‘Slap in the face’: Workers owed $18,000

Brides person been near “stressed” and scrambling to find a wedding lensman aft claims a institution became uncontactable, portion radical who worked for the concern are chasing unpaid invoices worthy thousands.

News.com.au broke the communicative astir a radical of more than 50 brides that person banded together aft discovering they were each chasing photos oregon videos months aft their weddings from Andres & Co.

Photographers and videographers who worked arsenic subcontractors for Andres & Co person revealed their progressively hopeless attempts to get the wealth owed to them and the reasons wherefore they were told the concern faced troubles.

Couples who booked Andres & Co past twelvemonth person besides been near scrambling to find a replacement photographer.

Shannon Ford and Jared Keens are acceptable to get joined successful conscionable 3 days, yet person been forced to fork retired an other $4000 to unafraid a lensman for 1 of the biggest days of their lives.

In August, Ms Ford was alarmed erstwhile her wedding celebrant got successful interaction and said she indispensable beryllium “panicking” arsenic determination had been antagonistic online feedback regarding Andres & Co.

But the 31-year-old had nary thought and said she felt sick aft she had utilized her taxation instrumentality to wage disconnected Andres & Co’s measure successful afloat conscionable 3 weeks earlier. The mates had paid $2250 to the institution arsenic portion of a peculiar deal.

Ms Ford said she emailed requesting a refund from Andres & Co, though it meant losing a $672 deposit, and went to bonzer lengths to get successful interaction with the institution for 2 weeks.

She believed the institution was “ignoring” her arsenic different brides she was successful interaction with had heard from Andres & Co.

“I sent emails, I got Jared to telephone and unreal to beryllium an funny customer. It was conscionable vigor silence,” she told news.com.au.

“I tried calling their telephone enactment it was disconnected, calling their mobile, texting, commenting connected Instagram and Facebook. All the portion I was receiving their automated selling emails which I felt was a existent slap successful the face.

“I booked a telephone connected their website and they failed to amusement up and past I booked each azygous telephone slot disposable for the adjacent 2 months.”

Finally connected 19 August, she heard from Andres & Co reassuring her they were “fully operational” and rumours they were going nether were not true.

Ms Ford inactive requested a refund of $1500 but nary wealth has been returned and she hasn’t heard from the institution contempt much attempts to interaction them.

“We person scrambled to find a past infinitesimal lensman but that’s an other $4000 we didn’t fund for,” she said.

“I person been required to instrumentality connected further connected telephone shifts arsenic a infirmary societal idiosyncratic – having worked 18 hr shifts lately to recuperate finances.

“I consciousness for radical who aren’t successful fiscal positions to wage different $4000. We enactment truly hard for our money, my spouse and I, but its had a immense strain connected us, successful presumption of however we are looking astatine our spending connected our honeymoon and our mortgage. It’s 1 of the happiest days of your beingness and I’ve been feeling sick implicit it for the past six weeks.”

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Ms Ford said the mates had lodged a chargeback petition with their slope and person luckily recovered a caller photographer.

The Central Coast pistillate added it has been disappointing seeing the institution seemingly trying to negociate the fallout by hiding antagonistic comments connected societal media and deleting its concern illustration which would region captious Google reviews.

“I had seen the reviews connected Google and wrong a week they were gone and past caller leafage has gone up and they had gone again,” she added.

Another bride, who did not privation to beryllium identified, said she had enactment a deposit down of $1500 for her December wedding. She was warned astir the troubles brewing from her marque up artist.

But she besides could not get successful interaction with Andres & Co, with emails bouncing backmost and telephone calls going consecutive to voicemail. The 28-year-old has besides lodged a quality with her bank.

But it’s not conscionable brides that person been impacted.

In a substance connection from the manager of Andres & Co to 1 photographer, helium admits its been a “tough past six months and I wholly deterioration it connected my sleeve that I’ve upset people”.

He adds helium “will bash perfectly everything successful my powerfulness to get backmost successful a position” wherever helium has moved past this.

But present Andres & Co subcontractors are speaking retired too.

Paul Mandap is portion of a squad of astir 10 photographers and videographers who worked for Andres & Co for a fig of years.

But he’s present successful the “horrible” concern of being owed $18,000 successful unpaid invoices, helium claimed.

The 32-year-old said things started to spell incorrect with Andres & Co successful September past twelvemonth erstwhile payments were late. He said helium hasn’t been paid for invoices from December onwards.

Then successful January, brides started to scope retired to the subcontractors astir their photos and videos, Mr Mandap claimed.

The squad of subcontractors organised a situation telephone with Andres & Co’s proprietor successful February.

“He told america the reasons wherefore helium couldn’t wage america and wherefore helium was having a hard clip paying america present was helium has ATO repayments and helium has been funnelling each the wealth he’s been making to wage taxes arsenic helium made a mistake doing it each himself,” helium said.

“I was knowing but I besides didn’t recognize wherefore successful December 2023 helium went to the US for a vacation for a fewer weeks.”

The Sydneysider said immoderate of the subcontractors near but others similar him wanted to assistance and springiness the proprietor a “second chance” with up to 50 weddings scheduled successful betwixt January and April this year.

“I did my past wedding connected April 20 arsenic helium owed maine implicit $18,000 and determination has been couples contacting maine and the squad astir their photos and videos and wherefore hasn’t it been delivered,” helium added.

“It’s a spot concerning and that’s wherefore I stopped successful April. I was meant to beryllium astatine a wedding successful May and I said I couldn’t marque it and I didn’t nonstop the files for the past wedding … This triggered (the owner) to interaction maine and helium thought helium was going to suffer me. He called maine astir the mediate of May and helium told maine had paid an invoice of $4000.

“I told him I couldn’t enactment for him anymore arsenic it was each adding up. The wealth paid for was for wealth to November to aboriginal December 2023, truthful inactive person invoices from December to April this year.”

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He added it was “a batch of money” to beryllium owed and it was “really devastating”

He besides noted that Andres & Co had been deleting their antagonistic Google reviews and astatine 1 signifier they changed the institution sanction to Sydney Photography and Videography.

Shenae Taiarol is different lensman who worked arsenic a subcontractor for Andres & Co. She said she is owed $8000 by the company.

The 25-year-old said galore of the subcontractors, including her, weren’t paid from October past year.

“In February this twelvemonth we did a Zoom telephone with (the owner) to find retired what is happening. He explained helium was successful occupation with the taxation section owed to indebtedness but helium promised america the satellite and that everything would get fixed and beryllium paid and nary of america has seen a outgo since that chat,” she told news.com.au.

“In the meantime, we were each getting messages from our couples we were shooting that their photos oregon videos were delayed. We had immoderate couples messaging that immoderate important pictures were missing from their assemblage truthful I was editing photos that I was technically not getting paid for.

“People were reaching retired asking if had accusation but we are fundamentally successful the aforesaid presumption arsenic they stopped talking to america and stopped communicating with us.”

Ms Taiarol said it was fortunate she had savings to autumn backmost connected but described the concern arsenic “frustrating”.

“I’m rather aggravated to beryllium honorable conscionable astatine the full thing. We merit that money, we worked hard and did each those hours, it’s rather disappointing,” she said.

“A wedding time is the astir blessed and memorable clip of your beingness and we don’t privation anyone other to spell done this.”

One subcontractor from the Philippines told news.com.au that helium was owed astir $2600 for 8 projects.

News.com.au has approached Andres & Co for comment.

NSW Fair Trading confirmed determination had been 46 complaints astir Andres & Co since October 2023.

It said issues raised by consumers included paying for photography and video services for their wedding but aft paying, the concern becomes non-responsive.

“Others accidental the concern attended their wedding but person not supplied each of the merchandise paid for,” a spokesperson said.

“NSW Fair Trading has attempted to interaction the concern to resoluteness these issues, but the concern has not responded. As a result, NSW Fair Trading is presently investigating Andres & Co. As the substance is ongoing, nary further remark tin beryllium made.”

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