Deposit refund?

Ndoh30

I foolishly paid a €100 deposit to a hairdressers a few months ago to secure the date of my wedding - I have now been for my trial, with 4 weeks to go and I really don't want to get my hair done in this place! I didn't receive very good service (despite their reputation) and we have totally differing opinions about wedding day looks! What are the chances I will get my deposit back?

Arbiter of Good Taste

Probably nil. The purpose of a deposit is to save the date with the hairdresser. If they have a good reputation, they could have probably booked the date a few times over - unlikely now with just four weeks to go.

cookiecakes

I paid €100 deposit to book my make up artist and when I had my trial, it was an absolute disaster! Also got trials done for the bridesmaids and my mum and they were god awful. To be honest, I just wrote it off. I far preferred to have lost that money and get someone on the day who was prepared to do what I and the others wanted. It was a pain in the rocks to lose it and the trial money but it was so worth the stress-free morning on the day of the wedding.

littlemisshobo

Call them up and explain you are cancellin because you were unhappy with the service and the result, you fully intended using their service but the style is not something you are happy with. Ask for deposit back; she says no or yes... might as well ask!

LynnGrace

Have you found someone else? If not, don't burn your boats just yet with the original booking.

Ndoh30

LynnGrace wrote: »

Have you found someone else? If not, don't burn your boats just yet with the original booking.

I do have a friend that said she will do it for me. I just felt like we had a personality clash and she was a bit rude too, I wouldn't feel comfortable going there now

D3PO

i cant see you having any argument to get your deposit back. Its there to protect them against a cancellation.

this is entirely your own doing. Who books the hairdresser before having the hair trial ? The point of the trial or at least part of the reason behind it is to see how things go with the hairdresser in question regarding styles and the overall experience of the day.

Personally I think you have a brass neck even considering asking for it back, but equally all they can say is no so nothing ventured nothing gained I suppose.

Ndoh30

D3PO wrote: »

i cant see you having any argument to get your deposit back. Its there to protect them against a cancellation.

this is entirely your own doing. Who books the hairdresser before having the hair trial ? The point of the trial or at least part of the reason behind it is to see how things go with the hairdresser in question regarding styles and the overall experience of the day.

Personally I think you have a brass neck even considering asking for it back, but equally all they can say is no so nothing ventured nothing gained I suppose.

I don't think that is fair to say it's entirely my own doing, I haven't just changed my mind I was given bad service - I paid a deposit in good faith that they would provide me with a good service and they haven't fulfilled their side of the agreement so why should I fulfil mine and lose my deposit?

D3PO

Ndoh30 wrote: »

I don't think that is fair to say it's entirely my own doing, I haven't just changed my mind I was given bad service - I paid a deposit in good faith that they would provide me with a good service and they haven't fulfilled their side of the agreement so why should I fulfil mine and lose my deposit?

You paid them a desposit to hold the day to provide a service. They are prepared to provide that service your the one that no longer wants it. This is precisely why they take deposits to protect them against somebody cancelling.

In my view it is your own doing again I go back to the fundamental point. Why would you pay a deposit before getting the trial ? You as you admited yourself were a little foolish.

Regarding the poor service outside of your differeing views on styles which is irrelevent anyway as they should/will do whatever you ask anyway what was the poor serviec you refer to ?

Ndoh30

D3PO wrote: »

You paid them a desposit to hold the day to provide a service. They are prepared to provide that service your the one that no longer wants it. This is precisely why they take deposits to protect them against somebody cancelling.

In my view it is your own doing again I go back to the fundamental point. Why would you pay a deposit before getting the trial ? You as you admited yourself were a little foolish.

Regarding the poor service outside of your differeing views on styles which is irrelevent anyway as they should/will do whatever you ask anyway what was the poor serviec you refer to ?

I was left waiting 10 minutes in the chair while she stood at the desk chatting to a member of her staff, no apology was made for keeping me waiting. She left me numerous times to joke with members of staff who we're standing around. I made conversation a couple of times and she just ignores me. She told me my hair might be a bit messier and might fall out quicker but it wouldn't on the day - that is the point of a trial to see how the hair lasts and how it will be on the day - I told her numerous time I didn't like part of the hair and instead of change it she argued with me until I insisted it was changed.
I was asked to pay the deposit the day I went in to enquire about the date. I was foolish but I didn't really get the chance to think about it I didn't want to lose the date.

D3PO

Ndoh30 wrote: »

I was left waiting 10 minutes in the chair while she stood at the desk chatting to a member of her staff, no apology was made for keeping me waiting. She left me numerous times to joke with members of staff who we're standing around. I made conversation a couple of times and she just ignores me. She told me my hair might be a bit messier and might fall out quicker but it wouldn't on the day - that is the point of a trial to see how the hair lasts and how it will be on the day - I told her numerous time I didn't like part of the hair and instead of change it she argued with me until I insisted it was changed.
I was asked to pay the deposit the day I went in to enquire about the date. I was foolish but I didn't really get the chance to think about it I didn't want to lose the date.

Ok this is an unplesant service but not one that gives you valid grounds to cancel.

Thats why people do trials before paying a deposit, if you had followed the normal process people do then you would have gone and then had a trial with somebody else and that would have been the end of it.

The whole point of the trial is not to see how long the hair lasts btw its to see how it looks and agree on a style for the hair. They are never going to put in the same level of clips to hold the hair for a trial.

Ndoh30

D3PO wrote: »

Ok this is an unplesant service but not one that gives you valid grounds to cancel.

Thats why people do trials before paying a deposit, if you had followed the normal process people do then you would have gone and then had a trial with somebody else and that would have been the end of it.

The whole point of the trial is not to see how long the hair lasts btw its to see how it looks and agree on a style for the hair. They are never going to put in the same level of clips to hold the hair for a trial.

I didn't offer to pay the deposit I was asked for it, and I know of another few people who have paid deposits in the same way so it's obviously a different system this place operates. I paid full price for the trial and it began falling out half an hour later, before i had even for out of the car - I see what you are saying about protecting themselves and that I should have had the trial before paying but that wasn't my idea, the agreement was broken on their part first, if it hadn't been I wouldn't be cancelling.

D3PO

look ultimatly like I said in my first post if you dont ask you dont get. So feel free to cancel and ask for a refund just be aware that you have no valid consumer grounds to expect it and if you do get it back its purely based on the goodwill of the business involved.

pooch90

I paid my deposit before trial, so have many others.
Fairly standard practice AFAIK.
€100 is a lot though, I only paid €40, which is what she said she would charge for trial anyway.
Due to distance, I had my trial on the Wednesday and the wedding was that weekend.

D3PO

pooch90 wrote: »

I paid my deposit before trial, so have many others.
Fairly standard practice AFAIK.
€100 is a lot though, I only paid €40, which is what she said she would charge for trial anyway.
Due to distance, I had my trial on the Wednesday and the wedding was that weekend.

Its certainly not standard practice, nor would it be standard practice to have your trial so close to the wedding date.

I wouldnt advise anybody to do either of those things either even if they were standard !!

pooch90

The trial timing was purely down to me not being able to get up the country to meet her.
I didn't want anything over elaborate anyway and could easily have found alternatives if it didn't work out.

You pay a deposit to all vendors to secure your date so I don't see the issue there. Just don't pay more than 10%.

D3PO

pooch90 wrote: »

You pay a deposit to all vendors to secure your date so I don't see the issue there. Just don't pay more than 10%.

The point is you dont book a date with the hairdresser until AFTER you do a trial and you are happy with how the trial went.

Would you book your wedding band pay a deposit before seeing them then expect the deposit back after you went to a showcase becasue you then realised you didnt like them ?

No you wouldnt people would think you were very foolish to pay the deposit before seeing the showcase, the same translates on a smaller scare to the hairdresser, the money involved may be less but the principle is the same.

Now in fairness your situation is a bit different if your not in the country you may have to take the odd leap of faith so to speak in terms of booking people but you have to be aware that your doing that and that it may not work out precisely as you planned as a result.

pooch90

D3PO wrote: »

Would you book your wedding band pay a deposit before seeing them then expect the deposit back after you went to a showcase becasue you then realised you didnt like them ?

This is actually exactly what we did :D:D
But the way our band worked was that the deposit was fully refundable if we didn't like them after the showcase (up to 6 months before wedding date)
They turned out to be amazing thankfully!

I get what you're saying though.
However, hair trials (from what I've read) tend to be a lot closer to the wedding date than band showcases. If you are not lucky enough to be able to use your regular hairdresser, it can be a right pain.
A €100 deposit is crazy to pay before they touch your head though.

Arbiter of Good Taste

pooch90 wrote: »

This is actually exactly what we did :D:D
But the way our band worked was that the deposit was fully refundable if we didn't like them after the showcase (up to 6 months before wedding date)
They turned out to be amazing thankfully!

I get what you're saying though.
However, hair trials (from what I've read) tend to be a lot closer to the wedding date than band showcases. If you are not lucky enough to be able to use your regular hairdresser, it can be a right pain.
A €100 deposit is crazy to pay before they touch your head though.

I had my trial 5 months before the wedding. Can't remember when I paid the deposit, but I think it was only €50.

D3PO

Arbiter of Good Taste wrote: »

I had my trial 5 months before the wedding. Can't remember when I paid the deposit, but I think it was only €50.

My wife was similar had a trial 6 months before and only then booked and paid a deposit.

cookiecakes

I paid my hair and make up deposit long before I had my trials and to be fair to the OP, up till this thread ,of all my mates who have gotten married in the last couple of years, had never heard of someone doing a trial and then paying a deposit, much less someone doing a trial 6 months before! I know my hair 6 months before my wedding was much shorter than it was on the day itself and the girl doin my hair even advised to wait till about 5 weeks before the wedding to make sure my hair was the length I wanted it to be, the style would go with the dress, veil etc that I'd picked and that it would be in the right condition.! OP, you can ask for the deposit back but I don't think she's under any obligation to return it. It's still better to lose it than be stuck with someone awful and hair you're not happy with on the day!

mrsbyrne

Did you pay the deposit €100 and then pay another €100 for the unsatisfactory trial? Why did you leave the salon that day , if it was so disappointing, without establishing that you would not now be using her for your wedding?
You've handled this very badly. You've no grounds for a return of your deposit. You just didn't like the service she provided.