Get it in Writing!

I suppose I tend to obscess about service agreements, or contracts, due to my past life handling auto accident claims and claim litigation.  Having been in the insurance industry, contracts and contract law became a very important part of my professional life.  However, even though the idea of a contract may intimidate some people, I assure you that a proper contract is your best insurance against misunderstandings, lack of clarity and can even provide legal recourse if a service provider fails to deliver.

First, I must clarify that I am NOT an attorney and nothing I offer in this blog should be construed as legal advice.  I only want to share my years of experience in the hope that both vendors as well as customers can benefit from it.  One of the very first things we did, as a company, was to have a qualified attorney help us draft a service agreement; aka, a contract.  Contracts can come in many forms, however, they should clearly describe the service(s) you've agreed to as well as the cost and payment arrangements.  Obviously, it should also state your name, the date of your event and other details such as location, time and contact information of those involved.

It should also include any conditions or limitations that may apply; such as cancellation, limits of financial responsibility, warranties and more.  If it's not in the contract, a vendor cannot assert other limitations after the fact.  For example, if the contract doesn't impose any loss of deposit in the event of cancellation, the vendor cannot later state that you've forfeited the deposit if you have to cancel.

Verbal contracts can be legally binding as long as everyone agrees to what the terms are, but how do you prove the terms of the verbal agreement if you disagree about what they were?  In my world, if it's not in writing, you have no promise of service.  The other thing that concerns me, in this technological age, is the growth of virtual signatures; "writing" your signature on an I-Pad or laptop screen and then having the vendor send you the agreement later.  It's one thing if they immediately e-mail to you or print off the service agreement while you're sitting there, but what is to prevent an unscrupulous person from altering or editing the terms of the service agreement after the fact?  Suddenly, you've put your name on something that has changed without your knowledge or agreement.  You should expect to receive a copy of the service at the time you sign it.

Contracts protect the interests of both the service provider and the customer by clearly laying out the details of the agreement.  It avoids confusion by detailing exactly what you are getting for what you are paying.  I once had a bride for whom we agreed to provide a number of services during her wedding day.  It included setting up the room, refreshing the beverage station and monitoring the buffet during the reception, cleaning up the catering kitchen, removing garbage and general clean-up.  After packing up all of the left-over food from the buffet, assembling all of the cake components that had to go back to the cake designer, boxing the rented bowls that had to go back to the florist and gathering the rented beer kegs that had to go back to the liquor store, the bride became upset when I wouldn't agree to return all of those items to their proper sources.  I was able to show her the service agreement that enumerated exactly what we had agreed to do for her.  While I might have considered helping her under different circumstances, I was not going to be available to take everything back.  In that case, the service agreement protected MY interests.

If there is any ambiguouty such that the terms of a contract can be interpreted more than one way, courts normally interpret that amibuouty in favor of the person who signed the contract and not in favor of the one who wrote it since the one who wrote it has ultimate control over the terms and wording.  While I don't encourage lawsuits, I recognize that some situations may warrant going before a judge or magistrate in a small claims suit as the only recourse to get money back or other legal redress.

As you plan your event or wedding, the measure of the quality of the vendors you are considering, in my opinion, is in large part based on their level of professionalism and good business-like procedures.  Once you've chosen a vendor, that person should present you with a clearly written, concise and understandable contract for services or products.  They should be willing to walk through the details of the contract with you and answer any questions you may have.  They shouldn't rush you through that process.  If you are feeling uncertain, ask to take the written contract home with you so you can read it more carefully.  If you feel something should be clarified, have the vendor clarify it in writing.

So, while contracts can be intimidating to some, they are, in fact, your best friend to assure that you are getting exactly what you think you're paying for.  And, if you are a vendor of products or services and only have a service agreement you wrote yourself--or none at all--it is in your best interests to have an attorney review it to correct any shortcomings immediately.