[Dixielandjazz] Cancellation terms?

Mon Jan 1 20:47:12 PST 2007

I no longer take deposits on nursing home or corporate gigs and even though 
I no longer do weddings I have, in the past always taken deposits for 
weddings.  Too many weddings get cancelled or the date moves for whatever 
reason.

Your requests are reasonable and shouldn't be a problem from an honest 
client.  I would say that red flags would start flying if they weren't 
giving you a deposit or signing a cancellation clause.

Possibly tell them that without the clause you need a deposit it's their 
choice.  Deposit or clause.

Sometimes you just have to say no and I don't like to do that either.

I'm sort of wondering why it takes so long to get paid.  I have one client 
that I accept late checks.  One of the most posh country clubs in town takes 
3 to 4 months to pay and I no longer work for them because they don't make 
prior arrangements with me because I want to add a service fee to contracts 
for late pays.  I have to pay my guys that night why can't they pay that 
night.

My contract allows legal fees to collect if they don't pay.  I figure if 
they won't sign that then watch out.

I have only been cancelled one time about 6 or 7 years ago and that was 
through a booker.  She got her money, the deposit.  I got zit.  I actually 
showed up and there was a couple of guys with guitars who looked like bums 
already set up.  This was a street gig in front of a new grocery store. 
Fortunately I was able to call my guys and call them off before they left 
home.  The booker and I had no contract so I was left pretty much without 
anything.  Fortunately that has only happened one time in many years.  I 
would have paid my guys something if they had showed up.
Larry
St. Louis
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ministry of Jazz" <jazzmin at actcom.net.il>
To: <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Sunday, December 31, 2006 2:44 AM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Cancellation terms?

> Shalom Jazz Fans,
>
> While I am at it, I have another question to pose:
>
> How to handle the possibility of a last minute cancellation if a contract 
> or
> a deposit are not possible?
>
> So far Doctor Jazz has not been stiffed by any of our private customers. 
> We
> are still working without contracts, and only in rare cases do we take
> deposits or advance payments from them. The rank and file folks over here
> have a strong sense of right and wrong, and you can pretty much work with 
> a
> person's word and handshake.
>
> However, we have been stiffed several times by the Jerusalem Municipality, 
> a
> local shopping mall, and a religious college. Two times now the same
> customer, who is a repeat customer, hired us and cancelled us -- on one
> occasion, 3 times for the same gig! In both cases, the event actually
> happened, but we were not in it.
>
> In the case of the municipality, there is a confirmation document with the
> terms of the gig, not exactly a contract, but similar. So we have decided 
> to
> start requiring contracts with a cancellation clause of corporate 
> customers.
> The first opportunity to test this came with our recent (wonderful) gig in
> the Old City -- a series of 3 performances. We submitted our document with
> price quote and terms, including a cancellation clause, and the 
> confirmation
> came back as submitted, but without the confirmation clause. When we
> inquired about the deletion of the clause, we were told that "they don't 
> do
> this".
>
> The mall cancelled us 2 days before a show, after we had advertised and
> invited many people who it is impossible to uninvite them. No apology, no
> cancellation fee, no offer to rebook at another date ... nothing. They 
> just
> decided not to have the show. I was livid, but my younger partner was
> handling the negotiations on that one, so I was not in the loop. I would
> have asked them what if we called them 2 days before the show and said 
> we've
> decided not to come!?
>
> In most cases, corporate clients tell us they don't do advance deposits 
> and
> cancellation clauses, and then all we can do is take or leave the job. On
> rare occasions a corporate customer has actually asked for a bill in
> advance, and either paid us in advance or had a check ready at the gig. 
> But
> the usual practice here is for payment to be made 1 to 3 months after the
> gig.
>
> Anyone have some experience or wisdom to offer on this one?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Elazar
> Dr. Jazz Dixieland Band
> Tekiya Trumpet Ensemble
> Jerusalem, Israel
> www.israel.net/ministry-of-jazz
> +972-2-679-2537
>
>
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