Last year I recieved a flyer from Photovideo Network in the mail. I checked out their website and called for an appointment. They insisted that both me and my fiance be present for the meeting. The sales rep was nice but insisted that we pay a $1,300 non-refundable deposit upfront. We agreed since our wedding was getting close and we didn't have time to look for another photographer.
Unfortunately, Hurricane Wilma came and cancelled our wedding for us. The day after the hurricane we received a voice message from our photographer named "Shelby" stating that she could not make it to our wedding. When I finally got a new date to reschedule my wedding from the Holiday Inn, I called Photovideo Network and spoke to a Jim Peters, Gen. Mgr. He was very rude and said point blank that we never informed them in writing that our wedding was cancelled and they were under no obligation to reschedule a photographer for us or to refund our deposit!
I was mortified. I said you mean you are going to keep our money and NOT reschedule our wedding?!! He said per our contract all cancellations have to be in writing and that I should have faxed him a letter!!! I said exactly how was I supposed to fax you a letter when nobody in the whole South Fla area had power and the phone lines were down. I demanded that they honor our contract and in a very nasty tone of voice he said "PUT IT IN WRITING!" and then ended the conversation with me. I immediately faxed him a letter with our new wedding date and the following week I received a nasty invoice demanding an additional deposit was due immediately in the amount of $230. They also wanted me to mark and sign a statement on the invoice that said that I would never attempt to dispute the charge with the credit card company!
I immediately called and spoke again the JIM PETERS, and again he was rude and said it was my fault that I scheduled my wedding during hurricane season and I owed the money regardless even if no pictures been taken yet. I told him that his sales rep told us that no additional deposit would be due until after the wedding at the time of picture selection. He wanted to end the call so he told me that I didn't have to pay until after the wedding.
For the next several weeks I continued to receive nasty invoices which reminded me of a collection agency. One invoice stated that they were going to start billing me $15 a day in penalties until the rest of the money was paid even though my wedding stil had not taken place and they had done nothing for me whatsoever! Again, I called and was put on with Jim Peters and again he was rude. I reiterated what I said in the last phone call and of course he wanted to end the call so he told me once again that I didn't have to pay until after the wedding.
About 10 days prior to the wedding, Jim Peters called my cell phone and told me that since I had not paid the money they had been billing me for, they were NOT going to send a photographer to my wedding unless I paid them immediately. He also informed me for the first time that I was being charged a $150 rescheduling fee for having to reschedule my wedding. I asked him if the concept of being nice to a bride whose wedding was cancelled due to a natural disaster was a foreign concept to him.By this time I was in tears.
The next day I had to write a certified, nasty letter to them stating that I would take every legal recouse available to me if my wedding was ruined by their actions and then he finally agreed to send the photographer to the wedding. On the wedding day, the photographer showed up and seemed to be nice. I don't know what, if any, pictures he actually took because right after the wedding my husband and I moved to another state and now Jim Peters will not allow my sister or mother to view the pictures for me unless we send him full payment in advance in the form of a money order or cashier's check.
I'm going to continue to fight this fight. This company should be put out of business and Jim Peters should be pubically embarrassed for his disgusting treatment of brides and grooms to be.
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