Small Claims Court Question

BostonBride919

Has anyone ever taken a case to small claims court in MA? I have a vendor who did not provide services as detailed in our contract and they are refusing to provide  refund, so I am going to have to take them to small claims court. If you have ever done this, any advice etc you can offer based on your experience? How far out was your trial date scheduled after you filed the complaint? I will have to fly up to go to court, but it's worth it to me at this point as the vendor has been AWFUL to deal with and it's much more the principle of the matter at this point than the money.

EKobrenski

Nope, but good for you for going through with it and preventing it from happening to others!  I feel like this would be the type of thing where you could find a book on it?

shagadelk7

My aunt had her driveway sealed a couple years ago and literally 3 months later it looked like it did before it was sealed. I think it once she realized the work sucked she contacted the vendor, they refused to refund her so she contacted small claims. I think it took her a couple of months to get her money out of them, but in the end it was definitely worth it.

BostonBride919

Thanks for the suggestion Leah - I'll look into that as well. I think many of you know who i'm speaking about based on my vendor reviews. She has been just SO rude and unwilling to even discuss the issue - She just stopped responding to my requests to discuss and I kept reaching out. I finally got a message today that says she "doesn't want to deal with this any further". Well, too bad - You are a vendor who was contracted to provide services that you did not provide. I am SOO angry with not only the services provided but the way she has responded after the event, so I will definitely follow through with this. I am assuming she thought I would just give up & drop it...

EKobrenski

did you think of maybe having a lawyer call her, esp if you have one in the family?  If she's not sophisticated, she might get scared enough to just give you a refund.

Krystalynne21

You are better off writing a 93A demand letter first.  Its the consumer protection statute in MA.  You can read more about it here: http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=cagoterminal&L=3&L0=Home&L1=Consumer+Protection&L2=Complaints+%26+Mediation+Services&sid=Cago&b=terminalcontent&f=consumer_93A_demand_letter&csid=Cago99% of the time it scares them off because they are subject to double or treble damages! I had to do this with 2 different companies, and both refunded my money ASAP.  Good luck!!

BostonBride919

Thanks ladies - I'll look into that also. She just now responded that she is sending everything over to her attorney so this should be fun!

Krystalynne21

oh, and telling her you will contact the attorney general might help too...they don't really care all that much about the BBB

bostonbride214

Amber my FI is an attorney and I know that he would be happy to help you out. He just dealt with two or three cases similar to this but non-wedding related obviously :)LMK if you want his contact information - even just to run things by him, you should have one too!

jenwindy

Ugh. What a pain! Sorry Amber.   I've got nothing to add outside of what's already been suggested. Just wish she (vendor) would own up to her mistake and do the right thing.

eouellet

Sounds like she's just trying to scare you with the lawyer talk. From everything you've said, you're definitely in the right and I'm betting she's the one who's scared right now - as she should be. I don't think you're the type of person to back down anyway, but I just want to encourage you to keep standing up for yourself. I agree with Krystalynne that the 93A demand letter is a smart first step. She'd be way better off just refunding you the money she owes you then dealing with double/treble damages, not to mention lawyer fees. If she has half a brain, she should realize that.

BostonBride919

Bostonbride - I would love his contact info! Email me at bostonbride919@gmail.com thanks!! I submitted a BBB complaint as it was easy to do with the documentation I already had written out. The letter sounds like a good idea too so I will look into it!!

Sonya32575

I'm so sorry you have to deal with this.  But good for you for being assertive and taking action.  I don't know who the vendor is...would love to know so I can avoid them.  Are they a member of ABC (assoc. of bridal consultants)?  Vendors can also be members, it's not just for bridal consultants.  If so, you can file a complaint with the organization and their membership may be revoked.  Good luck.  I hope this gets resolved quickly and in your favor.

bostonbride214

Amber - YGM! Good Luck!!!!

corky girl

Go to court yourself. It cost alot for a Lawyer.If you have proof of what you expedted and you did not receive the services you will win.You only see a clerk and they make the decision.Write everything down, take all paperwork and pics if you have them or witness to the contract.very calmly tell them what happened.Do not bring anyone that has nothing to do with the claim that usually iritates them.I hope this helps.Been there done it.

Wishin986

I'm glad you are pushing forward with it!  All you have to do is show pictures of the trial and the wedding and the fact that you paid more money and it should be fairly easy.  Good Luck!

JBs_Bride

No advice, but I'm glad you are being persistent about this!

janibride

I'm sorry you have to go through such aggravation! I think there's a $2,000. limit in small claims court., but you don't need a lawyer. Hopefully that will work out. My friend also had a similar situation where the Day of Coordinator was also the florist. It definitely caused unnecessary stress. Each job got half done!

Sparkler2008

Hi Amber,I am a business/real estate attorney and can try to help.  YGM!

Mrkyrain

Good for you. I had a similar situation with my wedding make-up artist (hours late which prevented pictures and actually made the ceremony start late, different makeup than trial, and didn't respond to my 2 e-mails after the wedding). Good for you for sticking with this as it's much easier to give up as I did.

CCBelle

Good luck!!  I think many vendors (and businesses in general) just assume that if they ignore you, you will go away.  And so many people do!  They just don't want to spend the time/energy on a battle.  So good for you to sticking to your principles and fighting back.  I really hope it all works out!

Pinker26

Did you add a review to weddingwire?  I think I remember who you are talking about because I was looking into them myself for DOC services when I read your review.  They have a weddingwire profile with a lot of reviews.

BostonBride919

Pinker - I haven't yet added a review there but I will. I was waiting to see if at least she would do the right thing & refund us so I could put that in the review.