How to Cancel a Coaching Session When You Are Sick

The short answer to how to cancel a coaching session when you are sick: message the client the moment you know, in the channel they actually read. Keep it to four things: "I'm unwell", two or three specific new times, a line saying the session does not use up anything they paid for, and one small task so the work keeps moving. If you could coach but not at your best, give them the choice (go ahead, shorten it, or move it) instead of deciding for them. Then write a coach-side clause into your cancellation policy so next time is automatic. Consumer and contract rules differ by state and country, so treat the legal notes below as a starting point and check anything contested with a local attorney.

We make Coachful, a coaching platform, and it helps with the admin side of this: a booking page that only offers times you can really keep, messages that reach clients inside their coaching app, session credits and refunds you can see on the client record, and check-in flows that keep a program moving while you rest. None of that replaces the judgement calls below, which apply whatever software you use.

This is general guidance for coaches, not legal, tax or medical advice. For your own health, follow your doctor and your local public health guidance on when to rest and when you can see people again.

Why does the way you cancel matter so much in your first years?

Because clients judge your reliability by how you handle the one time you are unreliable. A coach who cancels late, vaguely or by silence teaches the client that the coaching relationship is fragile. A coach who cancels early, explains briefly and hands over a plan teaches them the opposite: that the work continues even when the calendar moves.

Three things are at stake when you are building a practice:

• Trust. Many coaching agreements ask the client to show up on time, do the work between sessions and give notice if they need to cancel. If you hold clients to 24 or 48 hours' notice and then cancel with ten minutes to spare, the asymmetry is noticed, even if nobody says so.
• Money. A cancelled session that the client has already paid for is a debt you owe them in time or in cash. New coaches often forget to track it, and the client remembers at renewal time.
• Momentum. A client halfway through a hard change (a job search, a conversation with a co-founder, a habit they are rebuilding) can lose a week of progress if the session simply vanishes. A good cancellation message protects the momentum as well as the appointment.

There is also your own health. Coaching sick tends to produce worse sessions, and a coach who pushes through a fever to avoid an awkward message is usually choosing the wrong discomfort. A well-handled sick day is easy to forgive. Not knowing whether the call is on is much harder.

What should you do in each situation? The quick table

Start by naming the situation you are in. The right move depends less on how ill you feel and more on how much notice you can give, whether the session was paid for, and whether anyone else is affected.

The rest of this guide takes each row in turn, with wording you can copy and adapt.

You are mildly unwell: should you still coach?

Only if you would be comfortable with the client knowing exactly how you feel, and only if they get a real choice. A head cold on a video call is different from a migraine, and you are the only one who knows which you have.

The simplest test: could you listen closely for 50 minutes without your attention drifting to yourself? Coaching depends on presence. If the honest answer is "probably not", you are not doing the client a favour by turning up.

When you are borderline, hand the decision to the client. Some clients would rather keep a slightly croaky session than lose momentum the week before a big presentation. Others would rather wait for you at full strength.

Hi Sam, a quick heads-up before tomorrow's 10:00. I've picked up a cold. I'm fine to coach, just a bit hoarse, and we'll be on video so there's no risk to you. Your choice: (1) go ahead as planned, (2) keep it to 30 minutes, or (3) move to Thursday or Friday at 10:00 if you'd rather have me at full volume. Any of these is fine with me. Just reply with 1, 2 or 3.

Notice what this message does: it names the issue without detail, removes the risk question, gives three numbered options and makes replying take two seconds. A client should never have to draft a polite paragraph to accept your change.

If the session goes ahead, say at the start that you will stop early if you notice you are not at your best, and keep that promise. Then make your recap more thorough than usual so nothing is lost. The wrap-up questions guide has prompts that work well for a shorter call.

You are sick the night before: what is the right message?

Cancel that evening. It is tempting to wait and see how you feel in the morning, but the morning version of you will have less notice to give, and the client will have already planned their day around the call.

A good evening-before cancellation has five parts, in this order:

1. The news, first line. "I need to move tomorrow's session." No warm-up paragraph.
2. A short reason. "I'm unwell." You owe no diagnosis, and offering one invites a conversation about your health that neither of you needs.
3. Specific new times. Two or three slots in the next 7 to 10 days, or your booking link if your calendar is accurate.
4. What happens to what they paid. "This doesn't use up any of your sessions" or "your package end date moves by a week".
5. One thing to keep the thread. A question or task tied to what you were going to cover.

Hi Priya, I'm sorry to do this, but I'm unwell and need to move tomorrow's 14:00 session. Could you do Monday at 14:00, Tuesday at 09:30 or Wednesday at 17:00? If none of those work, here's my booking page and every open slot is real. This doesn't use one of your six sessions. Before we meet, it would help to jot down the two salary figures you're weighing for the offer conversation, so we can start there. Thanks for understanding, and speak soon.

Send it in the channel the client actually uses. If they live in WhatsApp or your coaching app and rarely open email, an email alone is not enough. If you are not sure they saw it, a one-line follow-up the next morning ("Just checking you got my note about today") costs nothing.

You woke up sick and the session is in a few hours: what now?

Act within the next few minutes, not the next hour. Same-day cancellations hurt most when the client has rearranged things to make the call: booked a meeting room, asked a colleague to cover, arranged childcare. The earlier your message lands, the more of that they can undo.

Same-day messages need two things that evening-before messages do not: a sincere apology (once, not three times) and a small gesture that acknowledges the short notice. It does not need to be costly. It needs to be concrete.

Hi Marcus, I'm really sorry for the short notice. I woke up ill and won't be able to coach well at 11:00 today, so I'm cancelling rather than giving you half a session. I know you'd blocked out the time. I can do tomorrow at 16:00, Thursday at 08:00 or any open slot on my booking page. The session doesn't count against your package, and I'll add 15 minutes to the rebooked call to make up for the disruption. If it's useful, send me a few lines on how the team meeting went and I'll reply in writing once I'm back on my feet.

Then confirm it landed. If the session starts within two hours and you have no reply, try a second channel: a text, a call that goes to voicemail, a message in your coaching app. It is far better to reach the client twice than to have them waiting alone on a video link.

What to offer as a make-good, depending on how late the notice was:

• More than 24 hours: nothing extra needed beyond a rebook and a thank you.
• Same day, several hours' notice: 10 to 15 extra minutes on the rebooked session, or a short written reply to something they send you.
• Under an hour, or the client was already waiting: the extra time plus a sincere call or voice note when you are well, and a choice of the next available slot even if it means you rearrange something.

These are suggestions, not industry rules. The point is proportion: the later your notice, the more of the inconvenience you absorb.

You can think but cannot talk: is a written session a fair swap?

Often, yes, if the client agrees and the work suits it. Laryngitis and similar losses of voice leave many coaches clear-headed but unable to hold a call. For some clients and some stages of work, an asynchronous session is a genuine alternative rather than a consolation prize.

Written or recorded sessions work well when the client is:

• reviewing progress on an agreed plan rather than exploring something new;
• preparing for a specific event (an interview, a pitch, a difficult conversation) where structured prompts help;
• in the middle of a program with clear weekly tasks and check-ins.

They work badly for first sessions, for emotionally loaded topics, and for anything where the client needs to be heard in real time. If the client is in a fragile moment, rebook the live call instead.

Make the swap optional and specific:

Hi Jo, I've lost my voice, so tomorrow's call isn't possible. I'm otherwise fine and can still coach in writing. Two options: (1) we move the call to next week, or (2) we do this week's session in writing. I'd send you four questions tomorrow morning about the pricing decision, you reply by Friday, and I send you detailed thoughts and a next step by Monday. Option 2 doesn't replace your live session; we'd still meet next week as normal. Which would you prefer?

Notice the last line before the question. If the written session is a bonus, the client has nothing to lose by saying yes. If you count it as one of their paid sessions, say so plainly and let them decline. For more on structuring written work between calls, see the pre-session worksheet guide and the between-session change audit.

You are contagious and the session was in person: what do you owe the client?

You owe them a session that does not put them at risk. If you coach face to face (walking sessions, an office, a client's workplace, a retreat), the question is not only whether you can coach but whether being in the room is fair to them.

If you feel well enough to coach, offer to switch to video for this week. Plenty of clients are glad to skip the travel. If you do not feel well enough, reschedule as above. Do not leave it to the client to ask whether you are infectious: it puts them in an awkward position.

Hi Elena, I've come down with a bug and don't want to pass it on, so I won't be at your office on Wednesday. I'm well enough to coach, so we could do the same time on video, or move to the following Wednesday in person. Either is fine with me.

For coaches who work with clients who may be more vulnerable (older clients, people in health recovery, people caring for someone who is ill), be more cautious than you would be for yourself. Your local public health guidance is the right reference for how long to keep away from others; it is not a coaching decision.

A note on scope: if you are a health or wellness coach, the same distinction you hold with clients applies to you. Coaching is not medical treatment, and nothing here is medical advice about when you are fit to work.

What if it is a group session, a workshop or a cohort call?

Group cancellations need more notice, more structure and a plan for people who cannot make the new date. One person's inconvenience is now twelve people's, and some of them will have paid specifically for the live element.

Your options, roughly in order of preference:

1. Hand over to a co-facilitator if you have one and they know the material. Tell participants who will be leading and why.
2. Postpone to a new date chosen so most of the group can attend, and record it for those who cannot.
3. Replace the live session with recorded material and a written Q&A thread if the content is mostly teaching, then hold a shorter live follow-up when you are well.
4. Refund the session for anyone who paid for it separately and cannot use any of the alternatives.

Hi everyone, I'm unwell and need to postpone Thursday's live session on difficult conversations. The new date is Thursday 3 December at the same time. If you can't make it, the session will be recorded and I'll answer written questions in our group thread for a week afterwards. This week's practice exercise is posted now so you can keep going. If you bought this workshop on its own and none of this works for you, reply to me directly and I'll refund it. Sorry for the change.

Send the message to everyone individually or through a channel where you can see who has read it, not only as a post they might scroll past. For cohorts, keep the community space active with a short daily prompt while you are out so the group does not go quiet.

You will be out for a week: how do you handle every client at once?

Clear the whole week in one sitting rather than cancelling day by day. Day-by-day cancelling means every client gets a late message and nobody can plan. A single morning of admin on day one of being ill saves you five mornings of anxious messaging.

A one-week illness checklist:

1. Block the week in your calendar so nobody can book into it.
2. List every session, group call and deadline you had committed to that week, including discovery calls with prospects.
3. Send each client a personal message (not a broadcast) with new times or a booking link, and the payment note.
4. Send prospects a short note offering a new discovery call time; they have no relationship with you yet and will simply drift if ignored.
5. Extend any package expiry dates or subscription cycles that the missed week affects, and write down what you changed.
6. Decide what clients in programs should do this week, and tell them: "keep doing your evening check-ins; I'll read them when I'm back".
7. Set an autoresponder on email so new enquiries know when to expect a reply.

Hi Tom, I'm ill this week and have cleared my calendar until Monday 16 November, so our Wednesday session won't happen. I'd like to rebook for the week of the 16th: Monday 09:00, Tuesday 13:00 or Thursday 15:30? Your package end date moves back by a week, so you lose nothing. Meanwhile, keep going with the three outreach messages a day and log them in your tracker. I'll review the week as soon as I'm back.

If a lot of clients are affected, it is fine to use the same template, but personalise the first line and the "meanwhile" task. A message that is clearly mass-produced feels like a service notice; one line of specifics makes it a coaching message.

You face weeks or months away: what are the fair options?

For a long illness, surgery or recovery, stop thinking in sessions and start thinking in engagements. The client signed up for an outcome over a period of time, and the honest question is how they can still get it.

Give each client real choices, in writing, and let them pick:

• Pause. The engagement freezes, no billing, and resumes on a target date. Best for clients with no urgent deadline who value working with you specifically.
• Continue in a lighter format. Written check-ins, program content, or short calls when you are able. Only if you can genuinely keep it up, and with the price adjusted if the service is smaller.
• Transfer. A warm referral to a coach you trust, with the client's permission to share context. Best for clients facing a deadline (a job offer, a launch, a review cycle).
• End with a refund. A prorated refund for unused sessions or time. Always available as an option; never make the client argue for it.

Stop recurring billing straight away for anyone who has not chosen to continue. Charging a monthly subscription while you are absent, even for a cycle or two "until things settle", is one of the fastest ways to turn a sympathetic client into an angry one.

Hi Aisha, I wanted to tell you directly that I have a health issue that will keep me from coaching for about six to eight weeks. I've paused your monthly billing as of today. You have three options, and any of them is completely fine: we pause and pick up from where we are in mid-January; I introduce you to a colleague I trust for the next phase of your leadership work; or I refund the unused part of this month. Take your time to decide. I'll send a short update every two weeks either way so you're not left wondering.

Keep the update rhythm you promise. Silence during a long absence is where clients start to assume the practice has closed. If your absence turns into a decision to wind down or change your client load, the guides on ending an engagement early and keeping clients through a big change cover the conversations involved.

For the update itself, three lines are enough: where you are, when you expect to be back, and what they can do meanwhile. Keep it factual and free of promotion, and send it only to the clients who chose to pause or continue.

What if you are too ill to send the messages yourself?

Then someone else has to, and the time to arrange that is now. Every script above assumes you can pick up your phone. A hospital admission, a bad accident or a sudden high fever can take that away, and a solo practice has nobody to notice that clients are sitting on a video link alone.

A simple stand-in plan has four parts:

1. Name one person. A partner, a friend you trust or a fellow coach. Ask them first, and tell them what the job is: send one message, and nothing else.
2. Give them the minimum. Where to find today's and this week's session list, and how to reach those clients. They do not need notes, goals or anything clients told you in confidence. Fewer details shared means less of a privacy problem.
3. Write their message in advance. Keep a saved note they can copy word for word, so they never have to improvise about your health or your clients.
4. Tell clients the plan exists. One sentence in your agreement or welcome pack: "If I'm suddenly unable to reach you myself, a named colleague may contact you only to move our session." Then a message from a stranger does not look like a scam or a breach.

Hello, I'm writing on behalf of [coach's name], who is unwell and unable to work today. Your session at [time] won't go ahead. You won't lose the session or any payment, and [coach's name] will be in touch to rebook as soon as they are able. Please reply here only if you need anything urgently; I'm not able to discuss your coaching.

Keep the stand-in's role that narrow. They should not rebook, refund or answer questions about the coaching. Those decisions wait for you, or for the long-absence options above once you know how long you will be out. If you are reviewing what client data you keep and who can see it, the guide to client record retention and deletion is a useful companion.

What happens to the money when you cancel?

The client should not pay for a session they did not get because you were ill. That principle is simple; applying it depends on how they paid.

Write the change down where you will see it at renewal time. A client who notices that their package "expired" a week early, after you cancelled a session, will remember it longer than the illness. The guide to tracking session credits and invoices covers the record-keeping side; managing overages in retainers covers the reverse case.

For tax and accounting treatment of refunds and credits, check with an accountant where you live; it varies and this guide does not cover it.

What do the rules say about a coach cancelling?

In most places, no rule names "coach cancels because of illness". What applies is ordinary contract and consumer law: what you promised, how you described the service, and what remedies the client has if you do not deliver. Your own agreement and your marketing are the first things anyone will look at.

The clearest public example is in the UK, where the Consumer Rights Act 2015 sets default rules for services sold to consumers. As listed in November 2026 on legislation.gov.uk:

• What you say is binding. Section 50 treats anything said or written to the consumer about the trader or the service as a term of the contract, where the consumer takes it into account. If your sales page says "every missed session is made up within two weeks", that is a promise you can be held to.
• Reasonable time. Under section 52, where the contract does not fix when the service will be performed, it is treated as including a term that the trader must perform it within a reasonable time, and what is reasonable is "a question of fact". A rescheduled session that drifts for months is hard to defend.
• Which remedy applies. Section 54 sorts the remedies. If the service does not conform to the contract (for example, it was not performed with reasonable care and skill), the consumer can ask for repeat performance or a price reduction. If the trader breaks the reasonable-time term in section 52, the statutory remedy is a price reduction. Section 54 also keeps other remedies open, including recovering money paid for something the consumer never received.
• Repeat performance. Section 55 gives the consumer a right to require the trader to perform the service again where needed to bring it into line with the contract, within a reasonable time, without significant inconvenience to the consumer, and at the trader's cost.
• Price reduction. Section 56 gives a right to a price reduction by an appropriate amount, including a refund of anything paid above the reduced price, in the circumstances the Act sets out.

Read as a coach, three lessons fall out of this. If your contract does not fix a date for each session, a prompt rebook keeps you well inside the reasonable-time term, and the client loses nothing. A session you push through half-present is the riskier choice, because a badly delivered session is exactly what the repeat-performance and price-reduction rights are for. And if a rebook never happens, the client paid for something they did not get, so refund it. This is a summary of the statute, not legal advice, and the Act has conditions and exceptions this summary does not cover.

Two more practical points from US federal guidance:

• Cancellation messages are not marketing emails. The FTC's CAN-SPAM compliance guide treats purely transactional or relationship messages as exempt from most of the Act's provisions. A note moving a client's session fits that description. Keep it that way: a cancellation message is not the place to promote a new offer.
• Insurance for your own illness is a separate question. The SBA's list of common business insurance covers general and professional liability, property, home-based business insurance and a business owner's policy; the disability insurance it mentions is in the context of businesses with employees. Cover for your own lost income while you are ill is a separate, personal product (often sold as individual disability or income protection insurance), so talk to a licensed insurance broker if a long absence would hurt your finances.

If you hold or are working toward an ICF credential, it is also worth rereading the ICF Code of Ethics with your own absences in mind, especially the parts on coaching agreements and your responsibilities to clients. An agreement you wrote binds you as much as it binds them.

What should your cancellation policy say about you cancelling?

It should say what the client can expect from you, as plainly as it says what you expect from them. Most new coaches write a policy that only covers client no-shows and late cancellations. Adding a short coach-side clause makes the policy feel fair and saves you from improvising when you are ill.

A clause you can adapt:

If I need to cancel. Occasionally I may need to cancel or move a session because of illness or an emergency. When that happens I will tell you as early as I can, by message and email, and offer at least two alternative times within the following 10 days. A session I cancel never counts against your package, and your package or program end date will be extended by the time lost. If we cannot find a new time that works for you, I will refund that session in full. If I expect to be unavailable for more than two weeks, I will pause any recurring billing and offer you the choice to pause, to be introduced to another coach, or to receive a refund for the unused part of your engagement.

Options to choose between when you write your own:

Whatever you choose, put it in your coaching agreement, not only on a web page, and make sure your sales pages do not promise more than the agreement does. If you are revisiting other terms at the same time, the guide to resetting a coaching agreement shows how to introduce changes to existing clients without drama. Have a local lawyer review the final wording.

A fictional example: one coach, one stomach bug, eleven clients

This example is fictional; the coach, clients and figures are invented to show the steps.

Dana is a career coach in her second year, with eleven one-to-one clients (eight on six-session packages, three on a monthly retainer) and a 12-week group program with nine participants. She wakes at 5:30 on a Tuesday with a stomach bug. Her diary has three calls today (09:00, 12:30 and 16:00), two on Wednesday, two on Thursday and Thursday evening's group call. She expects to be out until Friday.

By 6:15 she has done the following:

1. Blocked Tuesday to Thursday in her calendar so nobody books into it.
2. Messaged the 09:00 client through the app they both use, with the same-day script, two new times and 15 extra minutes on the rebooked call. She also texted, because the session was under three hours away.
3. Messaged the 12:30 and 16:00 clients the same way, without the text, since they had more notice.
4. Sent Wednesday's and Thursday's clients a one-week message with new times for the following week.
5. Posted in the group program space that Thursday's call moves to the following Monday, with this week's exercise attached and a note that it would be recorded.
6. Noted in each affected package client's record that their expiry moved by one week, and rebooked the affected retainer clients within the same month so nobody's invoice needed changing.

By 7:00 she is back in bed. By lunchtime five of the seven clients she messaged have rebooked. On Wednesday afternoon she sends a one-line check to the two who had not answered. Nobody loses a session, nobody pays for time they did not get, and when her retainer clients come up for renewal a month later, nobody raises the missed week. One of them mentions how quickly she had sorted it out.

The total admin time was about 45 minutes. Without templates and an accurate calendar, it would have been the whole morning.

How do you set this up in Coachful before you ever need it?

Set it up on a healthy day, so that a sick day is ten minutes of messages rather than an hour of admin. Coachful is a coaching platform that puts booking, payments, contracts, programs, messaging and email under one login for the coach and one branded app for the client. It is built for coaches who deliver programs as well as sessions, and for solo coaches growing into a small team.

The parts that matter for sick days:

• A booking page you can trust. Booking pages use your availability rules, buffers and minimum notice, with two-way sync to Google, Apple/iCloud and Outlook calendars. Block the days you are ill in the calendar you already use, and your booking link stays honest when you paste it into a cancellation message. More on this in the scheduling and reminders guide and on the scheduling software page.
• Reminders that do not contradict you. Email reminders, plus SMS 24 hours before and WhatsApp one hour before once messaging is enabled. When you move a session, check the reminders follow the new time so the client does not get a nudge for a call that is not happening.
• Session credits and payments in one place. Paid sessions and session credits are part of booking, payments and sessions show on the client's record, and payments run through your own Stripe Connect or Razorpay account, so a refund for a session you could not rebook is issued from the same place the client paid. Note the package extension on the client record so it is there at renewal time.
• Your policy in the agreement. Coaching agreements with e-signature go out before the first call and are stored on the client record, so the coach-side cancellation clause is signed, not buried. See coaching contracts.
• Messages where clients actually are. Direct messages in the client's branded app, including voice notes, plus an email inbox, so the same-day script reaches people in the place they read.
• Programs that keep going without you. Multi-week programs with daily tasks, habits and morning and evening check-ins continue while you rest, and you can read the check-ins when you are back.

The chat view above is what the client sees on their phone: the conversation sits next to everything else in their program, so a cancellation message does not get lost in a crowded inbox.

The week view makes the "clear the whole week" step faster: you can see every 1:1, group call and discovery call you need to message in one screen. This short walkthrough shows scheduling, session types and availability:

For longer absences, coaching flows give clients a structured written check-in to complete each day or week, and Michelle, the built-in AI assistant, can draft the fortnightly update email from your practice data for you to review and send.

What Coachful does not do: it is not HIPAA-certified and is not for clinical record-keeping, it does not take PayPal, and there is no permanent free plan. Current plans: Lite: $29/month for up to 5 clients; Solo: $49/month for up to 20 clients; Pro: $99/month with unlimited clients; Studio: $199/month with unlimited clients. You can start with a free trial; if you are new to coaching, the page for new coaches shows what a first setup looks like.

Why Coachful stands out: a free white-glove service. From Create, choose "We'll build it for you · FREE" and describe what you want: for example, a coaching agreement form with your cancellation policy, a welcome email sequence that explains how rescheduling works, or a written check-in flow clients can use when a session moves. The Coachful team builds it inside your account, usually within about 24 hours. Nothing gets invented: no fake credentials, testimonials or prices, and gaps are left for you to fill. It does not include recording videos, logo design or ongoing marketing. Read more about the free white-glove service.

What mistakes do coaches make when they cancel sick?

Most of them come from waiting too long, saying too much or forgetting the follow-through.

• Waiting to see how you feel. The client loses notice with every hour you deliberate. If you are genuinely unsure the evening before, send the choice message so they can plan either way.
• Over-explaining your symptoms. "I'm unwell" is enough. Detail shifts the conversation to your health and can make clients feel they need to look after you.
• Apologising five times. One sincere apology reads as professional; five read as anxious and make the client manage your feelings.
• "Let me know when works for you." This hands the scheduling job to the client. Offer specific times or an accurate booking link.
• Coaching half-present. A session where you are fighting a headache is not a kept promise. It is a used-up session the client did not really get.
• Letting the package clock run. If the session you cancelled quietly shortens their engagement, you have charged them for your sick day.
• Billing through a long absence. Pause recurring payments first, then talk about options.
• Silence after the cancellation. A rebook that is never confirmed, or a long absence with no updates, does more damage than the original cancellation. Clients who go quiet after a disruption are worth watching; see spotting at-risk clients.
• Forgetting prospects. A discovery call you cancel without rebooking is a client you probably will not get.
• A policy that only binds the client. If your agreement has detailed late-cancellation fees for clients and nothing about you, add the coach-side clause above.

One last habit worth building: after any sick-day cancellation, spend five minutes noting what slowed you down. Missing templates, an out-of-date calendar or clients you could not reach are all fixable before next time. If between-session messaging caused confusion, the guide on between-session support boundaries helps you set clearer expectations.

Frequently asked questions

How much notice should a coach give when cancelling for illness?

As much as you can, and the same or more than you ask of clients. If your policy asks clients for 24 hours, aim to cancel at least the evening before when you can see illness coming. For sudden illness, message the moment you know and confirm through a second channel if the session is within a few hours.

Should I tell the client what illness I have?

No. "I'm unwell" or "I've picked up a bug" is enough. The one exception is in-person work where the client may have been exposed: then a brief note that you are unwell and moving the session online or later is the considerate version, without medical detail.

Do I have to refund a session I cancelled?

The fair default is to rebook at no cost, and to refund if a new time does not work for the client. In the UK, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 includes rights to repeat performance and price reduction for services that do not conform to the contract. Rules elsewhere vary, so check your agreement and a local attorney for disputes.

Can I replace a cancelled session with a written one?

Yes, if the client agrees and the work suits it, such as progress reviews or structured preparation for an event. Make it optional and say clearly whether it replaces the live session or is a bonus. Avoid written swaps for first sessions or emotionally heavy topics.

What if I keep getting ill and cancelling often?

Then the issue is capacity, not messaging. Reduce your client load, build buffer days into your week, and consider moving some clients to program-based coaching that relies less on fixed live calls. Talk to your doctor about your health, and be honest with clients if your availability needs to change.

Should I charge a late-cancellation fee to clients if I cancel sometimes too?

You can, as long as your policy treats your own cancellations at least as generously as theirs. A two-sided policy, where you commit to notice, rebooking and refunds for your cancellations, makes a client-side fee easier to accept and enforce.

How do I cancel a group coaching session when I'm sick?

Message every participant directly, not only in a group post, with a new date, a recording plan for those who cannot attend and a refund route for anyone who bought the session on its own. If you have a co-facilitator who knows the material, a handover is often the least disruptive option.

What should I do with clients during a long illness?

Pause recurring billing immediately, then offer each client a written choice: pause the engagement, continue in a lighter format, be referred to a trusted coach, or take a prorated refund. Send short updates on a schedule you can keep so nobody is left guessing.

What is Coachful's free white-glove service?

It is a build service included on every Coachful plan. You describe what you want (a website, a funnel, a program, a form, an email sequence and more), attach up to 8 links and 10 files, and the Coachful team builds it inside your account, usually within about 24 hours. It does not include recording videos, logo design, ad management or ongoing marketing.

Is Coachful suitable for coaches who handle health information?

Coachful is not HIPAA-certified and does not sign a BAA, so it is not for clinical record-keeping or insurance billing. Health and wellness coaches who coach, rather than treat, use it for programs, check-ins and messaging, and keep any clinical records in a clinical system.