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Citizens Advice reveals nuptial nightmares reported to its consumer helpline

Evacuation from a dangerous venue, dead flowers and phantom photographs are just some of the wedding woes brides and grooms encountered on their big day.

The average price of a wedding comes in at around £20,000, but cost is not the only issue couples face when planning their special day.

As wedding season approaches Citizens Advice has revealed details of some of the 3,000 wedding problems in England and Wales reported to the Citizens Advice consumer service between April 2012 and March 2013.

One furious bride had her celebrations cut short and spent her wedding night sleeping in a nearby Chinese restaurant after police evacuated the wedding venue. The hotel had put everyone at serious risk by illegally reconnecting the energy supply after being cut off a week earlier due to an unpaid bill, leaving guests with nowhere to sleep. The botched connection could have electrocuted someone, caused a fire or even an explosion.

Another bride found her blooms to be less than beautiful as the florist tried to pass dead flowers off as ‘bronze’ roses that were meant to look old although later admitted ‘they were not the best.’

Common nuptial nightmares reported to the Citizens Advice consumer service include:

Dress dilemmas: Faulty dresses, unable to cancel a dress order despite prior agreement and dry cleaning that makes dresses dirty.

Price problems: Wedding packages advertised as cheaper online than when offered at venue and a price quoted for services like flowers or car hire, is different to what is charged.

Vanishing venues: Wedding venue not built in time or goes bust, wedding cancelled due to double booking.

Rings hitch: Resizing of wedding rings leaves it a different shape and cleaning changes colour.

Phoney photographers: Blurred images, no photos years after wedding, photographer goes bust and videos that never materialize.

Citizens Advice found there is a lot of confusion around cancellation rights and getting a deposit back. Planning a wedding is a really exciting time, but it’s important people keep a clear head and know what will happen if you need to cancel and have already paid a deposit or are on a payment plan for the item.

Brides and grooms could find it easier to challenge shoddy services in the future under proposals as part of the new Consumer Bill of Rights. The Bill is looking to introduce new rules which mean consumers can get an refund if services – like photography – aren’t carried out with reasonable skill and care.

Citizens Advice Chief Executive Gillian Guy said:

“People are spending tens of thousands of pounds on what should be the best day of their lives, only to find that it comes with heartbreaking problems. While it’s not very romantic to think about what might go wrong, we hear from thousands of people whose big day was devastated by hitches so it pays to take a practical approach when planning.

“There are steps you can take to protect yourself from wedding problems, like getting everything down on paper which is signed by yourself and the trader, that way you have evidence of the price and service agreed."

Top tips to protect yourself when planning a wedding:

Get agreements down on paper: Get what has been agreed written down and signed by yourself and the trader. This includes details of the service, price, delivery timings and cancellation details.

Check cancellation terms: Make sure you understand what your rights are if you have to cancel or if the trader cancels your order, including how much notice and what happens to deposits and repayment plans.

Act quickly: If something has gone wrong, like the flowers aren’t up to scratch, speak to the seller straight away in order to get a full refund or replacement.

Gather evidence: Take photos for proof. For example if you’re rings are being resized, take photos in front of the trader before the work is done and get shots of different angles of the rings. Then if anything is different you’ll have proof.

Extra protection: If you pay by credit or debit card you might be able to get money back from your card provider if you are having difficulties sorting out a problem with the seller.

Insurance: You can get specific wedding insurance to help your day run smoothly but it’s important to make sure the policy covers your needs.

Protection from paying by credit or debit card or taking out wedding insurance gives you the added comfort of knowing that if there is a problem that you can't get sorted out, the Financial Ombudsman Service are likely to be able to help you.

If you are having trouble with a wedding supplier or are unsure about the terms of conditions in a contract you can get advice from the Citizens Advice consumer service on 08454 04 05 06 or 08454 04 05 05 for Welsh language line.

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Citizens Advice

Notes to editors

1. The Citizens Advice service comprises a network of local bureaux, all of which are independent charities, and national charity Citizens Advice. Together we help people resolve their money, legal and other problems by providing information and advice and by influencing policymakers. For more information in England and Wales see www.citizensadvice.org.uk
2. The advice provided by the Citizens Advice service is free, independent, confidential, and impartial, and available to everyone regardless of race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, age or nationality. For online advice and information see www.adviceguide.org.uk
3. Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales advised 2.1 million clients on 6.9 million problems from April 2011 to March 2012. For full 2011/2012 service statistics see our quarterly publication Advice trends
4. Out of 22 national charities, the Citizens Advice service is ranked by the general public as being the most helpful, approachable, professional, informative, effective / cost effective, reputable and accountable (nfpSynergy’s Brand Attributes survey, May 2010).
5. Most Citizens Advice service staff are trained volunteers, working at around 3,500 service outlets across England and Wales.