Wedding venue owner refunds customers after cancellations

The owner of a Dundee wedding venue has refunded thousands of pounds to couples who had their ceremonies cancelled.

It was previously reported how would-be brides and grooms had been locked in a stalemate with the Taypark House Hotel on Perth Road for months after learning their ceremonies would not be going ahead the way they had planned due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Hotel owner Richie Hawkins has since confirmed the hotel will now be paying compensation to couples.

In a statement, he said: “For those couples where their wedding insurance has not agreed to pay out, we have offered a full refund.

“Additionally, for those couples who did not take out wedding insurance we have also offered a full refund to them where their wedding could not proceed as planned due to ongoing restrictions.

“At the outset we were assured that insurance companies would eventually pay out to cover the losses caused by not being able to proceed due to coronavirus.

“However, it is now clear that some insurance companies, including our own comprehensive insurance policy, have not been paying out as they should.

“We personally, as a family and as a business, feel awful for all those couples who have been impacted. We have relied entirely on professional advice throughout, at times against our own personal judgment and feelings about these problems.”

Since learning that they will receive their money back, some of the couples have said they are relieved at the end of “months of stress and worry”.