A different type of WP trouble

Always_a_Bridesmaid

I'm having a destination wedding and hired a wedding planner to help me.

Anyone have any suggestions on how to deal with a wedding planner that is unresponsive, unavailable, and disorganized?

A few of my issues include:
-I asked for a copy of the reception contract 4 times before I had to call the venue myself to get a contract.
-My ceremony site is still not booked; despite her telling me it was a month ago.  I've requested this contract two weeks ago and I still don't have it.
-Any email or phone call that I make to her takes 5-7 days for response
-I've had at least 4 phone conferences scheduled only to have her not call (I called her, left voicemails, and no response) until several days later

My intial solution to the problem was to have a frank, stern conversation about the lack or communication and her unresponsiveness.  I explained my concerns, she understood, apologized, and promised to make changes.  Things changed for the better but that was temporary.

I'm upset and frustrated with the situation.  This my first experience with a planner and I'm not sure if my expectations are too high.  If anyone has experience or any solutions for dealing with this, please let me know!  I hired and paid for this service to eliminate stress...only to have more, unnecessary stress added.  Unfortunately, if I fired her, I'm concerned that the wedding will be a disaster (as I'm 900 miles away) and I won't get refunded the money I already paid her.  I also can't afford to lose the money and hire a different planner.  I still have 12 months left and I'm not sure how much longer I can last.

Sorry for the long post; all advice is appreciated.

Always_a_Bridesmaid

I'm getting married in Savannah, GA on 9/3/2011.

I'm not made of money but I invested quite a bit into this wedding already...including the $1,250 (for my $5k budget wedding) for her services.  I'm anxiety-ridden that my 50 guests are going to show up and this wedding will be a disaster.

Unfortunately, due to my job (CPA in public accounting), my hours are horrendous and I don't have the time to research, fly back and forth, etc.  I also don't have the desire to deal with the stress of set-up and clean-up for the wedding...as this will be my "vacation", too.

I'm battling on whether or not firing her would be less stressful that the details I cited in the paragraph above.

It's probably naive but I was just hoping that once the bigger details get ironed out, things would be less stressful (aka I'd have no reason to contact her).

Thanks for the advice, ladies!

AdeleDazeem

If she's not associated with your venue, then I'd seriously consider firing her and asking for a portion of my money to be returned.  It sounds like she can't do her job.

My island time coordinator gets back to me within a few days, as long as there is no hurricane bearing down on them (I can't get ahold of her right now, but I'm trying to be understanding due to Igor).  I still haven't paid deposits on some vendors, but she thinks this is no big deal.  Okay - I'll think it's no big deal either for a bit.

ehathewa

If I hadn't paid her that much/signed a huge contract, I'd fire her. 

stina93446

OP, OMG you put a huge amount of your budget on this woman. I don't want to say that you're irresponsible, but you should have budgeted this better. Sure, it's a destination wedding where you don't live, but with a budget like yours, hiring her might have been a huge mistake. I don't really have any advice except to really reevaluate your budget and to either have a nice firm talk with your coordinator or fire her and try again....of course, try to get some of your money back. I'm glad it's in the states.

mkrupar

Ditto Stina. Why would you pay $1,250 out of a $5k budget to have someone put out favors and table cards? I'm sure someone at your venue could handle those things. I seriously think you need to re-evaluate your budget, look at the contract you have with her, and cancel her if need be. I think what you need to consider is a day of coordinator. You make all the arrangements directly with vendors and the DOC is there the day of the event (and typically for the rehearsal) to set-up, organize everything, and tear everything down. They're a fraction of what you're paying and exactly what you need. (And if this is a day of coordinator already, then $1,250 is waaaayyy too much to be paying her).

I also want to point out that your wedding is in 12 months, this is an extremely busy time for wedding planners, so she might be swamped, and that may be why she's not getting back to you right away. I'm not saying that's an excuse to not shoot you an email saying "I'm super busy right now, I'll email you in the morning." But, that may be why it's taking her longer to get back with you.

Always_a_Bridesmaid

Thanks for all of your responses on how to handle the situation with the planner's unresponsiveness, I appreciate the feedback.