Policy

Northumberland Acupuncture reserves the right to charge a cancellation fee of 50% of the cost of the missed session should a patient miss their appointment without giving at least 24 hours’ notice. This applies also to late notice cancellations where less than 24 hours’ notice is given. If you wake feeling unwell on the day of your appointment, or a family emergency occurs on the day of your allocated session, consideration will be given for your circumstances, so it is always important to communicate your issue(s) as soon as possible; courtesy and respect will always be appreciated in such circumstances particularly.

If a patient misses more than one appointment or cancels more than one appointment with less than 24 hours’ notice, they may be asked to pay a deposit of £20 in advance of booking a future session.

If you are aware that you may miss your appointment or need to change the date / time, please contact me as soon as you can and I will always endeavour to find a slot that suits you better.

The waiving of this policy is at the discretion of Northumberland Acupuncture.

Why the need for this policy?

As a self-employed practitioner, a missed appointment means that this slot in my diary has gone to waste and could have been given to another patient. Not only is this a loss of earnings for me, but it also prevents someone else from getting an earlier appointment that may have been of greater benefit to them.

Sometimes missed appointments occur entirely by accident, through forgetfulness, a family emergency or other life pressures. Likewise, no one wants to risk spreading illness if they are unwell on the day of an appointment. However, please understand that this business is how I earn my living and, as much as it pains me to enforce this cancellation policy, boundaries and legitimate expectations of mutual respect are important, especially if a pattern of missed or late notice cancellations emerges.