Cancellation policies that benefit event planners and participants.

At some point, everyone has had to make a change to a registration or request
a refund for an event they’ve committed to attending. There are endless reasons
for change requests, ranging from conflicting schedules to the changing of one’s
mind.

Some events will allow participants to make changes without any hassle, but for
others it seems nearly impossible. In many cases there is good reason why
changes are difficult to make, but taking an extremely hard line with requests
for refunds and changes can hurt your event overall.

Even though the refund and cancellation policy is important to the success of
your event, it often seems to be overlooked when setting up online registration
forms. Not only will a well thought out policy reduce difficult situations
regarding refunds and changes, it should also encourage people to register for
your event.

Here is a list of several items that you should consider for your cancellation
and refund policies:

Clearly state important dates

Make sure dates for full refunds, partial refunds, changes, etc. are clearly
stated. This will help to reduce disputes and give you something to refer to if
an issue does arise. It is also a good idea to state the registration deadline.

Clearly state refund or change fees

If refunds are permitted, let people know how much it will cost them. You may
not want to charge a fee in the name of good customer service, but remember that
if the transaction was on a credit card, the credit card processing fees on the
initial transaction cannot be recouped, so you must be prepared to absorb this
amount. Also keep in mind the staff time to deal with the change and the
resulting impact on changes to other details such as event materials, name tags,
meals, etc.

Keep it simple and professional

Keep your policy simple and professional, but be careful of the tone. In some
cases, if you can give a brief explanation of why you have selected certain
dates and policies you will get more understanding from participants. A
statement like “Any change requests must be made before November 24th as we need
to confirm meals and seating with the venue” may get a better reaction than “No
changes after November 24th.

Provide change request instructions

In most cases you should state that cancellation or change requests be made in
writing. At a minimum, provide the name, phone number and email address of the
person to contact.

Give alternatives

A good way to avoid giving refunds and having to charge a fee or losing revenue
is to allow event participants to send an alternate person to the event. In many
cases this will keep all parties happy and there are no additional transaction
fees involved. You may want to set a deadline for changes so you have time for
preparing name tags, meals, etc.

Another alternative is to give a credit towards another event if applicable.
Again, there are no additional transaction fees for either party and everyone
should end up happy. As the event planner you should put a date on the credit so
it cannot be held indefinitely.

Remember that in most cases the main goal is to get people to register for your
event. By adding some flexibility to your refund and cancellation policies and
giving some alternatives, you are likely to attract more registrations. Of
course, some people may take you up on your more generous policies, but the
additional registrations you receive may more than offset the number of people
asking for their money back or to make a change.

Here are three sample cancellation policies.

The registration deadline is January 10, 2005. Full refunds are available prior to November 30, 2005. After this date
you may send an alternate to the event without additional charge. To request
a cancellation or to make a change please send an email to the Event Planner
at [email protected].
Refunds less a $25.00 cancellation fee will be given for cancellations
received in writing to [email protected] prior to November 30, 2005.
Following this date, no refunds will be given, but a credit will be issued
to use towards another event within one year.
Sorry, tickets are non refundable as all proceeds will be donated the
charity.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any
questions or comments about this article.

Back to Article List

Online Event Registration Services


Online Event Registration		Log In \| About \| Contact


			Links
			Articles
			Helpful Tips
			Selling Tools

Articles

Testimonial

Request a Quote

Thank you so very much for all of your help with this year’s event. We could
not have done it without you. A lot of companies talk about customer service,
but you really followed through.

Simon Grieve
Gazette Newspapers
Long Beach, CA

More Testimonials

Want to see how you can save money and
reduce stress on your event event?

Request a Quote