The contract is the evidence.

State consumer-protection offices tell couples exactly what to look for before they sign: New Jersey's Division of Consumer Affairs says to "read contracts thoroughly, including the fine print," to "note the terms of cancellation" and to "check whether deposits are required and, if so, whether deposits are refundable."¹ Ohio's Attorney General adds: "Make sure all verbal statements and promises are put in writing."² A contract that answers those questions plainly is also the contract that wins a dispute.

Why the wording matters to a bank

When a couple disputes a charge, the bank does not read your contract the way a lawyer would. It looks for three things: that the cardholder agreed to it, that the clause relevant to the dispute is clear, and that you did what the clause said. Stripe's dispute guidance asks for "proof that your customer agreed to and understood your terms of service at checkout" and a "relevant document or contract showing the customer's signature."³ So the goal is not legal elegance. It is a short clause, in plain words, next to a signature, that a stranger can match to the facts in thirty seconds.

The clauses, one by one

1. The booking payment: deposit or retainer

What it does. Reserves the date and compensates you for turning other work away. Why it matters. This is the payment most often disputed after a cancellation, and the clause the bank reads first.

• State the amount and the date it is due, and say the date is reserved only when it is paid.
• Say what happens to it on cancellation, in the same sentence. "Non-refundable" alone is weaker than "non-refundable because the date is removed from sale and other bookings are declined."
• Say whether it is credited to the final balance.
• Many lawyers prefer "retainer" for a payment that secures a date and "deposit" for a payment toward goods; the word matters less than the explanation. Courts in several states will not enforce a forfeiture they read as a penalty rather than a reasonable estimate of your loss, which is why the explanation belongs in the clause.

2. The payment schedule

What it does. Sets when each payment is due and how it is collected. Why it matters. Scheduled charges that the couple forgot are a leading cause of "I don't recognise this" disputes, and an unexpected automatic charge looks like fraud to a bank.

• List each payment with amount and due date (or a rule, such as 30 days before the wedding).
• If you charge a card on file automatically, say so, say you will send a reminder beforehand, and have the couple initial that line. Processors' guidance treats clear advance notice as the main defence against this dispute.⁴
• Say what the charge will read on their statement.
• Say what happens if a payment is late: a grace period, a fee, and at what point the date is released.

3. Cancellation by the couple

What it does. Sets what each side keeps if the couple cancels. Why it matters. Under the networks' "credit not processed" reason codes the bank asks one question: what did the policy promise and did the vendor honour it?⁵

• Use a tiered schedule tied to notice: more than 180 days, 90 to 180, under 90, under 30. Say what is refunded and what is kept at each tier.
• Require cancellation in writing and define the cancellation date as the day you receive it.
• Say what happens if you rebook the date. Offering to refund part of the kept amount if the date resells is both fair and persuasive.
• Say nothing about the Federal Trade Commission's cooling-off rule unless your lawyer tells you to. That rule gives three days to cancel certain sales made at a buyer's home or at a seller's temporary location such as a hotel or fairground; the FTC lists sales made online, by phone or at the seller's permanent place of business among those it does not cover.⁶ Couples sometimes cite it anyway; your clause, not the rule, will govern.

4. Cancellation or non-performance by you

What it does. Says what the couple gets if you cannot perform. Why it matters. This is the clause processors are thinking about when they reserve funds against a future-delivery merchant, and the clause state attorneys general enforce. Pennsylvania's Attorney General sued a Philadelphia wedding photographer in 2026 who, the complaint says, "failed to provide wedding photos and videos to consumers" and refused to refund deposits, seeking restitution and a permanent ban from the business.⁷

• Promise a full refund of everything paid if you cancel for a reason within your control.
• For illness or emergency, promise a qualified substitute of similar style and experience, at your cost, or a full refund if you cannot provide one. New Jersey's consumer office tells couples to make sure the contract names the specific professional and spells out the remedy if someone else is substituted.¹
• Keep the force-majeure clause honest: it should relieve you of performing when performance is impossible, not let you keep money for a service you did not provide.

5. Rescheduling and date changes

Say whether one date change is allowed without penalty, how much notice it needs, that it depends on your availability, and that pricing may change if the new date is in a different season or year. Say explicitly that a date change is not a cancellation and the booking payment carries over. This clause stops most pandemic-style arguments before they start.

6. What is delivered, and when

Why it matters. "Not received" and "not as described" are the two service dispute categories.⁵ Both are answered by a dated promise and dated proof.

• Hours of coverage, number of shooters, what counts as a deliverable (an edited gallery of approximately N images; a highlight film of 4 to 6 minutes; a full ceremony edit), and the format and method of delivery.
• A delivery window in weeks from the wedding date, and what happens if it slips (notice to the couple, a revised date).
• How long files stay available for download, and whether raw files are ever provided (usually not; say so).
• That editing style is at your artistic discretion within the style shown in your portfolio. This is your answer to "not as described".

7. Revisions and satisfaction

Say what revision rounds are included, the window for requesting them, and that dissatisfaction with artistic choices consistent with your portfolio is not grounds for a refund. Pair it with a sentence inviting the couple to raise any concern with you directly within a set number of days of delivery. Banks like to see that the cardholder had a remedy and did not use it.

8. Refund mechanics

Say that any refund due goes back to the original payment method, within a stated number of days, and that the couple agrees to contact you before disputing a charge with their bank. The last sentence does not stop a chargeback, but it is useful evidence that the couple bypassed an agreed process.

9. Who is paying

If a parent or a planner pays, make the payer a party to the payment clause or have them sign a short payment authorisation that names the booking. A payer who is not on the contract is the classic "I did not authorise this" dispute, and the networks' compelling-evidence rules turn on tying the cardholder to the agreement.³

10. Signatures and acknowledgements

• Use an e-signature tool that records name, email, IP address and timestamp. On Lazo the agreement is signed in the thread and the record is kept with the invoice.
• Put a four-line summary of the money terms (booking payment, schedule, cancellation, delivery window) directly above the signature with an initial box. This is the screenshot you will send to a bank.
• Send the signed copy to the couple immediately and keep the delivery receipt.

Plain English beats legalese

Every consumer office quoted above tells couples to read the fine print; the couple who understands your terms at signing is the couple who does not dispute them later. Write short sentences. Use "you" and "we". Put the numbers in. If a clause needs a lawyer to explain it, a bank's dispute analyst will not understand it either.

A pre-signing checklist

1. Names. Both partners, the payer if different, your legal entity and trading name.
2. Date, venue, times. Including arrival and departure.
3. Money. Every payment, its date, how it is collected, what the statement will say.
4. Exit. What each side gets if either side cancels, in a table if you can.
5. Delivery. What, when, how, for how long.
6. People. Who will be there; what happens if they cannot be.
7. Signature. Summary box, initials, timestamped e-signature, copy sent.