New Jersey
New Jersey keeps a deposit only as a reasonable forecast of the shop’s real loss, not the full price of the piece. Its Supreme Court calls a set amount unreasonable when it does more than compensate for the approximate actual damages, in a case that did not reach consumer contracts. In a house sale with no clause saying the deposit is kept, the court let the buyer who backed out recover what they paid beyond the loss they caused; with such a clause, the money is kept if it is reasonable against the anticipated loss and how hard that loss is to prove. So a policy that says plainly the deposit is kept on a no-show or late cancel, agreed before paying, is on firmer ground.
Does a non-refundable deposit hold up in New Jersey?
New Jersey has no statute on deposits for a personal service, so 2 New Jersey Supreme Court opinions supply the rule. Wasserman’s Inc. v. Township of Middletown (1994) enforces a set amount that is a reasonable forecast of just compensation for a harm that is impossible or very hard to estimate accurately, calls it unreasonable if it does more than compensate for the approximate actual damages, and left consumer contracts undecided. Kutzin v. Pirnie (1991), a deposit on a house sale with no keep clause, ended the old rule that a buyer who backs out loses the whole deposit: the party who breaks the deal gets back what they paid beyond the loss they caused. With a keep clause, Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 374(2) keeps the money if it is reasonable in light of the anticipated loss and the difficulty of proving it.
“is a reasonable forecast of just compensation for the harm that is caused by the breach ... is incapable or very difficult of accurate estimate.” Wasserman’s Inc. v. Township of Middletown, 137 N.J. 238 (1994) · Kutzin v. Pirnie, 124 N.J. 500 (1991)
Showing your refund policy
The Refund Policy Disclosure Act has every retail store conspicuously post its refund policy for all merchandise on a sign placed on the item, at each register or at each entrance, saying whether it gives refunds and on what conditions; a store that fails owes a cash refund or credit for up to 20 days on unused merchandise. It reaches goods only: the act defines merchandise as tangible items, and a service is not one.
“Every retail mercantile establishment shall conspicuously post its refund policy as to all merchandise on a sign” N.J.S.A. 56:8-2.14 to 56:8-2.21
Body-art rules and money
Nothing about deposits, refunds, prices, receipts or payment records in the Body Art and Ear-Piercing Facility Standards (N.J.A.C. 8:27, all 11 subchapters). The client record they require carries identity, proof of age, the procedure, a health history and a consent form, and no payment line.
Read: N.J.A.C. 8:27-4
What reaches your deposit page
A consumer contract for services is written in plain language
The Plain Language Review Act covers a written agreement in which a person contracts for services, and a deposit policy is one; it has to be written in a simple, clear, understandable and easily readable way. Where a violation substantially confused the client, the shop owes actual damages, plus up to $50 and attorney’s fees up to $2,500.
“shall be written in a simple, clear, understandable and easily readable way” N.J.S.A. 56:12-1 to 56:12-13 (Plain Language Review Act)
- The default deposit policy is 3 short sentences in plain words, and you can write your own. Whatever it says, your client sees all of it before paying.
A written policy cannot take away a client’s clearly established right
A New Jersey statute, N.J.S.A. 56:12-15, known as TCCWNA, bars a written consumer contract, notice or sign that includes any provision violating a clearly established legal right of a consumer or responsibility of a seller. A client aggrieved by one recovers at least $100 or actual damages, plus fees, and the New Jersey Supreme Court, in Spade v. Select Comfort Corp., read “aggrieved” as having suffered adverse consequences. So a deposit policy’s promises have to stay inside what the law allows.
“which includes any provision that violates any clearly established legal right of a consumer or responsibility of a seller” Spade v. Select Comfort Corp., A-57-16 (N.J. 2018), quoting N.J.S.A. 56:12-15 and 56:12-17
This page summarizes public law in plain language, with the source each point comes from, read at the source on 2026-09-23. It is not legal advice.