Models Direct-Scammers?

[chocolatte]

I'm wondering if anyone has heard of or used Models Direct?

I paid £198 for my son to be on their books and he didn't get one booking despite numerous emails and phone calls from me and the fact that we were willing to travel.

I joined them because my cousin had just joined, so together we waited and waited, but none of our children got work?

Anyone get work through them?

Take my word for it...My boy is gorgeous!

[mistie]

Hi Callyday,

H am sure that this company has been on watchdog in the past, with people just like yourself paying to get their child or themselves on their books. No bookings came forth.

Worth seeing if there is anything on the watchdog website.

Mistie

[chocolatte]

Thanks for that mistie, will have a look, I may take this further.

[spotnot]

My twins are both child models, but we were approached by the agency while walking through town. However, we checked them out thoroughly first and they took no money from us at all. They take a commission from any work they do. No reputable agency would take this amount of money from you. If you are still intent in getting your son into modellig, pm me and I'll see what I can do to help.

 

Spot

[chocolatte]

My twins are both child models, but we were approached by the agency while walking through town. However, we checked them out thoroughly first and they took no money from us at all. They take a commission from any work they do. No reputable agency would take this amount of money from you. If you are still intent in getting your son into modellig, pm me and I'll see what I can do to help.

 

Spot

Thanks for that spotnot, have sent you pm:)

[Bookworm]

Too late for you, sadly, but a reputable modelling company will never charge you for putting you on their books. They will also not charge you ahead, or only a nominal fee, for putting together a portfolio, instead will take it out of future earnings.

 

Sadly, a friend of mine didn't listen to me when I told her so, and got charged £250 for a "portfolio" for her daughter. The photos were so badly shot, frankly, a good amateur could have done better. And of course, no work ever appeared.

 

I would report those to your local Trading Standards, and see what's what.

[chocolatte]

Thanks Bookworm, I live in Scotland and they offered me to come and visit their offices in London, which I wasn't prepared to do after 2years of faulse promises, however, I am moving to Norfolk shortly after the summer and they may well get a surprise when William and I turn up on their doorstep.

[Movingon]

Cally - I would check the agreement you have with them (the one which prompted you to part company with 200 quid) and if it says they will find him modelling work and doesn't have any "exclusion clauses", I would write to them demanding your money returned as they have not fulfilled their side of the contract. Give them seven days, and then if they haven't sent it back send them an LBA for another 7 days and then take them to court.

 

If there are exclusion clauses post them here because we may be able to shoot them full of holes.

 

If there is no agreement in writing, what advertising literature did you respond to? That will form the basis of your agreement with them; look carefully for smallprint!! Either way let us know because we may be able to salvage something from this.

[chocolatte]

Right, I will go get it now and see, thanks Tom X

[chocolatte]

I have copied it and saved it in pdf, how do I add it here, it only allows url attatchments?

[Movingon]

You would have to put it up on some webspace... you can either use MySpace or some other hosting service, or you'll probably find you have some webspace with your ISP you can put it up to. OR you can copy'n'paste the text from the PDF and put it here... at least you could try to find the relevant bits and do that.

[chocolatte]

::::: Models Direct - Terms and Conditions :::::

 

This is from their website but is the same as mine.

They take the fee, send some crappy bumf and then ask you to register with World Stage, where there are more fees. I have yet to see William on their sites!

So despite numerous contact with them...

8/904 Paid via credit card fee of £128

11/9/04 phoned about a general query-no-one there

15/9/04 phoned re no certificate, said sending one

5/1/05 phoned regarding no work, was advised to update photos via email-which I did

11/2/05 Sent more updated photos via email, tried to phone but all lines busy. Eventually got through to Kelly Wallace and said that 'celeb kids' were looking at William, so I sent them an email with pics of Wiliam.

15/2/05 Sent more updated pics of William

21/2/05 Sent more updated pics

10/4/05 Sent more updated pics

11/4/05 Phoned, still no work, told me no updated pics. Sent more!

25/6/05 Sent more new pics

2/8/05 Phoned to see what was happening, they said William was being looked at by agent, what ever that means?

Fed up, heard nothing from them since last phone call

[JonCris]

callyday if you paid over £100 via credit card you can reclaim it from the card issuer for none performance of the contract using section 75 of the CCA1974

[Movingon]

...or if you want to sting the company involved (your CC issuer will not bother chasing them I wouldn't think for this amount - too costly) you could very definitely chase them for non-performance.

 

LMFAO!!! They put their conditions on a public website and one of the clauses in it, is that the terms are utterly confidential!!

[Movingon]

I'm not in a position to be authoritative on this; could someone who knows something about Employment Agency Law please look at this?

 

Basically the conditions say that they're operating as an Employment Agency and that the "Fee" is an administration fee covering the costs of running the website and that they do not under any circumstances charge for "Representation" (i.e. finding work for the model). Sounds like a load of rubbish to me because they state in the same terms that they use the website as the "main or sole" method of representing the Model.

 

Can anyone else help?

[chocolatte]

Thanks you guys, somehow I just knew you would see right through them, yes, it is amusing that their terms of contrct are sposed to be confidetial and they have printed them on their public website. And of course it's all a load of mumbo jumbo. I'm ringing them today to see if they remember us, even tho we are still within our 3 year representation 'contract'

I'll let you know what is said.

[Movingon]

To be honest I think it's gone beyond phone calls. I think you should be writing to them from now on; and not to ask them what's gone wrong but to demand your money back.

 

I bet if you went to their base and looked at "The full site" as per the terms and conditions your boy would be there - the question is, who do they publish that site to, how many potential clients are looking at your boy? I bet they say that that's confidential information and so on... and in reality I bet they don't have ANY potential clients regsitered on their site. At all.

 

In your case, it will be for them to demonstrate that they HAVE clients, that those clients are ACTIVELY using their website, and that they have deliberately overlooked your boy while browsing the site. These are the things that you should ask for in your letter. And yes, you should go to their base and look at "the full site" to make sure they have at least covered their end of the bargain and that you have made all efforts to resolve this outside court. While you're there you should ask these important questions (which they will not answer) and make notes ALL THE TIME.

 

Once you have loads of information, we should be looking to experts who can have a look at the "Employment Agency" side of the argument. However I have to say that while I have had my CV processed by a LARGE number of employment agencies, I have NEVER been charged a fee by them. They charge THE CLIENT for finding them a potential employee.

[chocolatte]

Phoned them and they said I needed to update his portfolio online, which as I remember I could never get into and I got fed up with it. So after a year of no work and no contact from them I gave up.

I did ask if there had been any interest from anyone and she said there had but wouldn't tell me who because I might phone them up asking why they didn't use Wiliam, surely I have the right to know why he wasn't chosen?

Anyway, sending letter asking to see his file. And I also have a complaint form to fill out online to Employment Agency Standards.

[chocolatte]

Just sent a fake request for models, see if Wiliam is pulled out of the hat, lol

[JonCris]

...or if you want to sting the company involved (your CC issuer will not bother chasing them I wouldn't think for this amount - too costly) no but if they get others reclaiming from them they will eventualy get the message & withdraw the facility you could very definitely chase them for non-performance.

 

LMFAO!!! They put their conditions on a public website and one of the clauses in it, is that the terms are utterly confidential!!

 

Apart from the fact that their confidentaily clause is a joke as they have breached the contract means that ALL of their T's & C's are invalidated

[bed32]

...or if you want to sting the company involved (your CC issuer will not bother chasing them I wouldn't think for this amount - too costly) you could very definitely chase them for non-performance.

 

LMFAO!!! They put their conditions on a public website and one of the clauses in it, is that the terms are utterly confidential!!

FWIW I think the responsibility with the Merchant Provider for the company rather than the CC issuer.

 

You claim of the CC issuer, the CC issuer claims from the merchant provider (if I've got that name correct) and they deal with the merchant.

[JonCris]

After 1st having no success you claim from the CCC

[chocolatte]

I don't know where to start with these people, they just keep fobbing me off saying that he has been put forward and that I need to update his photos, which I did for year and got fed up because I was under the impression by that point that their outfit was a bag of s**t.

So...do I write to them saying, Under the terms and conditions of our agreement you have failed,after 2years and 7months to ??????????? represent William positively, bla bla bla? Stuck here?

[chocolatte]

Sorry everyone for posting PM in here... Spotnot, your mailbox is full and I can't PM you until you empty it.

Regards

[JonCris]

cally don't be specific. Just say "As you have failed to fulfill your contract with me I demand a full refund within 14 days from the above date" etc after which time I will consider issuing legal proceedings for breach of contract by none performance"