Power outage at my wedding

Is there anything in your contract that says anything about the event of a power outage? Lots of places have a clause about them not being responsible for acts of God, etc.

The only people I'd expect compensation from would be the DJ since they didn't "perform" the whole time. Otherwise, acts of nature happen. It's not like it was just your venue(from the post) so i don't feel they should have to offer anything.

Look for the Force Majeure section of your contract which refers to acts of God like Nicole mentioned.

WOW!! There needs to be some type of compensation for that! You lost out on an hour from each of your vendors if you think about it, that u had to pay fulltime for. Thats not fair. And if hes going to be rude about it, more of a reason to push the issue. I could only imagine the amount of stress that placed on you.. Im so sorry!

Jess, it sucks but it's no ones fault.

Please read your contracts.

force ma·jeure

ˌfôrs mäˈZHər/

noun

1.

unforeseeable circumstances that prevent someone from fulfilling a contract.

2.

irresistible compulsion or greater force.

I've looked through the contract and it's actually pretty basic - it does not mention anything about acts of god or acts of nature or anything to do with any of that!! I still can't believe that for an outdoor venue that has weddings twice a week, every week end, all summer, they did not have any backup plan whatsoever except lighting some candles!

I get they do wedding every week end, but I will only do it once and paid A LOT of money for the day!

Its not even just a matter of the lost time during the event, its a day we will never get back, and yes, we did pay for our vendors during that time too which also factors into it.

Check over your contract like Elyse said. It may also be worded in your contract as "an act of God" (weather). I'm sorry you had to go through that on your wedding day, and yes it does suck but if your contracts states they aren't liable then there is nothing that can be done.

Maybe you can get something back from the venue, but did the other vendors have it in their contracts? I had it in a few, not just my venue.

If you paid per hour for the photographer, you might be able to see some of the money back, if he/she is a nice guy. Same for the DJ. I think you're out of luck with the venue, however. As everyone else stated, it's most likely in the contract.

Also, note to self - ask if my venue has a back up plan for this type of situation.

Nowhere in the contract does it mention acts of nature or acts of god. As for the Photographer and DJ, they were still there and I don't feel as though they should have to reimburse me since the root issue is with the vendor not having a backup plan.

I would definitely recommend for anyone to address this issue when booking a venue!! I don't wish on anyone for the power to go out but have a backup plan!! I thought I had thought of everything and this is something I had never even considered!!

There might not have been a "backup plan" on the venue's part but from your post it sounds like the power outage wasn't just your venue, it was a wider spread area, meaning the outage wasn't their fault. If the power went out because they didn't pay the electric bill or something, then you should absolutely be compensated. It sucks, but I don't really think they owe you anything; they can't control the power grid.

Your contract didn't specify a back up plan either... I don't think this is something that happens all the time. Or they would have a back up plan.

If the whole area was out of electricity, there's nothing they could have done about it. Most venues do not have their own back-up generators. Obviously really important facilities, such as hospitals will have continuous power supply, but otherwise I would really think this would be extremely rare. Back-up generators require fuel storage, and maintenance, and so for most buildings in any city they are not commonplace.

I'm so sorry that your party ended early. Try to focus on the positive things that happened that day.

Not a thing to be done, unfortunately. Most venues do not have back up generators; when Sandy hit the Jersey shore, venues closed down. Some were permanently destroyed.

Look at the good; the rest of the perfect day.

Call me stubborn, but I definitely think if you are a venue that is hosting weddings that people pay upwards of 40k+ for their event for one day, they should have a backup plan. Regardless of how often it happens, it should not happen once. Small business owners purchase liability insurance to ensure they are covered in the event of other things and ensure they protect themselves, however when it comes to their customers this isn't the case? I don't think that's right and as the customer I believe something needs to be done.

We will be fighting it and putting together a request to the venue, and at last resort take them to small claims. As many of the women in here have said, their venues have had a clause for things like this, so their venues have protected themselves against this kind of liability. My venue however didn't have that, and we will be doing something about it.

"As for the Photographer and DJ, they were still there and I don't feel as though they should have to reimburse me since the root issue is with the vendor not having a backup plan." You were still at the venue and used their space and resources. This isn't the venue's fault either. Would you expect them to have a backup plan if it rained? Some have options as a courtesy, but it wouldn't be expected that they absolutely provide something. Now, if the power failure was due to wiring specifically at the venue, that would be different. Since the whole area went dark, you can't hold that against them.

Take Celia's advise. Focus on the good and the memories you have.

ETA: in response to your last comment, I wouldn't call it stubborn, I would call it "sue happy". Would you sue them if there was an earthquake? What if a wildfire broke out nearby and you were evacuated?

I agree with the ladies who have mentioned focus on the good that happened that day. And be grateful that it wasn't due to a hurricane/tornado/something awful. My cousin had his ceremony interrupted by one of the bigger hurricanes in Houston. All of the electricity was out for hours. Most of the ceremony was done by candlelight. They were most worried about the food/cake but it turned out okay. They were just thankful that no one was hurt returning home. You married the man of your dreams. Sounds like you were lucky!

You will lose that lawsuit. have fun wasting more money.

Good luck. You may as well sue the utility company too.

I'm really sorry that you're so upset about this, but honestly you should just try to move on. More money isn't going to get you your wedding day back.