What happens if I have a problem with an event?
How to report a problem with a Vynue booking, what evidence to submit, how long each side has to respond, and how Vynue's Marketplace Determination process works.
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If a booking didn't go the way it was supposed to, report it rather than arguing it out in messages. Reporting a problem freezes the payment — which is the whole reason Vynue holds the money in the first place.
Four different things, not one
It's easy to conflate these, and they do different things:
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Confirming completion | Signals the event happened as agreed. Doesn't require a review, and isn't a review. |
| Leaving a review | Public feedback after the fact. Never required to release payment. |
| Reporting a problem | Freezes the payment and opens Vynue's Marketplace Determination process — this page. |
| A card chargeback | A dispute with your bank or card issuer, entirely separate from Vynue's process — see Chargebacks. |
You never have to leave a review to get your money released, and reporting a problem is not the same as disputing the charge with your bank.
When you can report a problem
Any time before the booking is marked complete — in practice, that's from the point your booking is confirmed until either both sides confirm completion or 72 hours after the event's scheduled end time pass with no report filed (at which point it's automatically deemed complete).
Once a booking is marked complete and payment released, there's nothing left to freeze. If the event went badly, report it before the 72-hour window closes — don't wait to see whether the other side makes it right on their own.
Either side can report a problem. Clients report a partner or venue who didn't deliver; partners and venues report a client who didn't honour the booking.
What happens, step by step
- You report a problem. Describe what happened. The payment stops moving immediately.
- The other side is asked to respond. They generally have around 72 hours to give their account.
- Both sides can file evidence. Photos, screenshots, messages, documents.
- Vynue makes a Marketplace Determination — a decision about an appropriate resolution based on the evidence. Vynue generally aims to resolve reports within about 7 business days of filing, though complex cases, suspected fraud, or an open chargeback can take longer.
A Marketplace Determination is Vynue's judgment as the platform, not a court ruling — it doesn't stop either side from pursuing other rights they may have, including with their bank or card issuer.
Filing evidence
Once a report is open, both parties can upload files to it, and both can see what the other has submitted. Neither side can delete or edit the other's evidence.
Evidence files are stored privately — visible to the two parties and to the staff reviewing it, and nowhere else on the site.
What actually helps:
- Timestamped photos or video of the venue, the setup, or the condition of a space
- Screenshots of messages, especially anything agreed before the booking
- A written timeline: what was booked, what was expected, what happened
What does not help:
- Character judgements about the other party
- Evidence of conversations that took place off-platform, which we can't verify
- Anything submitted after a decision has been made
Possible outcomes
| Outcome | What happens |
|---|---|
| Full refund | The client is refunded the full amount held |
| Partial refund | The client is refunded a set amount; the partner keeps the rest |
| No refund | The payment is released to the partner as normal |
Not every complaint qualifies for a refund — see What qualifies for a refund after an event? for the distinction between an actual service failure and simply not loving how the night went.
How a partial refund is split
A refund comes out of the partner's share first. Vynue's own fee is a separate decision made case by case — where the platform's own handling was part of the problem, the fee is refunded to the client too.
Writing a report that gets resolved quickly
State what was booked, what happened, and what you want. Reviewers are trying to establish the gap between what was agreed and what was delivered — a report that documents that gap resolves faster than one that describes how it felt.
Include specifics: times, durations, what was promised and by whom.
What this isn't
Reporting a problem isn't a way to renegotiate a price you agreed to, and it isn't the same as a change of plans — that's a cancellation, with its own rules and its own outcome. And it isn't the same as a card chargeback, which is a separate process — see Chargebacks.
Related
What happens if a card payment is charged back?
How a card chargeback relates to Vynue's own dispute process, and what happens to a partner's payout if a client's charge is reversed by their bank.
What happens if I cancel as a Partner?
What happens on your account when you cancel a confirmed booking as a talent partner or venue — the warning ladder, Instant Book suspension, and the emergency exception.