It's stressful, it's expensive, but it's one of the happiest days of your life. We're talking about your wedding day. But one happy couple hit a major roadblock. Contact 13 looks into this local case that has the bride and groom asking, where's my wedding?
"It's beautiful and they have the most amazing view," says Ashley Albornoz.
She and her fiance Jonathan fell in love with the Aston MonteLago Village Resort at Lake Las Vegas. So they signed this contract last year for a block of hotel rooms and a reception hall for Oct. 28. But just a few weeks later, Ashley found out she was losing half the space booked for her reception.
"She said that the two spaces were no longer going to be conjoined because their association had decided, one would be for the banquet hall, the other one would be transformed into a restaurant," says Ashley.
Without enough space for her 200 guests, the Aston MonteLago offered a solution. They called the nearby Reflection Bay Golf Club and worked out a deal.
"She basically just said that nothing would change in terms of the pricing. We would just transfer your location to Reflection Bay," says Ashley.
Aston MonteLago presented Ashley with this new contract, listing the new location. Ashley agreed to the terms and started discussing plans with someone at Reflection Bay. But a couple months later she got a call from the Aston MonteLago, with more bad news.
"He tells me, I just found out we're going out of business and we can no longer do the accommodations for your wedding," says Ashley.
Now she had to find a new hotel. But the bad news doesn't end there. Ashley spoke with Reflection Bay and learned, she wasn't actually booked to use their reception space.
"She told me, that's not a legal contract," says Ashley.
And she's right. Ashley's contract isn't with Reflection Bay. It's with the Aston MonteLago. And while Reflection Bay is willing to help, they're already booked for Ashley's Oct. 28 wedding date.
"I was upset. I told her that we have to have it on the same day. We have about 95 percent of our guests traveling, and invitations have already gone out," says Ashley.
So here's the good news. Reflection Bay helped Ashley find a new location available on Oct. 28. And Ashley says Reflection Bay is paying the difference.
She also found a new hotel. But there's a big lesson to be learned from Ashley's contract confusion.
"If you're signing a contract, you want to make sure that the person who you're dealing with, has authority to enter into that contract," says consumer rights attorney Sophia Medina, with the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada.
She says make sure that person officially represents the company you're signing a contract with. And make sure to read the entire contract.
"You have to read every single word of the contract. And I know it's hard. And I know it can be time-consuming," says Sophia.
So here's the Contact 13 bottom line:
Make sure to always get everything in writing. A verbal promise doesn't count. And don't feel pressured into signing anything. If something doesn't feel right, don't sign it.
Also beware of signing documents through an electronic signature pad. You can't be exactly sure of what you're signing without reading the printed text. Always get a printed copy of what your signing for your records.
If English isn't your first language, ask for the contract in your primary language. Some laws actually require Spanish contracts. For example, when buying a car, the salesman is required to provide you a Spanish contract if you ask for it. And if a payday loan transaction is conducted in Spanish, then the contract must also be in Spanish as well.
Statement from Reflection Bay Golf Club, regarding the wedding and reception of Ms. Ashley Albornoz:
When recently contacted by Ms. Albornoz, we were surprised to learn that she believed she had contracted her wedding to be held at Reflection Bay Golf Club. We immediately notified Ms. Albornoz that we did not issue her a contract for the event, and that unfortunately we already have a wedding scheduled for our venue on the date she had planned for her wedding.
In an effort to assist Ms. Albornoz we investigated further and determined that her event had been scheduled by another third party business located at Lake Las Vegas Resort, which does not have the authority to contract events at the Club.
We were of course very sympathetic to Ms. Albornoz for the situation she had been put in by this third party. Subsequently we offered considerable assistance, first by exploring whether we had any other dates available at Reflection Bay Golf Club that might work for her wedding.
When she explained that another date would not work, we introduced her to a contact at another location at Lake Las Vegas that has similar facilities and is available for the date of the event, and we were under the belief that Ms. Albornoz had reached out to that location to discuss holding the event at this location.
A wedding obviously carries great importance in the lives of the couple, their families, and friends. Neither Ms. Albornoz nor Reflection Bay Golf Club are responsible for the unfortunate circumstances that caused this situation.
However, Ms. Albornoz has been informed that it was an unaffiliated third party that attempted to book her wedding at the Club without authority to do so, and it is our understanding that Ms. Albornoz received a full refund from that third party. Reflection Bay has worked to provide options for this event despite not having any legal obligation to do so, simply because we wanted to help.
