HELP!

What do I do?
I booked the PhotoVideo Network last week and now I've heard NOTHING but horror stories about them!
I don't know what I can do, and I cannot afford to lose my deposit. On the bottom of the contract it says I have three days to rescind the agreement by certified mail. Today is day 4. I just left them a message and I am waiting for someone to get back to me. Do I stop payment on my check? What do I do to get out of my contract? HELP!

Greetings,

The three-day limit is a requirement of New York State law for many kinds of larger contracts (such as Health Club contracts).

In my opinion it would be very good business of them to honor your desire to jump ship and refund your deposit, even if your three days' rethinking time are over. I would definitely get someone on the phone or visit the office and politely explain that you've changed your mind, and asking for your check back.

If your three days to reconsider are truly passed, stopping payment on the check may not work. For one thing, if it's a local check on a local bank to a local firm which also has a local bank, it may have cleared already. If it's a check drawn on a bank in another state, stopping payment might work.

I did a quick search of the business. The homemade website seems odd to me for folks in the photography trade -- that's like musicians not having music clips or a demo CD available -- but I noticed that they had many letters from happy clients that struck me as authentic and reassuring.

So, if you do find you can't undo this commitment without losing money you can't afford to lose, you might want to call and perhaps even send them a polite letter describing in detail the complaints you have heard. Tell them that you feel worried, and ask them to be extra vigilant. If there were totally wacky and scary you wouldn't have booked them in the first place, right?

I hope it works out!

My 2 1/2 cents!
--Karla.