Businesswoman loses Dh199,500 to ‘Not-So-Smart’ event booking app

Al Ain: A freelance mobile application designer has been ordered to repay nearly Dh200,000 to a businesswoman who paid for a bespoke event‑booking app that was never properly delivered.

The court also awarded the plaintiff an additional Dh20,000 in compensation for the losses she suffered as a result of the designer’s failure to fulfil contractual obligations, according to Emarat Al Youm.

The case was brought by a business owner who said she contracted the designer to build and launch an intelligent mobile application for booking party services, covering events such as weddings, birthdays and graduations as well as related ancillary services, for a total fee of Dh199,500, which was paid in full.

In her legal claim, the entrepreneur told the court that despite receiving payment in full, the app designer failed to complete the project, respond to repeated communications, or address requested changes over a period of more than a year. Despite multiple warnings and formal notices, she said, the project stalled.

When the case reached the Al Ain Civil, Commercial and Administrative Court, a court‑appointed information technology expert was asked to assess the application that had been delivered.

In a detailed report prepared for the court, the expert concluded that what was presented was effectively a rudimentary prototype, incomplete, riddled with technical flaws and insufficient for real‑world use.

“The initial designs were submitted,” the report stated, “but the actual functionality falls short of contractual requirements. The app cannot be deployed or monetised in its current condition, and critical features such as integration with Apple’s App Store and payment gateways were never implemented.”

According to court records, the defendant did not engage with the plaintiff’s requests for corrections or with efforts to launch the application on major platforms.

In its written judgement, the court said it placed significant weight on the expert’s findings, noting that they formed an “integral part” of the evidence it considered.

The ruling concluded that the app designer had clearly breached the terms of her agreement by failing to deliver a usable product, and that the businesswoman was entitled to a full refund of her payment. The court also found that the plaintiff had suffered financial harm due to the delayed and substandard work, and thus deserved compensation.

In addition to ordering the return of the Dh199,500 originally paid, the judge directed that the designer pay Dh20,000 for damages, Dh500 for legal costs, and fees associated with the expert report and court proceedings.