Me in panic

What actually went wrong?

I.e. did the decorations look bad because your friend doesn't have the same taste as you, or are we talking 'disaster' as in the wedding planner didn't have even the basic details sorted?

Can you elaborate? What made it a disaster? Also was it “day of” coordinating? Full service?

View Quoted Comment The decoration was very bad, he forgot the drink for the toast, the planner was not at the event, in the contract it said that there would be a dessert table and they put like 10 cupcakes and pure fruit and that was not what my friend asked for, I say it because I was present when they made the contract

My friend's contract is similar to mine 😭

If it was a DOC and not a full service coordinator then they likely didn’t provide the decor or anything else but just set up what was provided. If your DOC is contracted to just coordinate what you’ve ordered then you should be ok. I would definitely make sure the DOC is on site for the entire event. I would give them a call and discuss your concerns.

I would love seeing that contract because so much of what you described is odd. For example, I don’t understand why a wedding planner would have a practice of providing beverages for a toast anyway. Does he also have a decor company and catering company along with his wedding planning business? Otherwise, why is a wedding planner providing the decorations and dessert table? That all seems concerning from the start.

As for him not being on site, was that explicitly explained before booking? I’m only asking because I know of a few wedding planning companies that have “teams” of coordinators who work for them. And, even though the couple meets with and communicates with a the owner, they aren’t the actual person who will be there on the wedding day. Instead their team members are assigned to the wedding and that allows the company to take on more weddings on the same date. It’s definitely not ideal if the couple isn’t informed ahead of time to agree with that arrangement. But that’s how some wedding planning companies work. So it’s very important for brides to ask before booking, “Who will be present at my wedding? Will it be you or one of your assistants?”
But in a way it’s good for you, because now you have the opportunity to obtain details from him regarding the specifics of your wedding plans and contract agreements. Additionally, you can ask him questions and express concern in reference to the issues you observed at your friend’s wedding. And, ultimately, you still have the option of canceling altogether. But that’s going to depend on whether your peace of mind or $1000 is more important to you. For me, it’s peace of mind and quality service. For others $1000 might be most important.

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I agree with this - not everything seems to stack up.

OP, you may have been present when they initially discussed and agreed on everything, but even if this planner initially agreed to do X, Y, Z, they may have varied the scope of his services later on.

In any case, if you want out of this contract, have a proper read over the terms of the contract and identify what your rights are to terminate without losing your deposit. If the contract doesn't give you this right (which admittedly is unlikely), I would have a conversation with the wedding planner and address some of the issues you identified so that you can at least talk it over with him and gauge what he was and wasn't responsible for.

From there you can make an informed decision about whether you are willing to lose the $1,000 (if you can't recover your deposit under the contract).

View Quoted Comment She has a company that tested everything for the wedding, and my friend made the contract like this, decoration, food, drink, waiters, sound, and she as the organizer, but I felt very bad when I arrived with the bride to the event and see as if They only tied two pieces of cloth and put a flower on it and now, the news told me that was not what she showed me on the forums.