Coronavirus {COVID-19} Rescheduling your wedding:
Updated: Aug 14, 2020
If you’re reading this, there is a good chance you are facing the decision of having to reschedule your big day, or have already done so. Let me first start by saying, take a deep breath, it will be okay. We know this is a crazy time and having to reschedule your wedding is extremely emotional, unfair and stressful, but you will get through it.
If you haven’t already hired a wedding planner, this is a great time to do it. With SO many moving parts, it will pay off to have a pro on your side who can help you navigate how to go about rescheduling your wedding. That being said, if hiring a planner is just not an option, we’re here to offer you a few suggestions on how to help reschedule.
We’ve outlined some questions/things for you while working through this process. Keep in mind, all weddings are different – so this is not a fully comprehensive list of questions and some may not apply to you. You should absolutely speak with each of your vendors to fully understand all options.
Should I reschedule?
If your wedding is before September 1, 2020 - yes.
Based on the trajectory of the spread of the disease, closing of non-essential business and other CDC guidelines, we feel it’s doubtful things will be back to normal before September 1st. If your wedding is scheduled for after September 1, we recommend you take it week by week. Unfortunately, no knows how soon the CDC will lift their restrictions, and when it will be safe for large gathering
Feasibility
Vendors, availability and money aside, the other thing to think about; your guests. If you have a lot of family coming to the wedding, there is a good chance that many of them are elderly. You want to make sure as much as your family can be there as possible, and want it to be safe for all to attend. The other part to this is where is the wedding is taking place (geographically) and where are most of your guests coming from. If a good portion of your guests are out of town, there is a higher likelihood that they won’t be able to attend if travel is involved.
Read your contracts.
Many of your contracts may have a force majeure clause, which basically says they aren’t liable to hold the event if an act of god happens and the work cannot be performed. Make sure you read through all of the cancellation and deposit sections well, so that you are well informed when you call that vendor.
The next part when it comes to rescheduling are the vendors. They of course are the key part{s} to making your wedding actually come to fruition. We will highlight some things to ask your vendors. Keep in mind every wedding is different and so this is certainly not a complete list of any and every option, but some key things that could be helpful.
VENUE:
This is the biggie.
- Can I use my deposit towards another date? IF no, is the remaining balance due?
- What alternative dates are available? {Consider booking a non-Saturday night, such as Friday or Sunday, if the venue will allow!}
- Is there more than one event space at the venue? Some hotels or large venues have multiple event spaces, so it’s possible there is still availability on the new date, just in a different spot in the venue.
-When do I have to decide by?
FLORIST:
- Can I use my deposit towards another date?
- Will the same types of flowers be available at the rescheduled time? {Not all flowers are in season year round}.
- How will pricing of flowers be affected by new date? Make sure you work with your florist to change the type of flower if you need to stay within the same budget.
WEDDING DRESS (or chosen wedding attire):
-Has your dress already been ordered?
- Can the order be put on hold until the new date is secure? This is an important one because of a topic that can be sensitive for us gals. Size. The dress is ordered in a specific size, and alterations are typically done pretty close to the wedding. In addition to having to fit into said wedding dress {for an unknown amount of time – definitely not another level of stress anyone wants}, you don’t want your dress sitting around longer than it need to be.
- If the dress has already been ordered, where is the safest place for it to be stored? Can it stay at the dress shop?
MUSIC:
This may also be a harder one to reschedule, due to the fact that your dj {or band}, can only be in one place at a time. Finding a date that both they and you {and the venue etc.} are available, could be a little harder than someone like the florist who can usually do more than on event in a day.
- Deposit, can it be used towards a different date?
- Some other things to keep in mind in general when talking to your vendors is to ask about pricing structure. Will the prices that you agreed upon before, be honored in the new contract? If there wasn’t already a force majeure clause in the contract, can one be added? (or something similar).
PHOTOGRAPHER:
Your photographer can also only be in one place at a time, so keep this in mind when trying to find a new date.
- Can my deposit used towards a different date?
- What happens if we can't find a date that works for everyone?
- If the original shooter you booked isn't available on the date you want, ask them about potentially using their assistant or second shooter instead.
Some other things to keep in mind in general when talking to your vendors is to ask about pricing structure. Will the prices that you agreed upon before be honored in the new contract? If there wasn’t already a force majeure clause in the contract, can one be added? Or something similar in case something like this happens again? Remember, this is a very fluid situation, solutions and answers are also going to be fluid. As we get more information on the situation we will update any needed information. Don't stress too much over this, we will get through this!
To get more information or get in touch with us, head over to our contact page (here), and we will be in touch with you asap!