Hi All

In the training industry we are in the habit of charging cancellation fees for short cancellation notification and keeping payment in the case of no shows. This practice has also been a useful "consequence" to use for those who suddenly find they can't attend simply because of bad planning.. somehow they quickly find that they could make a plan.

With the new act it appears as if we cannot charge the cancellation fee or we can only charge a percentage?

In essence that means that my client can cancel his delegation of attendees of a full workshop on the morning of the workshop and we will be forced to carry the cost of the printing, the venue, the caterer and the trainer ( if contracted) with no recourse. We would be able to hide behind the ACT ourselves I would guess and not pay our suppliers based on that, but this will make for really uncomfortable business in the future and I really would not see my way clear to doing that.

I have 2 questions:
Am I correct in my understanding of the act?
If so, what would you put forward as a legal suggestion and/or a business option that would minimise this risk?

At the moment depending on the number of delegates and our history with the client we would charge either full cancellation, or part cancellation, or in rare instances, waive it. I have also "fired" clients because of this.

Any input would be welcome.