Terms & Conditions
Wedding Cake Terms & Conditions
All sales made by Claire Hansen Cakes are subject to the following terms and conditions. Nothing contained within these terms and conditions affects your statutory rights as a consumer. If there is anything you don't understand please feel free to contact us on claire@clairehansencakes.com
1. Consultations
1.1. Consultations are by appointment only for wedding cakes. Appointments can be made by email, phone or using the ‘Book Consultation’ button on our website. Appointments last for approximately 45mins. These are only held over the phone or virtually over Zoom. In person consultations are no longer available.
1.2. The consultation process includes a postal tasting box of five flavours of cake and complimentary macarons. Extra tasting boxes are also sometimes available but are charged in full at the time of ordering and are not deductible from the final cost of your cake.
1.3. You can call us or email us if you need to discuss any aspects of your cake before making a booking. Bookings can also be made over the phone or by email without prior consultation.
1.4. During the consultation we will sketch out the design of your cake. This sketch remains the property of Claire Hansen Cakes. A copy of this sketch / design will be provided to you once your booking fee has been paid. Unfortunately, you cannot photograph the sketch during the consultation unless the booking fee has already been paid.
1.5. Please advise us of any allergies or specific dietary requirements when booking your consultation.
1.6. For 2023 we have a £375 minimum order for semi naked cakes, and a £400 minimum order for iced cakes for wedding bookings (not including delivery or cake stand hire). These are our minimum order prices for 2023, however, this is not our average. Usually, couples have a budget of £450+ for one of our cakes. For dates further ahead than 2023 the minimum order value is subject to change.
​
2. Booking Fees
2.1. All wedding cake orders require a non-refundable booking fee of £100. For cake orders with less than 28 days’ notice, the full cost of the cake must be paid at time of booking.
2.2. All booking fees must be paid within 7 days of the booking form being sent; dates cannot be held open without payment of the booking fee. If the full booking fee is not received within 7 days of the booking form being sent, the event date will be released and another booking may be taken, which may mean that we will no longer be able to accommodate you on your chosen date.
2.3. All orders will only be confirmed when the booking fee has been paid. Please note that all booking fees are non-refundable and are only transferrable in certain circumstances (see section 16 ‘Cancellations/Refunds’).
3. Payment Schedule
3.1. Final payment of the balance (the full cost of the cake, less the non-refundable booking fee) is due 28 days before your event. The due date will clearly be stated on the bottom of the booking form and a reminder will be sent a week before the final balance is due. This is then non-refundable in the event of a cancellation. If your booking is made less than 28 days before your event, the full cost of the cake must be paid at time of booking.
3.2. If the final payment is not received 28 days before your event (for bookings made more than 28 days before your event), we reserve the right to cancel your booking (see section 16 ‘Cancellations/Refunds’).
3.3. Unfortunately, we do not offer the option to pay in instalments. All payments are to be made by BACS transfer. Account details will be provided on the booking form.
4. Cake Details
4.1. Please review all the details on the booking form received carefully, especially: cake size / tier size(s), flavour choice(s), spellings of names, allergen information, delivery time and contact numbers. Please advise us of any changes to the details set out on the booking form as soon as possible after receipt.
4.2. The cake will be made according to the specifications on the booking form. It is therefore imperative that all details are checked carefully. Whilst reasonable efforts will be made to make sure that the details on the booking form are accurate as at the time of the consultation, we accept no responsibility for errors in the details on the booking form which are not notified to us before the cake is made.
5. Decorative Items Supplied by Third Parties
5.1. We accept no responsibility for delays in items being supplied by third parties (e.g., cake toppers, special order cake stands etc, without limitation).
5.2. If a bespoke cake topper or stand is required, please give us at least one month’s notice to order it, but ideally longer.
5.3. If you are ordering a topper or cake stand yourself, please carefully check the size with us before you purchase it, to make sure it is suitable for your cake and that the lead time is in line with your event. We would always advise ordering as soon as possible.
5.4. We accept no responsibility for any errors in size, shape, or design of items you may order / provide yourself.
5.5. We reserve the right not to use anything supplied by a third party if we feel at our sole discretion that it is unsuitable for any reason.
6. Flowers Supplied by Florists
6.1. When fresh flowers are being added to a cake, we will liaise with your florist about our requirements, but we would always advise you to also discuss this with them in advance.
6.2. We can only work with what your florist provides for us on the day. Please ensure they order flowers especially for the cake so that the cake flowers are of the same high standard as the rest of the florals. Any unsuitable or toxic flowers supplied will not be used on your cake.
6.3. The cost of any fresh flowers used in the cake decoration will be added to your florist’s bill and we would always advise ordering a few extra flowers from them, so we have a good selection to work with.
6.4. If your florist does not meet us at the agreed time at the venue, we cannot always guarantee that we will be able to wait for them to arrive.
6.5. If we cannot wait due to lateness of your florist, then they would have to add the flowers to the cake themselves. We accept no responsibility for arrangement(s) on the cake by your florist which may not then match our vision and design for the cake. We accept no responsibility for the flowers have been added to the cake by anyone other than ourselves, which may not be food safe.
7. Alterations to Orders
7.1. We are happy to make alterations to your cake design and order up to 28 days prior to your event date. Whilst every effort will be made to accommodate changes to the design, please note that changes within 28 days of the event cannot be guaranteed.
7.2. Changes to cake designs may be subject to an additional cost. This will be discussed with you when making the changes. We reserve the right to increase a quoted price in the event you request a variation to the work agreed.
7.3. Please take the time to check the new copy of the order form with the amendments carefully and let us know by return if any changes are needed (see section 4 ‘Cake Details’).
8. Collection of Cakes
8.1. We prefer to deliver all our cake orders personally, but if this is not possible, it may be possible for you to arrange for collection of your order from us at a pre-arranged time. However, please note that not all cakes are available for collection; it depends on the design and size of the cake. Cakes over 3 tiers tall or with intricate decoration or sugar flowers are not suitable for customer collection.
8.2. Cakes that are collected by the customer are always boxed for transportation. We will provide full instructions on the care and handling of your cake at the time of collection. A signature is required upon collection confirming that you have received your order in perfect condition and as specified. We do not take any responsibility for any damage that may occur to the cake once it has left us.
8.3. We advise cakes to be places on a level, steady surface for transport (e.g., in the passenger footwell of your car). We are happy to place the cake safely in the car for you, if required. The cake should then be stored in the box at room temperature and out of direct sunlight until taken to the venue.
9. Delivery & Set Up of Wedding Cakes
9.1. We prefer to deliver and set up our wedding cake orders. We will deliver your cake to your venue at a pre-arranged time. This will be discussed during the consultation, and we will liaise with the venue in advance of our arrival time.
9.2. If the delivery time needs to be changed, please advise us as soon as possible, but with at least 14 days’ notice – nevertheless, depending on other orders on the day of delivery, we cannot always guarantee a change of delivery time will be possible and we accept no responsibility for delivery time changes which we cannot reasonably accommodate if provided with less than 14 days’ notice.
9.3. Local delivery is charged at £25 within 10 miles of BS39 5PW (£35 for Bristol or Bath City Centre deliveries, in light of likely parking charges).
9.4. Other journeys are charged at £1 per mile for the entire return journey (mileage is calculated based on Google maps mileage from BS39 5PW to / from your venue).
9.5. In addition to the mileage charge, total journey time longer than one hour will be charged at £12.50 per hour (so, for example, a three hour round-trip will incur an additional £25 time charge on top of the applicable location or mileage-based delivery charge).
9.6. Sunday deliveries will be subject to an additional £50 surcharge and bank holidays, an additional £100 surcharge.
9.7. The standard delivery charge includes simple stacking and setting up your cake at the venue, unless fresh flowers are being added (or there is any specific, more complex in situ decoration requirement – which we will have discussed with you in advance) in which case an additional set-up charge will apply. This set-up charge will depend on the quantity of flowers (or bespoke decoration) on the cake but will start from £25. We prefer to add flowers ourselves rather than having your florist attach them. This is to ensure that they are added in the correct food safe manner and that the placement of them matches the original design. This will all be discussed at your consultation if you are having fresh flowers on your cake.
9.8. It is your responsibility to ensure you have given us the correct delivery information and delivery time. This will be on your cake booking form so please check it carefully.
9.9. It would be very rare, but on the event day we may be faced with a ‘force majeure’ (e.g. severe weather conditions, public unrest, or other unexpected events that may make delivery to your venue impossible) which may impact our ability to deliver your cake to your event on time, or at all. You can be assured that we would always do our best to deliver as prearranged, but some circumstances would be out of our reasonable control. Please ensure you have adequate wedding insurance in place to cover this eventuality.
9.10. It is your responsibility to ensure you have provided us with the set-up details and location of the cake at the venue. We cannot be held responsible for the location of the cake at the venue. Please ensure that the display location is level, stable and strong enough to hold the cake. It would be advisable that it is not directly in front of a heat source, in a sunny window/conservatory or in a location where it could be knocked easily by passing guests.
9.11. We reserve the right to change the location of the cake at the venue if we feel it is unsuitable and may cause damage to the cake (e.g. the cake table is in front of a large window, and it is an extremely hot day).
9.12. We also reserve the right not to use a cake stand provided by the venue or yourself if we feel it will not hold the weight of the cake. We have a selection of suitable cake stands available to hire if you so wish. This will be discussed at your consultation.
9.13. We will photograph the cake at the venue as proof that it has been delivered and set up and left in perfect condition.
10. Hot Weather
10.1 In the case of extreme hot weather, we may have to make a decision to swap out your real wedding cake for dummy cakes and cutting cake. This is to ensure your cake does not collapse or melt, and in venues without air conditioning or tipis/marquees etc, the inside temperate can be very high which may pose a threat to the stability of your cake.
10.2 We would only make this decision if extreme hot weather is forecast and would discuss this with you the week before the wedding and make a decision together.
10.3 In this case, we would replicate your cake design exactly with dummy cakes and provide ganached cutting cakes in your chosen flavours that can be refrigerated until just before serving to the wedding venue.
10.4 If you have ordered a semi naked cake, we would not be able to replicate this using dummy cakes and we would have to discuss an alternative design.
10.5 If we do have to make this decision due to extreme heat, additional costs may be incurred for the dummy tiers and/or a change in design. We would only be able to advise on these additional costs at the time we make the changes.
​
11. Non-Edible Elements
11.1. Most of our stacked cakes will contain non-edible elements such as plastic dowels, flowers, or cake toppers. We will advise you of any non-edible elements that need to be removed during cutting and provide written information about this to the venue.
11.2. As we will not personally be cutting the cake, we cannot accept any responsibility for any non-edible elements not removed prior to serving. We will give the venue written information concerning any non-edible elements they need to remove.
12. Shelf Life
12.1. We recommend our cakes be eaten within 48 hours of the event for them to be enjoyed at their best.
13. Allergens & Special Dietary Requirements
13.1. All allergy and special dietary requirements should be conveyed to us prior to the consultation. It is the customer’s responsibility to make us aware of any special dietary requirements that need to be accommodated in the making of the cake.
13.2. Unless otherwise stated, all cakes contain gluten, butter and eggs and are made in an environment that handles gluten, nuts, dairy, soya, and alcohol and we cannot guarantee that these cakes will not contain trace amounts of these ingredients due to the nature of the product. We do not offer dairy-free or vegan cakes.
13.3. We would recommend anyone with a severe nut, dairy or gluten intolerance does not eat our cakes.
13.4. We will provide full allergen information with the cake upon delivery to the venue.
13.5. Claire Hansen Cakes accepts no liability for customers suffering allergic reactions from eating our cakes.
​
14. Publication & Promotional Rights
14.1. Claire Hansen Cakes is the sole designer and owner of the final cake design. All rights in any original sketch(es) / design(s) created and designed by us shall remain the exclusive property of Claire Hansen Cakes.
14.2. From time to time our designs are published in the media (e.g. wedding magazines, websites, and blogs). We reserve the right to use any image of a customer's cake made by us for publication after the delivery date unless previously agreed in writing with you.
14.3. The customer has no ownership rights over any cake design. Exclusivity of cake designs between our customers is not guaranteed unless the customer commissions / negotiates an exclusive design.
15. Commissioning A Cake That Is Similar to Another Design
15.1. If you request a cake that is not our original design, we will seek the permission of the original designer to recreate it. This cannot be guaranteed.
15.2. If you wish to have us recreate someone else’s design, we would prefer not to directly copy it, but to use it as a basis to design your cake around so that it is unique to you. This can be discussed at your consultation.
16. Cancellations/Refunds
16.1. The booking fee is non-refundable and non-transferable in the event of cancellation.
16.2. Cancellations from the date of payment of the booking fee until 28 days before the wedding will forfeit the booking fee.
16.3. Cancellations with less than 28 days’ notice of your event are subject to full payment. If this has not already been paid then the final balance will be immediately payable upon cancellation. This final payment is non-refundable in the event of cancellation if that cancellation occurs within 28 days of the wedding date.
16.4. There may be a rare occasion when Claire Hansen Cakes needs to cancel an order due to exceptional circumstances beyond our control (this does not include a force majeure event which may occur on the event day. See section 9.6 ‘Force Majeure’). In this case, as much notice as possible of the cancellation will be given and any monies paid, including deposits will be refunded. If required, we will also assist in finding a replacement baker of the same high standard to make your cake for you.
17. Change of Wedding Date
17.1. If you need to change your wedding date, please let us know as soon as possible. Any changes are subject to availability and are not guaranteed. Please liaise with us to check our availability before moving your wedding date. We always advise getting more than one new date option from your venue for a move of date to give us the best chance of being able to change the date.
17.2. If we can change your wedding date, provided it is within 12 months from the day you request the change, the booking fee will be transferred to the new date.
17.3. If you are moving to a date further ahead than 12 months from the day you request the change, a new booking fee of £100 will be payable. The first booking fee will not be refundable or transferable. It will be classed as a cancellation and a new booking as it is highly likely we will have turned down other work for your first date. If we are subsequently able to fill the original date with a new booking, we will deduct the first booking fee off the final balance of your cake.
17.4. If you are moving your wedding to a date we are unavailable for, unfortunately the booking fee will be strictly non-refundable as this covers work already completed in the run up to your wedding (this may include but is not limited to: phone calls, emails, completing and sending forms, holding consultations, providing taster boxes and it is also highly likely that we will have turned down other work for your original date).
17.5. Date changes to different years may be subject to an additional charge in line with our yearly cost increases e.g., a date change from 2023 to 2024.
17.6. Date changes from off peak days/months to peak days/months, may be subject to an additional charge e.g. a date change from a Thursday in January to a Bank Holiday in August.
17.7. We would strongly advise that you take out wedding insurance that covers you in the event of a cancellation/change of wedding date that is out of your control..
18. Complaints
18.1. In the unlikely event there is an issue with your cake, it must be brought to our attention within 48 hours of the cake being delivered so we can be given the opportunity to assess the nature of the problem. We would take any complaints very seriously.
18.2. If the compliant is regarding the quality of the cake, we may ask for the cake or the remainder of the cake to be returned to use within 48 hours of delivery for inspection.
18.3. If the complaint is regarding the design of the cake, but the cake was made according to the booking form and sketch which has been checked and approved by you, we cannot be held responsible for any errors not picked up by the customer.
18.4. For any complaints we can only deal with the person who booked the cake originally.
18.5. You must give us an opportunity to resolve the issue and agree not to post any defamatory comments or pictures on online forums or social media channels before discussing the situation with us and allowing us reasonable time to provide a satisfactory solution.
18.6. Once a solution has been reached, you agree not to post any defamatory comments or pictures on online forums or social media at any point in the future. If this happens, we reserve the right to take legal action against you.
19. COVID 19 Restrictions
19.1. If your wedding cake booking has to be amended due to COVID 19 restrictions, we will try our best to be accommodating and flexible.
19.2. If you need to postpone your booking because your wedding date falls under a period of Government restrictions for COVID 19 (e.g. a national lockdown or Tier 3 / Tier 4 restrictions where weddings are limited to 15 people or less or if they are not allowed all together, then as long as we are free on your new date), we will move the deposit paid across to the new date for you subject to the conditions below.
19.3. If we can change your wedding date, provided it is within 12 months from the day you request the date change, the booking fee will be transferred to the new date.
19.4. If we are not able to accommodate your date change request, the original booking fee (or booking fees if there have been multiple changes) will be non-refundable (see section 17 ‘Change of Wedding Date’).
19.5. If you are moving to a date further ahead than 12 months from the day you request the date change, a new booking fee of £100 will be payable on top of the original booking fee.
19.6. If you decide to postpone your wedding as you are worried about future COVID 19 restrictions, but restrictions are not currently in place for your wedding date, it will be treated as a standard change of wedding date or a cancellation. (see sections 16 ‘Cancellations / Refunds’, and 17 ‘Change of Wedding Date’).
19.7. If you are moving to a date further ahead than 12 months of the day you request the change, so have paid multiple booking fees, all booking fees will come off the final cost of the cake. However, should you choose to voluntarily cancel the wedding booking further down the line, you will lose all booking fees paid. This is only valid for COVID 19 postponements where restrictions are in place as stated in section 19.2 above. All other postponements will be subject to the clauses in section 17 ‘Change of Wedding Date’..
19.8. Any date changes to future years or from off peak to peak days/months, may be subject to price increases in line with section 7 ‘Change of Wedding Date’.
19.9. For multiple date changes due to COVID 19 restrictions, each new postponement will be treated separately, and we will use the ‘within or outside 12 months’ rules outlined above on each occasion / in respect of each date change request.
19.10. Any subsequent voluntary cancellation will be subject to the payment terms outlined in section 3 ‘Payment Schedule’.
​
We reserve the right to revise and amend these terms and conditions. However, you will only subject to the terms and conditions in force at the time you place your order with us. If you change your wedding date for any reason, you will be sent the most up to date terms and conditions with your new booking form and these will supersede any previously sent to you.
By paying your booking fee, you are agreeing to these terms and conditions so please read them carefully.
​