Selecting a cancellation policy

When you book through GigSalad, your client pays the deposit and balance in one transaction at the time of booking. The deposit payment is sent to you in advance, but the balance payment is held until 1-2 business days after the event (read more about payouts). 

Collecting full payments upfront simplifies the booking process and allows us to offer extra booking protection to both you and the client. You can rest easy knowing your money is guaranteed, and you won't have to worry about chasing down payments before, during, or after the gig. We've got you covered! 

Because we facilitate deposits and balance payments, we need to know what to do with the client's funds if they cancel. Therefore, every quote you send must include a cancellation policy. You can select our recommended default policy or customize your own. A customized policy allows you to select a refund window for your deposit and balance payment, which protects you in the event of a client cancellation. 

Select your policy

Each time you create a new quote, you can adjust the cancellation policy from the default before sending it. If you don't want to make the same changes each time, you can create Saved Quotes in advance with your preferred cancellation policy included. 

Recommended cancellation policy

After surveying our members, we determined the most common preferences for cancellation refunds and used that to create a default cancellation policy. Our recommended policy is a non-refundable deposit and a refundable balance.

If you do not use a saved quote with a custom cancellation policy, our recommended cancellation policy will be selected by default, and you can choose to edit it if you'd like. Doing so will not save that as your customized policy for all future quotes unless you check the box at the end of the quote form that says "Save this quote."

Customize your cancellation policy

If you'd like a more gracious or strict policy than our default option, you can choose to customize your cancellation policy to fit your needs.

Because GigSalad accepts the client's payment in full, you will choose under which circumstances you are willing to forfeit each payment (the deposit and the balance) if the client cancels the booking. You may choose to make one or both payments non-refundable, in which case you would be guaranteed those funds even if the client cancels. If you prefer a less strict policy, you may choose to make one or both payments refundable within a specified cancellation window. 

Choosing a cancellation window 

When you select the refundable option for either payment, you must select how long before an event the client must cancel to receive a refund. 

Refundable deposits

If you offer a refundable deposit, you will not receive that payment until the end of your chosen cancellation window. As long as funds are available for refund, GigSalad must hold them so we can honor that refund if the client cancels. 

For example, if you choose to make your deposit refundable if the client cancels at least 14 days before the event, we will hold the initial payment until that deadline is reached. This means we'd send you the deposit 13 days before the event. If 13 days before the event lands on a weekend day or holiday, we'll issue your payment the next business day. Your payout method will determine how and when you receive the payment once we send it.

If you want to receive your deposit payments sooner, then you must choose a larger cancellation window or a non-refundable deposit. Non-refundable deposits will be sent 1-3 business days after the client accepts your quote and makes a payment.

Refundable balance payments

Non-refundable deposits are an industry standard, but requiring balance payments from clients even when they cancel months in advance is a bit strict. This is why we recommend choosing a refundable balance payment. You can either designate a refund if they cancel at any point before the event (recommended), or you can choose a specific cancellation window. 

For example, if you choose a 2-day cancellation window, we will issue your client a refund of the balance payment if they cancel at least 2 days before the event. If they cancel less than 2 days before the event, you will receive those funds as planned even though you will no longer perform the gig. 

When a client cancels outside of your cancellation window, they forfeit their balance payment, and we will send those funds to you within 1-2 business days after the cancellation is confirmed.

What happens if you (the provider) cancel?

If you cancel a gig for any reason, the client is protected by our Worry-Free Guarantee and will receive a full refund of their payment regardless of your stated cancellation policy.

If you cancel after you have already received your deposit, you must return those funds to GigSalad, along with covering the associated service fees, right away. Failure to do so will lock you out of your account, and you will no longer receive gig leads or be able to accept bookings.

The same is true if we learn at any point that you failed to show up to a gig after we have already released the balance payment to you. You must return that payment or be removed from the site. Learn more about gig cancellations.

Frequently asked questions:

• What happened to my old, written cancellation policy?

  Because full payments are facilitated by GigSalad, we no longer allow members to write their own cancellation policies. With payments in our possession, we are responsible for issuing refunds when cancellations occur. We need to be able to enforce the policy you choose, and we also want to keep our platform consistent and easy to understand for event planners using the site to book. 

• Can I add my own cancellation policy to my Additional Terms?

  If you add any other cancellation stipulations to your additional terms that contradict your chosen cancellation policy, they will not be enforced by GigSalad. All refunds and payments will be determined only by the cancellation policy selected for that event.