Tennessee
Tennessee judges a kept deposit by what was reasonable on the day the client booked. Under the Tennessee Supreme Court’s rule, a deposit that was a reasonable estimate of what a no-show would cost, when that cost was hard to measure, is normally enforced; one out of line with that estimate is a penalty. A shop that fills the chair later does not turn a fair deposit into a penalty. The policy’s own words carry weight, because the court reads the language of the agreement to decide whether the deposit was meant to compensate or to punish.
Does a non-refundable deposit hold up in Tennessee?
Tennessee has no statute on deposits for services; the Tennessee Supreme Court set the rule in Guiliano v. Cleo, Inc., an employment case. A provision that is a reasonable estimate of the damages a breach would cause is normally enforced, and one unreasonable in relation to those damages is treated as a penalty. The court judges it by the contract’s words and the circumstances when the contract was formed, and it overruled cases that had also weighed the loss after the breach, calling the lack of actual damages beside the point.
“courts must focus on the intentions of the parties based upon the language in the contract and the circumstances that existed at the time of contract formation ... whether the liquidated sum was a reasonable estimate of potential damages and whether actual damages were indeterminable or difficult to measure” Guiliano v. Cleo, Inc., 995 S.W.2d 88 (Tenn. 1999)
Showing your refund policy
The Attorney General’s undated copy of Tennessee’s Consumer Protection Act lists as unlawful refusing the return of clothing or accessories sold at retail, for a refund or credit, when the buyer brings them back within the store’s return period with proof of purchase, undamaged and unworn with the tags still on, and the sale was not marked final or no refunds. It covers clothing and accessories, not services, so it does not reach a tattoo deposit.
“Refusing to accept the return of clothing or accessories sold at retail directly to a purchaser, who seeks to return the same for any reason for refund or credit” Tenn. Code § 47-18-104(b)(37) (Attorney General’s copy)
Body-art rules and money
Nothing about deposits or refunds in Tennessee’s tattoo rules (ch. 1200-23-03), its body piercing rules (ch. 1200-23-06) or the tattoo and body piercing statute (Tenn. Code tit. 62, ch. 38). The money in them is permit and license fees.
Read: Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. ch. 1200-23-03 · Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. ch. 1200-23-06 · Tenn. Code tit. 62, ch. 38 (Department of Health’s copy)
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.