Photographer won’t give refund! Not sure what to do
consumer protection attorney Louisiana Jul 21, 2026
Location: Louisiana Hi all, I recently had to cancel my May 2027 out of state wedding in Louisiana (family issues) and am now getting married in my home state. The thing is, I paid in full with a photographer in Louisiana, and ultimately I ended up telling them that I had to cancel. Original price was $1900, but with a deal they had going and if I paid in full, it came out to $1200 for 4 hours of photography and videography. Now, on the contract itself, it says under 'Payment terms': "30% deposit is required to secure the wedding date. The remaining balance must be paid in full at least 14 days before the event date. The client may receive 30% off the total if paid in full upon booking. Accepted payment methods include Square Invoice, Zelle, Apple Pay, Venmo, and Cash App." And under 'Cancellation and rescheduling' it says: “If the Client cancels, the retainer is non-refundable. If the Client reschedules, the Photographer/Videographer will make reasonable efforts to accommodate the new date.” So the retainer/ deposit itself is obviously non refundable, l have no issues with that, that's what they're there for. The main issue I have is when I asked about the remainder of the money, my photographer said they'd get back to me and see what their videographer says/ what their "refund policy is" since they technically contracted them. Which I found strange, because there was nothing in the contract about different refund policies, and I have a signed contract with them - not with the person they contracted. Overall when they got back to me, they said that the videographer said that they don't do refunds, but the photographer said that they could get me their portion in a few weeks because they felt bad. But honestly, I feel kinda dumbfounded. Is this allowed? They mentioned that their policy is "under my judgement based on the situation which is why it's not in the contract and only the deposit is mentioned". But then what's the point of a contract if these things aren't specified and anything can change? I was 100000% ready to eat the retainer amount like I said earlier, but to go from $1200 to $840 to possibly half of that for no services provided just doesn't sit right with me. They're very nice otherwise and I don't want to ruffle any feathers, but I don't know that to do at this point.
