‘Ghoulish’ wedding venue keeps $16K booking fee after groom dies — then countersues grieving widow
This Texas wedding venue’s non-refundable policy goes way beyond “’til death do us part.”
Posey Meadows, a wedding hall in San Marcos, Texas, is under fire after refusing to refund a grieving bride whose fiancé tragically died just months before their big day — and then slapping her with a lawsuit.
Diego Hernandez, 25, died suddenly in late April, seven months before he was set to walk down the aisle on Nov. 20. The couple had already shelled out $15,909.28 for the venue. But instead of offering condolences and a refund, Posey Meadows kept every penny — and is now countersuing for breach of contract.
When Hernandez’s Family asked for a refund, venue owners insisted their contract contains no clause for a client’s death.
Internal emails obtained by KSAT reveal venue owner Julie Campbell suggested the family rebook for a future date or throw a different party entirely.
Hernandez’s heartbroken mother, Lucy, recalled pleading with Campbell on the phone “just moments before seeing her son’s body one last time”, only to be stone-cold rejected.
“Where are their morals? Where are their moral principles?” Lucy lamented to KSAT. “We don’t have a fight in us. We’re emotionally drained.”
With no resolution, the grieving bride filed a lawsuit with Hays County district court in late July.
Posey Meadows aggressively clapped back with a counterclaim, wanting Hernandez’s family to pay the remaining contract balance — alleging the family never provided proof that Hernandez was actually dead.
An attorney for the bride blasted the venue’s claims as bogus, saying he repeatedly offered to send Hernandez’s death certificate before filing suit, only to meet complete silence from the venue’s legal team.
Hernandez’s death certificate is reportedly included in the legal documents.
Hernandez’s widow did not reply to KSAT for comment and asked them to respect her privacy.
A court will decide the contractual dispute, but the public is giving their opinions on the morality of the case.
The Posey Meadows Google listing and Facebook page is getting inundated with negative reviews, with users calling them greedy and ‘disgusting humans.’ While the venue has a 4.3-star average rating, reviews from the past 3 days have only been negative.
“Would leave 0 stars, if able. I hope this venue doesn’t see another ounce of business after their horrible treatment of the Hernandez wedding couple. Despicable!!” wrote one reviewer.
“Whatever sick person makes the decision to not refund a bride whose fiancé died, 6 whole months before the wedding… has to be one of the greediest things I’ve ever heard of,” wrote another. “There is no saving this kind of person. They deserve every misfortune that comes from this.”
Multiple accounts on social media shared that this situation isn’t novel, and a death clause should be added to venues that are non-refundable.
One explained that some venues have an “act of god” clause but ‘you better believe nothing will ever meet the criteria,’ saying her wedding venue wouldn’t let them use that clause during COVID.
“Large events were literally banned! These venues are such shit,” she wrote on Instagram.