Victims of Modeling Scams

If you feel you are the victim of a modeling scam, the first thing you should try to do is deal directly with the person responsible, or a leader of the company.

If you paid for modeling photos, for example, but you found the quality unacceptable, you may want to ask for a second opinion from a professional photographer, ask for a refund, or demand another photo shoot.

At the same time, conduct your own research online, searching for consumer complaints in public forums, and review the files of the Better Business Bureau, to see if what you experienced is similar to a pattern of abuse, and what many people call a modeling scam.

If all reasonable efforts to get what you paid for are resisted or ignored, or you get the run around, there are other options.

SafetyAlerts.com offers the following advice for anyone in the United States who has been the victim of fraud, including modeling scams:

You can file a complaint with the FTC by contacting the Consumer Response Center:

 

Tel: 202-FTC-HELP (382-4357)
TDD: 202-326-2502

 

Consumer Response Center
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20580

 

online complaint form

 

Although the Commission cannot resolve individual problems for consumers, it can act against a company if it sees a pattern of possible law violations.

The FTC took action against Miss Cleo, the "psychic," after it received many complaints. The Miami Herald reported: "The agency's director of consumer protection, Howard Beales, said the FTC acted after getting more than 2,000 complaints."

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is a U.S. government organization which has already dealt with modeling scams before (example), and it has already dealt with two of the three alleged principals of one modeling company that is in business today. But they must receive your complaints.

Filing a complaint with the FTC is as important or more important than filing complaints with the Better Business Bureau. The BBB offers a valuable service to consumers, but it does not have federal authority, it is not run by the government.

The BBB can help people from being scammed if they check their database, but it cannot shut down the company. The FTC can help people from being scammed by taking legal action (example), which results in the company ceasing to do business.

The best thing to do if you were the victim of a modeling scam is to file three complaints, first with the FTC, then the BBB, and finally the Attorney General.

Contact the Office of the Attorney General in your state, or the state where the fraud took place.

In Florida: http://legal1.firn.edu/direct.nsf

Don't let companies off the hook. Your complaint could get you your money back and protect others from being scammed. There is strength in numbers. The more complaints the Attorney General receives, the greater the chances of shutting down the fraud permanently.

To find the website address and contact information (email address, mail address, and telephone number) of the Office of the Attorney General in your state, use the Directory for Prosecuting Attorneys. It lists the Office of the Attorney General at the top of each list for every state.

Different states offer different ways of filing complaints. Missouri, for example, has a Consumer Complaint Form you can print out and fill out offline. The State of California has an online form you can fill out and send to file a complaint with the Attorney General's Public Inquiry Unit.

Find the link for your state with the instructions. The link will say something like Crime Victim Services or Complaint Form.

If the right link is not obvious, use the contact information or telephone number on the website to find it. Usually the contact information of the Office of the Attorney General has the mail address, email address, and the telephone number.

If you want to write in more detail (you need more space than what is provided in the online form), get the snail mail address, and then send the Prosecutor your full and detailed account of how you were scammed.

If you have any questions be sure to ask. They are there to help, it's their job, and they are on your side.

Consult The Media

The media of course has no legal authority, but victims of modeling fraud should consider contacting the media, because the pressure it brings can result in refunds, or even a decision for legal action. News reports many times bring victims out of the woodwork, and this can lead to class-action lawsuits.

There are special investigations conducted by nationally famous journalists like Arnold Diaz of ABC News. But local reporters also research consumer protection issues for newspaper articles and tv reports. TV stations in some large cities broadcast consumer reports regularly as a special feature of the evening news.

Even though nationally televised programs like 20/20 reach the largest possible viewing audience, especially when the broadcast is during prime time, local reporters can write the best reports. Some of the longest reports, deepest research, and best writing on one modeling scam was conducted by small newspapers.

If you are the victim of a modeling scam, and you think others are being exposed to the same scam, it might not be difficult to bend the ear of a local reporter. In any case, you will not know until you call or write to say how you were scammed.

It is especially important to contact the media when they broadcast or published the advertisement of the business you believe is a scam. They may well have a disclaimer which prevents them from legal responsibility, but your complaint could deter or convince them to stop running the ads in the future.

Use The Internet

Besides featured consumer reports by the local media, victims of modeling scams can also tell their story on the internet.

In online forums aspiring models ask about certain modeling scouting companies or modeling agencies. There are often general questions about specific agencies. They want to hear first-hand experience, and they would appreciate it if you would tell your story.

It can be easy enough to find the forums using search engines. Just type in the name of the company that scammed you, forum, experience, complaint, or other relevant keywords that will take you to pages where you can recount your experience to warn others of the scam.

Finally, you can send your story to modelingscams.com. If it is added to the letters already posted, it is going to show up in search engines when other aspiring models and their parents go online to try and learn more about the company.