how are you paying?

Mioh1

My number one concern is that if I pay for anything in advance I wont get what I payed for. I've heard of brides who pay in full for their dresses and they never receive their dress. Or a photographer that never shows up. How are you girls paying? I have a videographer who wont take my day if I don't pay him month to month but I'm paranoid something will go wrong.

Knottie1435582995

I paid nearly all of my vendors ahead of time.  It was easier for me than to worry about who needed to be paid the day of.  Just make sure you check them out well, see if there are any complaints, etc.  I don't think it's all that unusual to pay vendors ahead of time (at least in my area).

katiewhompus

We paid our venue half upon booking (with full refund in the contract if THEY cannot uphold their end), I paid full on the dress but also took it home that day, I also paid our harpist the day of.

Just make sure that you are protected in the contract and will receive a refund in the case of their cancellation, closing, death, etc and you should be fine.

stephl3055

For any purchase you make where you don't receive the good right away, it's best to use a credit card.  That way if something happens, the credit card companies can get your money back a lot faster than if you wrote a check or used a debit card. 

I would only charge certain items, like my dress and maybe some deposits.  Also, review any and all contracts.  Most will have refund scenarios spelled out. 

Disclaimer: I'm not suggesting you charge your entire wedding on your credit cards.  If you can't pay off your card each month, then you don't need to charge that item. 

SarahPLiz

I am paying per the contracts I have signed. Most of them require the final payment to be made about 2 weeks before the event, some the day of. For my dress, I paid half up fron and then made monthly automatic payments for the balance during the time it was on order. It came in early, so I still had another payment to make after it came in. That's the standard way that store does it, and they wouldn't take my money when I offerred to pay in full. I thought that was kind of neat.

Night_Sprite

If you are concerned use a credit card so you can do a charge dispute if necessary.

526SadieSadie

We've given deposits to everyone, the balances are all due a week or two beforehand.  If you're worried about getting screwed over, only use well-known vendors in your area.  Ask your venue for recommendations of people they've worked with before.  Get every detail that's important to you in writing in a contract.  Don't sign anything without reading it thoroughly and if someone still gives you a leery feeling, trust your gut and find someone else.

vegasgroom

Very few vendors will commit to you without at least a deposit; photographers tend to run in the 50% range up front to secure the date and then they want the rest the week before the event.  We had to pay 50% of the minimum, service fee and tax to Mandalay to rent out a restaurant for next year and the remainder is due 14 days before the event.  You should have a contract in all cases, try to use credit card and if a vendor makes you uncomfortable, go with one that doesn't, like someone you see heavily recommended or that friends have experience with, or a big company.  We used a photog who was heavily recommended on theknot and had been used, and of course we're not too worried about mandalay bay going out of business and taking our venue deposit. :-)

Blueyed228

We are paying in full as we sign the contracts.

I dont want to have worry about having that much cash on me at the wedding, and I dont want to have vendors asking me for payments that day.  The less stress the better.

The venue got a deposit and requires payment in full 2 weeks before the wedding.

TurtlesAllTheWayDown

I'm paying what I can before. Some vendors want to be paid day-of. For something where you won't get the services FINISHED the day of (like photographers - photos take a few weeks after the wedding, usually), I feel more comfortable making a final payment on completion. My photographer required a deposit, a certain amount 2 weeks out, and the rest due upon the delivery of photos. Get contracts for everything so at the very least you can sue for breech of contract and promised services not delivered. Also, if you can, use a credit card so you have a record of your transaction and the credit card company can seek restitution on your behalf.

For my dress, I had to pay half for the deposit and I paid the rest when I picked it up.

Blueyed228

Also, I understand the concern that vendors may not show up etc.  But they may not show up even if you paid them half up front or no money up front. 

HKD817

My FI and I are paying for as much upfront and in cash as possible. We dont want to be worried about big payments right before the wedding. So as we have extra cash we leave additional deposits with all the vendors. I am sure to leave small balance for the day of the wedding so they have to collect when they deliver. By small I mean like we will owe the florist $200, DJ $500, Venue..zip

My dress I paid in full for but after it came and was perfect. the alteration costs are all I have left but the dress fit so perfect that all I have to do is the hem. Everything else was paid for in cash and we are in great shape. No debt at all.

texgal79

Same with merymac and HKD817. We are paying for the wedding ourselves so it's being done as required by due dates for balances. We paid a lot of initial deposits and I have a nerdy spreadsheet with the due dates of the final balances. We're putting as much on credit cards for both the protection aspect, the points we get and frankly to stretch out our savings. Our minister, DJ, string quartet, and hair/makeup people we can't put on credit cards we'll pay the day of (giving the checks to the coordinator.)  Final payments for dress, venue, catering, liquor, cake, photog, etc. are all due somewhere between 60 days and 7 days out. And this gives me a small heart attack. Def. agree with Blueyed - whether or not you pay won't matter to the flaky/snaky vendors.

Mioh1

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_paying?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:3cda490f-cd3d-4471-a588-0fc92b6fe902Post:68c5fb52-7920-4128-95d2-8f2fb2ca73b8">Re: how are you paying?</a>:
[QUOTE]Also, I understand the concern that vendors may not show up etc.  But they may not show up even if you paid them half up front or no money up front. 
Posted by Blueyed228[/QUOTE]


safest bet is using credit cards for refunds

carrieoz_76

We waited until the last day we could, then paid by credit card when that was an option.  Most vendors we looked at wanted deposits up front, and the balance a number of days before the wedding, so there wasn't an option to wait until the service was received before paying.  But paying by cc protects your money if they don't provide you the service (although not all vendors accept it, so if they don't, you have to decide whether to trust them).

The dress, alterations, plane tix, HM accommodations, rental car, and all vendor deposits were paid by cc.  I'm less worried about not paying by cc now that we're a month out and I've interacted with the vendors (*knock wood*), so some of their balances were paid by check.

Blueyed228

Just like you are afraid they are not going to show up if you pay them in advance, vendors are going to require a deposit.  They have the same fear that they will perform the service and never get paid.

It works both ways.  As long as you have signed contracts, your money is safe.  They are legal binding.

golden1215

We paid for everything except food (will be paid night of since we're getting married at a restaraunt) pretty much in full 6 months before the wedding.  We had a good chunk of money come in and for me/us it was just easier to pay for everything we could up front and not have to worry about it later.

Like other said, if a vendor is going to back out they will back out with half of your money too.

Meg1979

I was going to say with buttons, but I thought my smart-assery would be not the best.  I am only paying deposits.  None of my vendors gave ultimatiums about paying by this day.  My florist is getting her deposit tomorrow and we don't have to pay in full till two weeks before the wedding.  Photographer is taking her payments in three payments and the venue already has their deposit.  So...yeah.  As long as you have in writing what deposit is requested and what you are agreeing too, you should be fine.