Terms and conditions for an event caterer

An event caterer needs terms that deal with what goes wrong between the tasting and the last plate cleared: guest numbers confirmed late, dietary requirements that arrive on the day, a venue kitchen with no hot water, and a wedding cancelled after the food has been ordered. I draft customer terms around your business for a fixed fee of £995, delivered in five working days.

Who this is for

Wedding and private party caterers, corporate and hospitality caterers, canapé and fine dining teams and mobile catering operations in England and Wales. Most caterers sell to consumers, who book their own wedding or anniversary, and to businesses, who book a conference lunch or a client dinner. The law treats those two groups very differently, so one set of terms has to be written with both in mind.

What matters in an event caterer's terms

Final numbers, minimums and late additions

Almost every catering argument starts with numbers. The terms need a confirmation deadline for final guest numbers, a statement that the confirmed figure is the figure you charge for even if fewer people come, and a rule for additions after the deadline: whether you will take them and at what price. Say how children, evening guests, the photographer, the band and the venue's own staff are counted or excluded. Without a written deadline you are buying stock and booking staff against a number that moves on the morning of the event.

Deposits, stage payments and cancellation

Weddings are booked far ahead, so take a booking deposit, set stage payments and require the balance before the event rather than after it. For consumers, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 treats keeping prepayments on cancellation without a matching obligation on you as capable of being unfair, so a sliding cancellation scale has to reflect what you genuinely lose as the date approaches: committed staff, ordered stock, a date you cannot resell. Corporate clients expect to pay on invoice, and the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 lets you charge interest and fixed compensation on those debts.

The consumer's fourteen day cancellation right

Where a wedding or private party is agreed at the customer's home, by email or over the telephone, the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 give the customer fourteen days from the contract date to cancel. That sits awkwardly with a non-refundable booking fee. Where the required cancellation information is never given, the period can extend by up to twelve months, so a customer who booked long in advance can walk away and expect their money back. Your terms and your booking form have to deal with this together, not separately.

Dietary requirements and what the customer tells you

You will be asked to cater for allergies, intolerances and religious requirements, usually relayed by a planner or the couple rather than by the guest. The terms should require dietary information in writing by the same deadline as final numbers, place responsibility for its accuracy on the customer, and state plainly what you can and cannot control about cross contamination in a marquee or borrowed kitchen. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, information you give a consumer about the service which the consumer relies on can bind you, so your menu wording matters as much as the contract.

The venue, the kitchen and the running order

You are almost always working in someone else's building or in a field. Make the customer responsible for access and set-up times, a safe and suitable preparation area, power, water, refrigeration space, parking and somewhere to wash up, and say what happens to the price and to service if those are not there when you arrive. Deal with timings too: if the speeches overrun and service slips, that is not your breach. If you take food waste away from site you must be registered as a waste carrier under the Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989 and the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011.

Equipment, breakages, leftovers and liability

Glassware, crockery, linen and chafing dishes disappear at events. Charge for loss and damage at a stated replacement cost rather than a round penalty, because under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 a disproportionate default charge against a consumer can be unfair and will not bind them. Deal with leftovers as well: say that you will not leave food behind once it has been out of temperature control, and that anything the customer insists on keeping is at their own risk. For business customers, cap liability and exclude consequential loss such as the cost of re-running the event.

What it costs

Customer or supplier terms and conditions, £995. One set of terms, customer-facing or supplier-facing, drafted around your business. Five working days.

Review of your existing terms, £495. You already have terms and want to know how much of a problem they are. Returned marked up with my amendments and an explanation of the changes. Three working days.

Buying online forms the engagement on payment. The scope is what the terms and conditions drafting page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I email you within four working hours to get started. If you would rather ask something first, email me.

What you get

• A full set of terms drafted around your business, not a template with your name inserted
• A covering note in plain English explaining every commercial choice I made and why, so you can defend the terms in a negotiation without ringing me
• Liability, payment, termination and IP provisions set at a level that will survive a procurement review
• Consumer-facing wording drafted to be enforceable where you sell to consumers
• Guidance on how to incorporate the terms properly, which is where most businesses actually fail
• One round of amendments after you have read them

What is not included

• Negotiating your terms with individual customers
• Sector-specific regulatory compliance beyond the contract terms themselves
• Website privacy notice and cookie compliance, which I quote separately
• Terms governed by the law of another country

Questions I am often asked

What if the customer cuts their guest numbers the week before?

That is what the minimum numbers clause does. Once final numbers are confirmed, the confirmed figure becomes the chargeable figure and later reductions do not reduce the bill. Set the deadline by reference to when you actually commit to stock and staff, and make sure the booking form spells out what the customer is agreeing to.

Who is responsible if a guest reacts to something we served?

Responsibility turns on what you were told, what you promised and whether you took reasonable care. Terms cannot exclude liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, so the clause does its work earlier: requiring written dietary information by a deadline, and stating honestly what you can guarantee about preparation in a shared or temporary kitchen.

Can we treat a postponement as a cancellation?

You can, and the terms should say so expressly, with a defined window for agreeing a new date, a rebooking charge and a rule for what happens if no new date is agreed. Caterers who left this point silent spent a great deal of time arguing about deposits already spent on staff and stock.

Related guidance and services

• Terms and conditions drafting, £995, the service this page describes
• Contract review, £495
• Employment contracts and handbooks, £595
• Terms and conditions for a wedding and events venue

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: September 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.