had coming so there was absolutely no excuse for that happening. I just honestly can't believe that they have not even apologized for this. So that is where we are right now...

Wow. You are handling this so incredibly well Future Mrs L. I can't believe the nerve of them to just give you the money for the drapes. Let us know how they reply to the email.

Wow, good on you for being compassionate with the receptionist (since it wasn't her fault) and for handling this amazingly. I'd be livid and probably would've walked into the meetings the owners were in all day if I could've lol.

Hi! I posted before. (Not sure if you read it!). Have you checked to see if they are accredited by the BBB?

Just read through this whole thing. I am so, so sorry this happened to you. You seem to be handling it very level headed and I sincerely hope that they refund you for what they promised to provide yet didnt. Please keep us posted! Again, terribly sorry this happened to you.

There was a TV personality out of Cleveland, Ohio named Carl Munday that hosted issues like this very regularly. There maybe someone simular in your area that does these consumer mishap stories. It might be something that you may want to look at doing along with all the great suggestions given by the lawyers in this thread.

@OG Alecia - that is interesting to know that they can say that and have reviews removed. There are almost zero negative reviews on this place and there is no way that I can be the only one! I have all of my pictures and documentation ready to back up every single thing that I am saying but I honestly don't want to have to get a lawyer involved if I don't have to. The lawyers I know are special ed lawyers and divorce lawyers but they said they would help me in any way that they could and that they could talk to some of their friends to see if anyone could help. I really want that to be the last resort. I told DH that I would honestly not be as upset if they would have just apologized and acted like what they did was wrong. Instead they act like nothing happened.

I'm not a huge fan of doing this, but they sound like the deserve it. Run their name through the mud. On yelp, google, wedding wire, fb, IG, twitter, wedding wire, the knot... wherever their name is. What they did was unacceptable

ETA: or maybe not, as I just read some of the lawyers advice above.

You have already gotten great advice so I'm just here to give virtual hugs and say that I hope y'all had the best honeymoon ever, that wedding venue sucks, and you rock for being so optimistic!

They did not hold up their end of the signed contract. You should be requesting money back for all items that were missing, not done correctly and all safety concerns.

ETA: read your update. I strongly suggest doing what OG Alecia said. I hope you're able to get a lot back.

I'm so sorry this happened and their attitude about it afterwards is even worse! I definitely think you should go through the contract item by item and request reimbursement.

Definitely make sure you have a saved counter-signed copy of your contract with this venue. Vendors can dispute reviews on WeddingWire, but if you have a signed contract that you were a client and provide our dispute team with it if/when they reach out - the review will go back up (as long as there is nothing profane, vulgar, racist, or personally identifiable information like a full name, address, or date of birth included in the review).

https://support.weddingwire.com/hc/en-us/articles/205700125-Disputed-Review-FAQ

Go see an Attorney. You deserve a FULL refund.

OP, $100??? I'm so furious for you!

I wanted to clarify my earlier comment re: emotion. I was thinking more along the lines of claiming "emotional distress" if you end up pursuing legal action. But I'm not an attorney, so I can't say whether or not this is defensible. I thought it could be worth asking about, but I guess I have the UO on this matter.

While I agree with @xtine that there is nothing wrong with putting some emotion and opinion into your reviews (obviously don't lie), I do not think anyone who is not a lawyer should recommend pursuing things like intentional or negligent infliction of emotional distress...

If you do make an appointment with an attorney, they will tell you what there is to possibly pursue after reviewing all the relevant facts.

Like I said, lawyer is absolutely last resort. I have friends of the family and friends of friends who are lawyers but I honestly want it to be as little mess and drama as possible from here on out. I have an e-mail typed up with point-by-point of what went wrong and what my complaints were from the wedding day. At the end I asked for reimbursement for the seating, the lack of food (only for the guests who did not get food), the missing decorations, and my bouquet that kept messing up. I told them that I would appreciate if we could all sit down and discuss what had happened and move on from there. I am holding off on a review in hopes that at the end of it I can add that they made it right...

I think they should refund you the entire catering portion of the bill as well. To not have food for your guests is just unacceptable.

I am SO sorry about all of that! Hey at least you got to marry your man! But GO GET YOUR MONEY GIRL! Pull your contract and make them give you back every cent you didn't get

I am so sorry!!!