AIBU to cancel appt after she moved premises at short notice and ask for my deposit back?

[fluffandfaff]

I use a dog groomer who was lovely and very local in my small village. – less than 5 minutes away, loads of parking right outside, no faff. I could drop dog off, come home for an hour, then pop back to collect. Perfect.
When I collected last time I booked my next appointment (for tomorrow, 3rd Feb) and paid a £25 deposit. I have no issue with her cancellation policy generally – 72 hours for refund minus £5 admin, after that full groom payable.

We have a personal email account we check a couple of times a week (mostly full of newsletter rubbish). Early Sunday morning (1st) I checked emails and found one from the groomer sent late Thursday evening saying she had moved premises.
New premises are about 6 miles further away, in a slightly dodgy part of a town, no parking directly outside. I’d have find somewhere to park somewhere else a way a way, in a very busy residential and industrial area and walk my nervous dog there. No chance of popping home either... I’d have to sit in the car for an hour waiting.
Worth saying: my preferred contact method is phone, which I’d selected, not email.
I messaged her on Sunday morning as soon as I saw the email, very politely, saying I’d like to cancel as travelling to the new premises is not viable, thanked her for her service and wished her luck. I also asked for my deposit back, accepting I was technically outside the 72 hours, but she had changed the terms by moving at short notice.
She replied very quickly saying she’d miss us but I was still liable to pay for the appointment, and that I’d had “plenty of time” to respond to the email (there was about 24 hours between her sending it and the start of the 72-hour window).
I replied saying I’d chosen phone contact and that less than 2 working days’ notice of a premises change didn’t feel reasonable. She then got quite rude, said I was being unreasonable, that it’s “only a 15-minute drive”, (realistically it is longer that with traffic etc and then finding parking) and that she told me at my last appointment she was moving. I genuinely don’t remember this and absolutely wouldn’t have rebooked if I’d known – I only used her because she was so local. The booking confirmation definitely still shows the old address. There were a lot of messages sent back and forwards, her saying her terms are perfectly clear and i was not getting a deposit refund and she would be invoicing for the entire appt. I told her that her t's&c's couldn't apply as SHE had moved the terms (address) outside of my control. She got quite arsey and she said she didn’t have time to argue as she’s stressed moving an entire business, then refunded me £20 and kept £5.
I mentioned it to a friend (very “don’t rock the boat” type) who said I should have just let her keep the whole deposit, but maybe argue the appt fee.
AIBU to think I was reasonable to cancel and ask for it back given she changed the location at short notice? Or should I have just sucked it up and let her keep the £25 AND paid for the rest of the appt?

My groomer doesn't even have my email.

Personally I can't believe she had the cheek to try and invoice you for the appointment.

She also made the decision to only email people a few days before, probably on purpose because it's winter and people can't really miss a dog groom and she didn't want to give them time to go elsewhere.

When are business makes a big change such as changing premises they should be bombarding all of their clients with the information so nobody misses it. It should have been sent by text email and plastered all over their social media.

As far as I'm concerned she owed you a full refund.

You're being ridiculous. 24hrs notice before entering the "no refund" period is not sufficient. Just because you have time to check emails daily, doesn't mean everyone does. I have a busy life and don't check my personal email daily either.

In this case the groomer was unreasonable. She should have given much more notice (she would have known way before that Thursday), and sent a text (preferred method f communication) so OP had it in writing.

You are well within your rights to get a refund. She has changed the contract between you by moving and not advising you of the change until an unreasonable timeframe (probably hoping you would just suck it up). I check my email every day and still miss stuff cos it goes to my junk mail. Nothing urgent should be emailed, it is a respond when you can style of messaging (the clue is the 'mail'). Urgent items are a text and followup call. End of
The PP who keeps insisting otherwise is def a dog groomer....

I am totally with you on not checking personal emails, my work ones ping up on my phone, my personal one is a lot of non-important junk coming through.. BUT if I missed an email because I hadn't checked my personal email then that is on me, she gave you plenty of notice about the location change, plus she said she told you in person last time she saw you.

I think you are being unreasonable because of the reason you have given for not going to the appointment! It's 6 miles away, I'd have kept the appointment this time, and then not re-book if her location doesn't suit you or your dog anymore. I think you are being massively snooty and judgmental about her new premises and you haven't even been there!

Demanding your deposit back is ridiculous IMO, when YOU didn't bother to check your emails and its YOU that doesn't want to keep the appointment because of your preconceived notions.

Twice a week for checking email sounds fine to me. Some people aren’t wedded to their phones and have lives

Nah, she changed location with less than a weeks notice.

I don't think you're being unreasonably (surely she would have known about a premises change well in advance of when she sent the notice out, as she would have had to arrange changes to leases, set up the grooming space etc. )

Secondly - I also only check personal e mail two or three times a week. The only things I ever get through that require checking are invoices for deliveries which come at the same time every month, or when I've specifically set something up ( a new insurance policy or subscription etc.) Other than that my personal e mail is 90% junk. Totally different to how I deal with work e mails

Maybe just review her honestly in her website....
She's dodgy as hell.

She is a cheeky chancer. Of course you should have got all your deposit back. But at least you are only £5 out of pocket.

She was being cheeky. YANBU.

I bet the resistance is because she will be losing a lot of customers. I’m not a dog owner or a driver, but I would guess most dog owners will want parking at the groomers.

I, like many class a phone call or text as immediate and an email as something that isn't time critical. Many people don't check daily.

You are absolutely not being unreasonable. That is no where near enough notice. I'd be wanting at least 7 if not 10-14 days notice of a change of venue like that. Send a formal letter before claim or do a chargeback on your card if you paid by card.

Totally unreasonable of her. I hope you post this on your local Facebook, as she deserves to be outed.

Seriously?

I agree the groomer was very short with her changes but I would always expect such changes communicated in writing. A phone call can never be re-checked.

I use my personal email all the time, medication re-ordering, utilities, any ticket/flight/holiday booking, banking, credit cards, DD's hobbies.

I get invoices from services I use, updates from my yoga class like last minute cancellations or new invoices.

I am not allowed to use my work email for any private reasons.

Groomer signed a contract with OP.

Groomer broke the contract.

That’s it.

She sounds very poor at organising. Short notice of change of location. Contacting you by email - and not by your stated contact preference. Then making sure she loses you as a customer permanently with her squabbling about the deposit refund, when she really didn't have a leg to stand on. Keeping five pounds is just weird! Maybe she was so cross she mis-entered the amount.

Should have phoned her (OP said phone was the requested method of communication) to verbally advise of changes and said ‘I’ve put it in writing, please see your email’ then.

Yes seriously.. the groomer hasn't cancelled the appointment or moved to the moon, she's moved 6 miles away.

OP drives to the appointment anyway, so really what difference does it make if she is 1 mile away or 7 miles away from her house. It seems completely petty to demand to cancel your appointment based on the fact that the groomer is 6 miles further away and she has given prior notice of the move, verbally and in writing.

I can’t see any reason for your logic here other than you being the dog groomer in question.

Even if the groomer did ‘tell’ op when she last saw her, which we are doubting, that isn’t good enough. A full written address of the new location is needed. ‘Btw i’m moving location’ doesn’t cut it.

Nope, not the dog groomer, I run my own business which is nothing related to anything here, but I do think OP is being very petty in her reasons for wanting to cancel.

If she didn't drive I'd be on board with it, but deeming the area 'dodgy' and her dog too nervous to walk if not parked right outside the door is ridiculous IMO.

She was told in person and in writing.

Same thing happened to me, also just with a couple days notice. I went to the new address because I had already paid for my appointment and didn’t want to argue about a refund, but it was my last time there because the new address was just too inconvenient. She should have given you the option to get a full refund.

Definitely right to cancel! don't settle for anything less than full amount refunded. Small claims court if needed to recover funds and damages for stress involved in finding another groomer locally at short notice.

Op doesn’t have to give any justification why she doesn’t want to go to the new address.

For many people, if an appt takes 10 mins extra either way, that’s an extra 20 mins they don’t have. Even by car.

You’re failing to acknowledge the point that regardless of the short notice, the business owner took a deposit from the customer while not having informed them properly of change of terms.