The Stage

Rogue talent agencies threatened with court action

Published Wednesday 5 January 2011 at 16:11 by Matthew Hemley

Talent agencies that made “empty promises” about the nature of the services they offer are being threatened with court action if they fail to comply with conditions imposed by the Office of Fair Trading.

The OFT launched an inquiry at the beginning of 2009 into the activities of 1st Class Trading Limited, Model Factor LLP, Runway Models Limited, Model Model and individuals connected to the businesses, following a number of complaints about the companies and what they appeared to offer people who responded to adverts they placed in newspapers.

Applicants who attended the firms’ auditions in hotels across the UK after responding to the adverts complained they had paid more than £200 for photos and a CV. In some cases they were contacted subsequently by another agency and asked to pay another charge, yet in most cases no work ever materialised.

Following its investigation, the OFT found that misleading statements were made about people’s chances of securing work, as well as the “nature of that work and the amount of remuneration they would receive”.

While 1st Class Trading and Model Factor dissolved during the investigation, the OFT has secured undertakings from Runway Models, Model Model and three individuals – Erik Irving, Karel Odvarka and Kyal Ferguson – to stop “practices that may mislead people into thinking they are experienced agencies able to secure paid work in the modelling and entertainment industry”.

The undertakings are legally binding and oblige the firms and individuals not to mislead people. Failure to comply could see the OFT taking immediate court action against them.

OFT consumer group senior director Heather Clayton said: “Many of the victims in this case were children and young people looking to forge a career as a model or actor. The victims and their parents, who often helped them pay the fees, had no previous experience of the entertainment sector so didn’t realise the traders were making money through empty promises.”

The OFT also confirmed that information gathered from its investigation would be passed on to Employment Agency Standards, which is the division of the Depart­ment for Business, Innovation and Skills that investigates complaints against agents, particularly relating to the charging of up-front fees.

A spokesman for BIS said: “EAS will continue to monitor the activities of the companies and individuals involved to ensure that they comply with the conduct regulations relating to the entertainment and modelling sectors.”

In October, new laws were passed making it illegal for an agency to charge any fees upfront to include a model’s details in a directory or publication.

Ongoing concerns about the abuse of these laws have prompted BECTU and Equity to unite in urging the government to reinstate agency licensing, which both unions claim will be the only way to tackle rogue agents.