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Contracts

Q: Student extras - oral contract, payment troubles

I saw an advert on my university drama notice board, advertising for film extras. I got a day's work as an extra and runner, with payment promised within three weeks. Weeks later I have not been paid, and they keep saying that I have to wait. What can I do, as I have no contract? Could my student union help?

A: The first thing I think you should do is try to find out whether there are any other students in the same position as yourself, so that you can co-ordinate your efforts to obtain payment. Certainly your student union may help in this respect, possibly by contacting students likely to have seen the advertisement concerned. The union might also be able to put pressure on the film producer concerned to pay up, particularly by threatening to notify all its members of the circumstances, which may affect both the reputation of the film producer and his ability to obtain the services of 'extras' in the same way in future.

You should look carefully at the advertisement (if it is still there or if you kept a copy) to see whether there is any indication as to who put it there, because some other student or intermediary, or even your own student union may have done so, in which case you may get some additional leverage by pursuing or threatening to pursue a claim against that party, as well as the film producer.

In the final analysis it would seem that you had a contract with the film producer to pay you for work which you carried out. I do not know why you should think otherwise, but perhaps you mean only that you do not have a written contract with the producer. An oral contract will suffice. You obviously turned up and did the work, and you say you were promised (presumably by the producer) payment for it, within a period of time which has already elapsed. You therefore have a good claim for breach of contract against the producer. It may well be that a formal letter demanding payment forthwith, and threatening to sue him in default will get the desired result. A solicitor's letter may be even more effective, and you may qualify for legal aid to cover this.

You will not be entitled to statutory interest on the debt prior to institution of proceeds because, although the money owed to you is a commercial debt, you would not be regarded as having done the work in the course of a business carried on by you. If, however, you do sue the producer for the debt you can claim interest from the date of issue of the claim at a reasonable rate and, although it is in the discretion of the court whether to award such interest, it is likely to do so unless there is good reason to the contrary.

You can sue for recovery of the debt in the small claims court which is a division of the county court. If you go to your local county court office they will provide you with the necessary forms and help you complete them.

Depending on the amount of money owed to you there may well be a small court fee payable which, however, you should be able to recover from the defendant. Once you get judgment the judgment debt will automatically carry statutory interest until paid. There are various methods of enforcing a judgment which lack of space precludes me from describing in detail.

However, film-making is a very expensive business and I doubt very much whether the producer would have embarked upon it unless he had sufficient funds, at least, to pay the comparatively small sums due to extras such as yourself. The threat of adverse publicity may be enough to get the desired result.

First published March 2001