Should you be sent a bill if you are a party no-show? : The Saturday Weekend Review #106
NO SHOW FEE IS NO JOKE
The budget is tight these days for most people so if you plan to accept an invite to a party be warned that if you are a no-show you might be sent a bill.
That’s right you might just miss that one event which you confirmed you were going and bam… you’re on the hook for your spot at the party.
No it’s not going to become a law (yet) but make sure you read the fine print (if any) on your next invitation or the party patrol might hunt you down.
It might read something like this…
If you (person named on invite) are a no-show after confirming that you will attend this party please be advised that you will receive an invoice in the mail for the cost of your portion of the event. Payment can be made to my bank account or I don’t mind cold-hard cash $$$.
I know I’m having a laugh as there wouldn’t be an legality behind this that I’m aware of but this really did happen for one dad in the UK.
There are two-sides to the story and an easy solution.. in my opinion.
Pay this bill please
If you don’t pay up your no-show fee you mind find you are potentially on your way to small claims court like Derek Nash from Cornwall, UK. Is this even possible for not showing up to a party? By the sounds of it in the UK, no. In Canada… I don’t know but I’m going to bet that’s a giant no as well but hey I’m no lawyer.
According to the UK-based articles legal correspondent in part:
Any claim would be on the basis that a contract had been created, which included a term that a “no-show” fee would be charged.
However, for there to be a contract, there needs to be an intention to create legal relations. A child’s party invitation would not create legal relations with either the child “guest” or its parents.
I was part shocked but at the same time not shocked when I read this story about 5 year-old Alex Nash whose parents accepted an invite to a birthday party for his classmate at the Plymouth Ski and Snowboard Centre.
As a parent who hasn’t experienced the costs of a birthday party for my child I’m going to say that it’s not cheap especially when you hold the event at an activity based venue. Sure you can still be frugal when planning a party but not everyone thinks frugal when it comes to parties for their kiddos!
Derek confirmed his son was going to the party but then Alex never showed up… oops! Needless to say he cost the party mama some money because she went ahead and paid for a service which was not used because Alex didn’t show up.
What did Julie Lawrence mother of the birthday boy do?
She sent an invoice along with Alex to take home to his parents in the amount she was out-of-pocket £15.95! You read that right…she billed him this wild bill for ditching the party. Nash said that they realized their son was supposed to be hanging out with his grandparents that day, so that’s what he did.
Lawrence has threatened with small claims court if he doesn’t pay up even though I don’t think that will ever happen. Considering Alex’s parents had all the contact info for Lawrence they should have been considerate enough and cancelled in advance in my opinion. Even a phone call to apologize after the fact or as soon as they remembered would have been a nice gesture.
I know when planning a wedding frugal or not if you confirm you are going and don’t show that is very costly to the bride and groom. Some dinners costs hundreds of dollars to execute including drinks, desserts etc. that are paid by the head.
Now, if 10 people are no-shows then the money starts adding up, then what? Your event might cost you $100 a kid (just throwing numbers your way), significantly more than what Lawrence spent. Some would say oh well, suck it up you have to be prepared for risks like this when planning a party.
Oh… there’s that word “Risk” again that pops up frequently in the financial world.
No-show appointment charges
If you don’t show up to a doctor’s appointment and fail to cancel the appointment almost all doctors we know will bill you for the missed appointment.
I know it’s not an invite but it’s still something you confirmed you would attend but you are made aware there is a no-show fee. Some doctors will bill you anywhere from $50-$100 and some will tell you they won’t see you any longer if you don’t pay up.
It’s not just doctor’s either that do this and although they are running a business in the end time is money, money is money. Sure accidents happen and we forget but when it’s someone’s money or time they don’t care. They want you to pay up!
We all laugh at these off-the-wall type stories but maybe Lawrence is onto something big!!
I’m pretty sure that she is trying to send a loud message out to people that they need to be aware of the costs to parents and that it’s considerate to cancel and not just brush it off as if it’s no big deal.
Should Derek just pay the money out of courtesy for not cancelling? I’m pretty sure they could have solved this without having media involvement and the surprise invoice.
What would you do if you were sent a bill for a no-show to a birthday party you confirmed your child was going to but didn’t show up?
Around our house and the blog
If you noticed last week this post was missing you are right, it was. My entire family came down with a severe stomach flu (Gastroenteritis).
Thanks to everyone who sent me emails and messages to get well. It meant lots to know my fans care that much and it’s true I’m a fortunate blogger to have amazing fans like all of you!
Now that we are back on track it’s business as usual on the blog which has been doing amazing by the way.. thank-you to all of the readers who come back day after day. The 2015 is off to the best start ever for CBB and I’m thrilled to see how the rest of the year will go.
Weekly Blog Posts
Just in case you’ve missed any of my blog posts this week I will link to them all below. If you have a question that you would like to ask Mr.CBB fill out the Contact Mr.CBB form on the Home Page and send in your questions. Mr.CBB will look in his mailbag weekly and pick a question to answer on the blog.
- Mom has meltdown over teen and financial responsibility
- How our baby affected our budget… shocking!
- How to control pantry pests in your kitchen
- Sneaky wife teaches husband a money lesson he won’t forget
Popular Blog Posts This Week
I thought it would be fun to share the Top 5 pages and posts each week for those of you that are new reading Canadian Budget Binder. These are in no particular order.
- Scanning Code of Practice in Canada: Did you know?
- How much should my grocery budget be?
- Free Money-Saving Tools (Free Downloads)
- Mom has melt-down over teen and financial responsibilty
- How having a baby affected our budget
Fan deals and Brags
Submit your Deal or Brag:
Saving money while grocery shopping is essential in the CBB family and that’s why we share our grocery shops every week in The Grocery Game Challenge 2015. What I love the most is when my fans share their amazing shops with me whether it be groceries or other deals they find at a garage sale, online or freebies!!!
If you have a brag that you want me to share email me at canadianbudgetbinder (@) [yahoo] [.ca] or fill out my contact form by Friday each week to have your brag considered for the Saturday post.
- 3 packs of 2 little people $2.39 each
- 2 packs of Sofia the first nail polish kits $1.79 each
- Mr. potato head $5.49…Tonka car that makes noise $6.49
- 2 dolls that laugh and talk $2.24 each!!!(originally $25, who pays that??)
- Colour changing airplane $1.79 also got but not pictured
- Box of Xmas cards 70 cents…2 pairs of yoga pants $7.50
- Child’s batman sweater $10.
The other half also got a new batman video game for $10 which is apparently a great deal lol. The birthday and Xmas present closet is slowly getting restocked!
-Samantha
Making A Difference (MAD)
Note: If you are a personal finance blogger (anywhere around the world) and would like your blog to be MAD featured simply drop me an email and I’ll explain the process to you.
This is my way of giving back to the personal finance community through networking and sharing knowledge with my fans. Today I’d like to welcome Even Steven!
What Is Even Steven Money About?
Hello Canada!
Even Steven Money is all about my journey paying back all of my debt, becoming Even Steven, and reaching financial independence to retire early.
I’m paying off the last of my student loans and working my Canadian bacon off to get there, throwing Overtime, Bonus, Taxes, Stock, eBay side hustle, and just about anything else I can get my hands on to be debt free.
Don’t be fooled by the student loans, we are on our way to financial independence and early retirement through our retirement investments and predominantly with our real estate investment property.
Who Is Even Steven Money?
Even Steven is a fun guy to read who mixes in paying off debt, financial Independence, with a few laughs along the way. He will write about how guys with beards are secret frugal mofos and then ask what sacrifices are you making in his serious voice.
Most important is I am myself and I’m serious about money and personal finance. I want to people to know you can make mistakes, but it’s still possible to pay back the debt and get yourself into position to save and invest your way into financial independence.
What Can Even Steven Money Do For You?
Motivate you to pay off your debt, urge you to invest in retirement accounts, learn more about investment real estate from a DIY perspective, and get you thinking about what steps you need to take to improve your financial situation.
I think the best thing I can do for those who read my blog is to make you think about your own financial situation and give you a look into my journey, how I did it.
It could give you the motivation to do anything from cut your expenses, get on a budget, buy investment real estate, or who knows maybe grow a beard and caddie for Michael Jordan.
Stop by Even Steven Money decide for yourself if you love me, hate me, or think I’m the greatest thing since the invention of beer(Yes I know that’s impossible).
Top recipe
If you don’t already know I have a second Facebook page called The Free Recipe Depot where I share recipes from other Food Bloggers from around the world.
I do most of the cooking in the CBB house so I guess that means I wear the apron in the kitchen. I love food and cooking for my wife is a fun way for me to get inspired with fresh ingredients and create new recipes (sometimes healthy 🙂
This weeks Top Recipe goes to In The Kitchen With Jenny for her Key Lime Cheesecake Bars. I’m a HUGE fan of any kind of cheesecake (This is my cheesecake recipe) and I love limes so when I saw this recipe shared on my Facebook page I just knew I had to share it with all of you.
Editor’s Pick
Every week I will pick a blog post of the week from around the web that I found interesting and want to share with you and an Editor’s top blog post pick.
Editor’s blog post pick of the week goes to my good blogger mate Tonya at Budget and The Beach. Tonya is an amazing freelance video editor living in L.A (hit her up if you need any work done, she’s awesome as you will see below) and if you’ve ever watched Cribs on MTV you have to watch FRIBS Tonya’s version where she gives you the tour of her Frugal home! Brilliant Tonya!
Check out her hilarious You Tube Video below and visit her blog for even more really cool episodes!
Google search terms
Every week I get thousands of people visit Canadian Budget Binder because they did a search online and found my blog. Keep in mind any spelling errors below are because I share with you the exact way they typed their search engine query to land on my blog.
- Can I get a pregnancy test at the checkout at Sobeys?– At first read I thought.. probably what you are thinking but then I realized the person likely meant to buy one at the cash lol. Honestly I’ve never seen them in the grocery store before, then again I’m not really looking for them am I. 🙂
- How does pregnancy work?– Hmm, shall I write a blog post on this one? haha~
- Where to complain when a product is defective?– Call the defective product gods… another great post idea.. thanks!
- I want to teach my husband a tough lesson- Oh, Oh someone is in trouble I think!
Thanks for reading The Saturday Weekend Review and Welcome to 2015 on Canadian Budget Binder!!
-Mr.CBB
Related articles
- The Saturday Weekend Review #101: Does your neighbours home improvement really affect your property value?
- The Saturday Weekend Review #102: We almost made this huge online banking error
- The Saturday Weekend Review #103: Why you’re missing deals at the department store
- The Saturday Weekend Review #104: What you need to do in order to become rich
- The Saturday Weekend Review #105: Are low gas prices seducing you to buy a new vehicle?
Great post Mr CBB!! I’d never ask someone to pay if they didn’t come to a party, that’s just the way it is.
Thanks so much for including my recipe.
me either but it would certainly annoy me if they didn’t at least call just to be courteous. 🙂 Thanks Jenny!!
Get well soon. I hope your family is fine now, Mr CBB. Really? I wonder the connection between pregnancy and your blog. But, it doesn’t matter because they found you and that is important. Congrats! The more visits the better.
Thanks Jayson we are all better now, finally.
I have mixed feelings about this one for sure. On the one hand, it’s so, so rude to RSVP for something like a birthday party and then not show up unless in the case of dire emergency. But, charging someone? That’s a sure way to ruin a relationship as quickly as possible. But, I guess the relationship was already ruined due to animosity from the no-show.
I agree about ruining relations but in this case she likely didn’t have a relation with the parents nor did she give a rats. He still should have called to cancel or at least apologize for the no-show. 🙂
My daughter had the grandson’s 5th birthday party at one of those places. I forget what it was called but she paid a flat rate for a certain number of kids then it was so much for each over that. They worked out the final bill after the fact so she didn’t have to pay for anyone that didn’t show. He thought it was great and everyone had a great time from what I heard. I can’t remember the name of the [place for the life of me right now, Lego were involved and she was able to borrow some molds from the place to make her own party favours, plus she bought a few molds for herself to make him things like his own lego shaped soaps and such.
When my kids were young parties were much simpler. One year for the younger boy, July birthday, we made paper airplanes and had water balloons for the kids and everyone loved it!!!
So many places now will still charge you if you miss an appointment, but we live in the snow belt and weather can be an issue. I have found that the specialists out of town are quite reasonable about missed appointments in the winter. I did ask about this back when hubby first started his trips out of town for his Amyloidosis and the doctors were fine, if we couldn’t make it in due to the weather or road conditions. I always got us there but if the authorities close the roads that is that. I did tell them that if the roads were open I should be able to make it there.
Samantha got some sweet deals at Target!!! I need to have the time to look around for those deals everyone gets there!!!
Looks like I might have a few new things to look over!! Have a good weekend!!!
Yes, there’s a cost of a per person at places like the slopes but the ski resort did state in the article that they would have given the mother additional passes/tokens for the remaining kids so she wouldn’t be out any money. It also stated that this isn’t the first time that this family confirmed and the kid never showed.
The 1st time that I didn’t have a home party was when my daughter was 5 and it was McDonald’s restaurant. I paid for the kids that showed up and my mother made her birthday cake. Typically my party for her was very small, mainly family so my expense was no more than I wanted it to be.
I feel that if this mother couldn’t afford a “no show” then she shouldn’t be having it this location. There are times where parents have to “suck up” the cost and I feel this is one of those times.
That’s a VERY good point. Expecting risk when planning parties is inevitable but at the same time guests should be courteous as well. I wouldn’t have done what she did but that’s just me.
Thank you so much for including my video Mr. CBB! I think we bounced this idea off each other eons ago! Better late than never. 🙂
Yes I remember you and I chatting about this. I totally loved what you did. Perfect!! Can’t wait to see what you have moving forward… you’re hilarious.
sorry Mr CBB, didn’t know your family was sick…hope everyone is feeling better
Hi Kathryn,
Thanks, we are well now but it’s the first time an illness hit us so hard.
Does a no-show actually cost any more, than if they showed up? No.
The host is still paying the same. The only difference, is the birthday child may have received one less present.
I think that is what this is really about.
All our kids had home birthday parties.
Played a few games, gave winners a prize.
Serve cake, ice cream and pizza/ hot dogs
Sent everyone home with a small loot bag
Cost?
Very little
I think in this case the mother was out the cost of paying for the child at the slopes. In some cases yes people are out the money because of hosting parties at venues with activities. If you are holding a general party well those few pizza slices will be gobbled down by someone… and no it wouldn’t matter as much but if you spent a few hundred dollars on a birthday party for 20 confirmed guests and only 3 show up.. I’d be upset as well. The cost is as much as the parents want to spend I guess.. 🙂 Thanks for sharing your thoughts Kathryn.