SINGAPORE — Couples who wish to cancel their wedding receptions said a proposed law that would protect them from being sued by venue providers does not, in its current form, go far enough in helping them with their situation.

This is because they felt that the proposed relief period — six months from the commencement of the law, which may be extended to a year — may not be long enough to cover the duration of the Covid-19 outbreak. They would also rather cancel their bookings without having to forfeit their deposits.

The Ministry of Law announced on Wednesday (April 1) its plans to introduce and push through the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) Bill in one parliamentary sitting.

Under the proposed law, it would be an offence for any organisation or individual to take legal action against a party who is unable to fulfil his or her contractual obligations due to the pandemic.

Ms Audrey Ann, a 30-year-old human resources executive, said she had been trying since March to cancel her wedding in August, but her hotel would not waive the penalty charges for cancellation — which is 60 per cent of the banquet cost.

“My hotel said it will only cancel (without charge) when Singapore goes to Dorscon (Disease Outbreak Response System Condition) Red,” she said, referring to the country's risk assessment level which stands at Orange. 

Ms Cheryl Tay, an accountant, noted that there is “no guarantee” that Covid-19 will subside by the end of the year, even if she chooses to postpone her May 9 wedding to a later date.

“I honestly don’t think anyone will attend our wedding,” the 27-year-old said, as the hotel she chose is one of those that is hosting people serving their stay-home notice. “It is such a big turn-off for relatives and friends.”

Recruitment manager Ho Pei Fen, 29, said the proposed law is “not helpful” as she has been trying to cancel her wedding reception, which is scheduled on May 24, and obtain a refund instead.

“Our issue is not on postponement, since most hotels will allow you to postpone without forfeiting your deposit,” she said.

“Ideally we should be able to cancel and receive the full refund, so I can have a peace of mind to relook venues and dates, rather than to be forced to hold the wedding in November.”

EVEN AT A LATER DATE, GUESTS MIGHT NOT COME

For Mr John Chung, 39, who works as a project manager in the IT industry, the virus outbreak has left his plans for an October wedding in limbo.

“We have an issue in sending out invites. We can’t commit to the vendors and we cannot prepare. It's difficult for us,” he said.

Mr Lui Sheng Kai, 28, who works as a distributor, said he is pressured to make a decision on whether or not to cancel his wedding reception because he has to pay 50 per cent of the banquet cost by April 4.

He had planned for his wedding to take place on Oct 4, but now feels compelled to cancel it because it is not likely that the overseas clients he has invited can show up for his big day.

“The virus won’t go away that quickly. There is no way we can hold the wedding in October any more because none of the clients can actually come. Their attendance makes up the bulk of our tables, but vendors do not recognise this,” he said.

He added that his hotel had told him that it would review the situation two months ahead of his wedding.

“I find it a bit ridiculous, since a wedding is a big event and it needs planning over a period of time,” he added.

HOTELS AND RESTAURANTS SAY...

Some hotels and restaurants said they would not be changing the way they are handling ongoing discussions with their customers despite the proposed law.

Mr Joseph Ong, 48, managing director of 1-group, which manages a range of venues such as 1-Altitude and Alkaff Mansion, told TODAY that his company has been allowing couples to postpone or cancel their events between March and May. Across the group, over 20 contracts are affected.

“This new Bill provides us more clarity on how we should approach our contracts. It also provides us with an avenue to work with an assessor to see what relief our company can get as a venue provider and how we can take care of our clients,” he said.

Ms Tan Shin Hui, the executive director of Park Hotel Group, which manages a portfolio of hotels and restaurants, said her company has been offering existing customers flexibility ever since Covid-19 struck.

“Events that were due to be held in February were given the option to postpone and there were refunds where reasonable. On the other hand, customers are also held accountable for the contracts that were signed; cancellations are reviewed on a case-by-case basis,” said Ms Tan.

Mr Torrance Foo, 42, the sales and marketing director of Qian Xi Group, which manages a chain of restaurants, told TODAY: “We have suffered big losses but we are pretty flexible and obliging to cancellation cases, but we strongly encourage them to postpone instead - both with terms and conditions applied - before deciding to cancel.”

He added: “We sincerely hope that our clients can allow us some time to make arrangements, (especially) for those whose banquet dates are happening in the next three months. Meanwhile, we strongly encourage couples whose wedding dates are later than four months to monitor the Covid-19 situation first before letting us know their decision at a nearer date.”

Mr Tane Picken, general manager of Shangri-La Hotel, said: “We understand how important a wedding is to our guests and are extending flexibility regarding their events in light of the situation. We have personally reached out to all couples whose event has been affected by the tightened measures, and discussed alternative arrangements including the postponement or cancellation of weddings, with no penalty.”