:00:12. > :00:19.You are watching x-ray. If you have been ripped off or that deal turns
:00:20. > :00:29.out to be dodgy we will battle it out on your behalf. You never check
:00:30. > :00:33.those vehicles when you solve them. We are here to fight your corner. --
:00:34. > :00:39.when you sold them. Tonight - we investigate
:00:40. > :00:42.the modelling agency cashing We decided to go with it,
:00:43. > :00:49.pay ?600 there and then. She's going to be Marks
:00:50. > :00:51.and Spencers child. The would-be managers,
:00:52. > :00:55.whose careers in the beautiful game The teams that I had were crumbling
:00:56. > :01:02.away and I didn't have any new teams coming in,
:01:03. > :01:04.and it all just... And I'll be finding out
:01:05. > :01:11.about the celebrity fitness range which is losing people pounds
:01:12. > :01:16.in ways they didn't expect. First tonight, if an agency
:01:17. > :01:20.said your child had what it takes to be the next top model,
:01:21. > :01:23.you could be tempted But this story may
:01:24. > :01:27.make you think twice. But we're shining a spotlight on a
:01:28. > :01:41.scam modelling agency which does. It's one that focuses on children -
:01:42. > :01:45.by telling proud parents their little ones could make it big
:01:46. > :01:48.in the modelling industry. But their dreams turn out
:01:49. > :01:56.to be a flash in the pan. We all like to think our children
:01:57. > :01:59.have that special something, and grandmother Karen Hill
:02:00. > :02:03.from Ebbw Vale felt two-year-old Lilly-Rae was a natural
:02:04. > :02:14.in front of the camera. She was drawn to an ad on Facebook,
:02:15. > :02:16.posted by "Model Agency." So we sent a photograph
:02:17. > :02:19.and they came back to us straight away very interested,
:02:20. > :02:21.so they booked an appointment Lilly-Rae was invited
:02:22. > :02:24.to a photoshoot in Bristol, The family were surprised
:02:25. > :02:28.to discover that the glamorous location for their photo shoot
:02:29. > :02:33.was here - a back street not far But they found many
:02:34. > :02:39.other hopeful parents She posed, run around,
:02:40. > :02:52.she was a star. After the shoot, Lilly-Rae's family
:02:53. > :02:54.say a member of staff She said, "We're very pleased
:02:55. > :03:01.to tell you we've got a number of companies interested in taking
:03:02. > :03:03.Lilly-Rae forward. They were told that
:03:04. > :03:14.to join the agency, Lilly-Rae would need a VERY
:03:15. > :03:16.pricey portfolio. So we thought, first
:03:17. > :03:23.of all, that's a lot. The price was then knocked down
:03:24. > :03:26.to ?600, and they were assured that "talented" Lilly-Rae would quickly
:03:27. > :03:31.earn that back as a model. So we decided to pay
:03:32. > :03:33.the ?600 there and then. She's going to be Marks
:03:34. > :03:35.and Spencers' child. Five months earlier,
:03:36. > :03:43.Model Agency had also invited Sally Bellamy and four-year-old son
:03:44. > :03:48.Harry to a free photo shoot Harry loved being in
:03:49. > :03:54.front of the camera. Sally was also told the same story
:03:55. > :04:01.by one of the studio staff. He said, "Well done,
:04:02. > :04:05.you've been selected. "You're going to have lots and lots
:04:06. > :04:08.of clients are going to want "Harry as the face
:04:09. > :04:11.of their product." He mentioned Next, he
:04:12. > :04:15.mentioned Gap. the portfolio was even
:04:16. > :04:21.pricier - ?2000. Sally declined, but the
:04:22. > :04:24.sales pitch continued. "I'm going to do this special deal
:04:25. > :04:27.with you that I don't "I'll give you them for ?100,
:04:28. > :04:41.but if you don't want it we'll just "click, we'll delete them
:04:42. > :04:43.and it'll all be gone!" A clever tactic -
:04:44. > :04:45.and Sally fell for it. But when her credit card bill
:04:46. > :04:52.arrived, she was in for a shock. I saw a company called
:04:53. > :04:55.FireFly Create Limited and that's I thought, well, where has
:04:56. > :05:00.this ?600 come from? Sally insists it was ?500
:05:01. > :05:05.more than she'd agreed She tried to complain
:05:06. > :05:12.to Model Agency - Meanwhile, after reading
:05:13. > :05:19.negative reviews online, Karen Hill contacted Firefly Create,
:05:20. > :05:21.demanding her money back. They tried to pass the buck saying
:05:22. > :05:28.it was nothing to do with them as they were a photographic business
:05:29. > :05:34.and "completely separate" And Karen's receipt said
:05:35. > :05:39.she had no right to cancel. I had her to perform like a monkey
:05:40. > :05:50.in front of a camera for nothing. I'm a grown woman, to be fooled
:05:51. > :05:54.by something like that, But what about those top clients
:05:55. > :05:58.who were eager to snap up Well, funnily enough,
:05:59. > :06:06.Marks and Spencers, McDonald s, Next and Gap all told us they'd
:06:07. > :06:10.never even heard of Model Agency I decided to see for myself exactly
:06:11. > :06:12.how this business reels And I've got a feeling
:06:13. > :06:18.their selection process We're pretty sure that anyone would
:06:19. > :06:27.be accepted for a photo-shoot. So I took some snaps
:06:28. > :06:41.of Edward and applied "Congratulations, The Model Agency
:06:42. > :06:53.can see the potential in Edward "and would like to invite him
:06:54. > :06:58.for a test shoot in London." We thought we'd continue playing
:06:59. > :07:00.this game to see if they slip up So after making Ben Ana look
:07:01. > :07:14.as appealing as possible, we sent in his photo -
:07:15. > :07:17.and in a flash, he got It just shows how rotten
:07:18. > :07:21.Model Agency's application It's a world away from
:07:22. > :07:30.how it should be done. Top Model is the UK's largest
:07:31. > :07:34.modelling competition. We asked its director,
:07:35. > :07:38.Geoff Cox, what he makes They're quite obviously trying
:07:39. > :07:44.to sell photographs and portfolios. A portfolio is something built up
:07:45. > :07:47.over a period of time and you need So certainly something shot in a day
:07:48. > :07:56.may be a nice set of pictures for somebody but they're no good
:07:57. > :07:58.for the model industry. What's your feeling
:07:59. > :08:01.about this practice? It's pretty deplorable,
:08:02. > :08:03.to be honest with you. If a company contacts you very
:08:04. > :08:10.enthusiastically and they're referring you to a studio straight
:08:11. > :08:13.away the alarm bells will start ringing cos first and foremost
:08:14. > :08:16.you don't need to go to a studio And if they are the things
:08:17. > :08:22.that the company are focusing in on then I would
:08:23. > :08:25.certainly be wary. Well, we've written to Model Agency
:08:26. > :08:27.and Firefly Create - but neither company has
:08:28. > :08:29.answered our questions. We understand that the authorities
:08:30. > :08:31.are investigating though, Remember, if there's
:08:32. > :08:34.anything you'd like us to investigate call
:08:35. > :08:37.us on 03703 334 334, email
:08:38. > :08:39.xray@bbc.co.uk or send We'll be looking into the fitness
:08:40. > :08:52.clothing range which some customers Now, it's not just pop stars
:08:53. > :09:00.or footballers who are getting tattoos these days -
:09:01. > :09:02.around one in five of us have braved the artist's needle,
:09:03. > :09:04.and there are tattoo studios So have many of these shoppers
:09:05. > :09:13.in Caerphilly had tattoos? "What doesn't kill you
:09:14. > :09:30.makes you stronger." Did you want to go somewhere
:09:31. > :09:34.that was licensed, did that Mine did get infected
:09:35. > :09:40.and I did have scabs. So it seems tattoos
:09:41. > :09:42.are pretty popular here. But making sure they're done safely
:09:43. > :09:46.is an issue that's been keeping Rob Hartshorn is Head
:09:47. > :09:49.of Public Protection. The law requires tattooists to be
:09:50. > :09:56.personally registered with the local authority and requires them
:09:57. > :09:58.to meet certain hygiene We've taken a number of prosecutions
:09:59. > :10:07.of illegal tattooists and unhygienic Following a complaint
:10:08. > :10:12.from a concerned parent. His daughter had been tattooed
:10:13. > :10:18.and she was only 15-years-old, and of course it's an offence
:10:19. > :10:21.if you're under the age of 18. Your officers then visited
:10:22. > :10:23.Studio One that we can The premises weren't clean,
:10:24. > :10:27.the equipment hadn't been properly sterilised and appropriate records
:10:28. > :10:31.about the individuals who were having tattoos
:10:32. > :10:33.weren't being kept. He was sentenced in court
:10:34. > :10:41.to a 12-week custodial sentence suspended for two years
:10:42. > :10:44.and he was ordered to pay our legal And if anybody has a concern
:10:45. > :10:48.about a tattoo studio you want Certainly contact
:10:49. > :10:51.the local authority. Next, I've been to meet a young mum
:10:52. > :10:55.from Barry who's been sent a bill for hundreds of pounds -
:10:56. > :10:58.for a mobile phone Leigh-Ann Wakefield has
:10:59. > :11:08.always paid her way. I've never defaulted on a bill,
:11:09. > :11:12.never missed a phone Last October, she decided
:11:13. > :11:21.to get a new phone. So she came here to Carphone
:11:22. > :11:25.Warehouse at Leckwith in Cardiff, taking out a contract with Vodafone
:11:26. > :11:28.on an iPhone 6. But not long after getting it home
:11:29. > :11:35.things started to go wrong. When people were ringing
:11:36. > :11:43.through, it was just So four days later, a frustrated
:11:44. > :11:51.Leigh-Ann took it back They said that they'd phoned
:11:52. > :12:05.through to Vodafone, I wouldn't hear anything else
:12:06. > :12:09.from them and I thought And Leigh-Ann soon had far more
:12:10. > :12:15.important issues to deal with. I was seven months pregnant
:12:16. > :12:19.when I took the contract out. Within a couple of weeks I developed
:12:20. > :12:22.severe pre-eclampsia so my little As baby Jenson received
:12:23. > :12:28.special care in hospital, Leigh-Ann got a letter
:12:29. > :12:33.she could really have done without. I had a bill through from Vodafone,
:12:34. > :12:37.saying that I owed them ?72. So I went straight back
:12:38. > :12:42.into Carphone Warehouse asked them They basically told me to ignore
:12:43. > :12:50.the letter because they had proof everything had
:12:51. > :12:51.gone through properly. Despite being assured that her
:12:52. > :12:55.contract had been cancelled, By September, Leigh-Ann was told
:12:56. > :13:03.she owed more than ?380! Confused and fed up, Leanne went
:13:04. > :13:10.back to Carphone Warehouse yet again, to see if they could shed any
:13:11. > :13:13.light on the situation. They said they'd seen things
:13:14. > :13:15.like this happen before, But instead the bills became letters
:13:16. > :13:22.from debt collectors. It must have been
:13:23. > :13:25.a real worry for you. I was at my parent's house,
:13:26. > :13:28.crying, saying, "Please, will you just lend me the
:13:29. > :13:31.money? "Because I just want these debt
:13:32. > :13:33.collectors off my back, Desperate to get it sorted,
:13:34. > :13:38.Leigh-Ann decided to go I wrote a letter to the chief
:13:39. > :13:47.executive of Vodafone UK. I had a email the next day saying
:13:48. > :13:51.they apologised for what had happened and somebody would get back
:13:52. > :13:54.to me by the end of that week Vodafone are now chasing Leigh-Ann's
:13:55. > :14:05.for an incredible ?746, So upsetting, because I've done
:14:06. > :14:11.everything in my life to stay away from getting in situations
:14:12. > :14:14.like that, so to be in a situation through no fault of my own,
:14:15. > :14:20.it's really hard. Well, The Carphone Warehouse insist
:14:21. > :14:25.they correctly cancelled Leigh Ann's Vodafone
:14:26. > :14:29.contract in store last year. Although Vodafone say they have no
:14:30. > :14:32.record of that. But finally we've managed
:14:33. > :14:34.to get this sorted out. Vodafone have wiped all the charges
:14:35. > :14:37.and they'll put right Leigh-Ann's credit record,
:14:38. > :14:39.which I'm sure will be The Carphone Warehouse have also
:14:40. > :14:45.given her ?66 to cover a month's line rental plus the cost
:14:46. > :14:48.of all the phone calls Next, Rachel's been speaking
:14:49. > :14:57.to one unhappy sports fan, whose dreams of setting up
:14:58. > :15:00.a new venture here in Caerphilly, Ah, football, the beautiful game,
:15:01. > :15:11.played by thousands every week. It's a world away from football's
:15:12. > :15:16.top flight but, even here, Sign up to a franchise
:15:17. > :15:30.to run your own amateur league, and you could see a full return
:15:31. > :15:36.on your investment within months... But is running a franchise
:15:37. > :15:44.that straightforward? Charity worker and footie fan
:15:45. > :15:49.Gareth Jones from Cardiff needed some extra income and he saw
:15:50. > :15:52.an advert which seemed to offer It said if you just want to earn
:15:53. > :15:57.a kind of second income then, It's really down to you, you know,
:15:58. > :16:02.how far you want to take it, really. The firm behind the ad
:16:03. > :16:08.was Leisure Leagues, one of the UK's biggest
:16:09. > :16:10.organisers of five and And the sales pitch
:16:11. > :16:16.is pretty convincing. According to Leisure Leagues,
:16:17. > :16:20.franchisees like Gareth make their money by charging teams
:16:21. > :16:24.a weekly match fee. That means, on average, each team is
:16:25. > :16:29.worth around ?700 a year. So, in March, Gareth signed up
:16:30. > :16:38.for a Kickstarter package to run He says he was convinced
:16:39. > :16:44.by the brochure's cast iron guarantee, that Leisure Leagues
:16:45. > :16:47.would help him recruit at least eight teams within the first three
:16:48. > :16:51.months of the franchise. I don't have connections
:16:52. > :16:54.in Caerphilly and I would not have invested without
:16:55. > :16:57.the cast iron guarantee. It gave me reassurance,
:16:58. > :17:00.it also made it very clear that I'd have a return
:17:01. > :17:07.on my investment very quickly. Gareth was also encouraged
:17:08. > :17:10.by Leisure Leagues' commitment, on their website and in his
:17:11. > :17:12.agreement, to provide In April, the rookie manager
:17:13. > :17:18.headed to Warwickshire, He was looking forward to two days
:17:19. > :17:25.of intensive training in how to set up and manage his new venture,
:17:26. > :17:30.but he wasn't impressed. The training consisted of me putting
:17:31. > :17:37.up correx boards on the roadside and then dropping off leaflet
:17:38. > :17:39.holders and leaflets, They were using basically our time
:17:40. > :17:48.to promote their own leagues. He'd paid just under six grand
:17:49. > :17:53.for a standard package, On Day Two, he and Gareth
:17:54. > :18:00.had classroom training, and Tom was hoping for some tips
:18:01. > :18:03.on using social media. It was one of the key questions
:18:04. > :18:11.I had throughout the process. In the end Tom says he was told
:18:12. > :18:14.to copy another league manager's I was a bit annoyed, but I just
:18:15. > :18:21.thought, crack on with it. Training over, the managers
:18:22. > :18:26.headed home, ready to But recruiting teams
:18:27. > :18:30.was tougher than they expected. As the weeks went by I was getting
:18:31. > :18:34.very little in the way of interest. I expected them to run a Facebook
:18:35. > :18:37.advertising campaign in order to recruit or help recruit enough
:18:38. > :18:42.teams to get the league up and running by the
:18:43. > :18:47.league start date. Back in Manchester, Tom's league
:18:48. > :18:54.hadn't got off the ground. He says there were delays in getting
:18:55. > :18:57.promotional leaflets and banners I sent them an email,
:18:58. > :19:03.I asked them as well, I really desperately really need
:19:04. > :19:07.this stuff as soon as possible, cos I need to get out
:19:08. > :19:10.there promoting before I go away. By the time their leagues
:19:11. > :19:12.were due to start in May, Tom and Gareth say they'd only
:19:13. > :19:18.managed to recruit a few teams each. The teams that I had were crumbling
:19:19. > :19:21.away and I didn't have any new teams coming in,
:19:22. > :19:23.and it all just... By August, both managers were ready
:19:24. > :19:30.to blow the final whistle It's just a lot of
:19:31. > :19:36.stress and anxiety. It's had a real impact
:19:37. > :19:39.on family life at times. We can't afford to lose the money,
:19:40. > :19:45.you know, it's important to us. We asked a specialist solicitor
:19:46. > :19:48.about Tom and Gareth's It's very clear to me,
:19:49. > :19:55.that statement, that cast iron guarantee was the inducement that
:19:56. > :19:58.caused Gareth to enter To say there's no risk entering
:19:59. > :20:09.into an agreement is to me somewhat of a foolish claim to make,
:20:10. > :20:12.but on the same token it's perfectly understandable from an amateur
:20:13. > :20:14.businessman entering into that type of agreement, to be able
:20:15. > :20:17.to rely on that statement. But getting out of the deal
:20:18. > :20:21.is a different ball game. There are no rights of termination
:20:22. > :20:29.for either Gareth or Tom in these agreements which,
:20:30. > :20:31.again, is perfectly for the would-be managers, who've
:20:32. > :20:38.lost thousands of pounds each. A lesson learned, sadly,
:20:39. > :20:42.an expensive lesson. I wouldn't tell anyone
:20:43. > :20:45.what to do but me personally, if I could go back, no chance I'd
:20:46. > :20:47.do it again. Well, Leisure Leagues told us that
:20:48. > :20:56.all franchisees must comply They argue that Gareth
:20:57. > :21:00.and Tom didn't do this. The company says they did
:21:01. > :21:02.deliver their cast iron guarantee to help Gareth recruit 8 teams
:21:03. > :21:05.and did offer him a paid-for Facebook advertising
:21:06. > :21:08.campaign, which he refused. As for Tom, they say he's
:21:09. > :21:11.one of a small minority of franchisees who've failed
:21:12. > :21:14.to recruit enough teams. They also say he was given
:21:15. > :21:16.promotional material at the end When Gareth and Tom began
:21:17. > :21:22.to struggle, Leisure Leagues say they repeatedly invited them
:21:23. > :21:24.to meetings and offered training on their new website,
:21:25. > :21:26.but neither of them Leisure Leagues aren't
:21:27. > :21:31.offering any money back, and say Gareth and Tom have
:21:32. > :21:35.breached their contracts. So I'm afraid, the dispute
:21:36. > :21:40.continues. It's clearly not been a good
:21:41. > :21:44.experience for them. But plenty of people are signing up
:21:45. > :21:47.to run all kinds of franchises, from coffee shops or fast food
:21:48. > :21:50.chains on the high street, Dr Phil Griffiths, who you saw
:21:51. > :21:55.in Rachel's report can Phil, what are your top
:21:56. > :22:00.tips for anyone thinking First of all, ask yourself,
:22:01. > :22:04.is this a good business for me? Is this a good fit
:22:05. > :22:06.with my experience, You may find you've had a bit
:22:07. > :22:11.of experience in business, but that doesn't mean to say that
:22:12. > :22:14.you can do it your way, Make sure you know what this company
:22:15. > :22:21.is that you're buying into. Have you spoken to any
:22:22. > :22:23.of the other franchisees? And, finally, don't sign that
:22:24. > :22:29.franchise agreement until you've You'll find it's a bit long,
:22:30. > :22:33.it might be difficult to understand and that's why I'd advise you have
:22:34. > :22:36.legal advice from a lawyer that's And there are downsides
:22:37. > :22:42.to running a franchise? It's so heavily weighted
:22:43. > :22:45.in favour of the franchisor. For example, when the agreement
:22:46. > :22:50.expires and you've done all that hard work for many years,
:22:51. > :22:54.you end up with losing your right And if you want to sell
:22:55. > :23:00.the business, you have to sell it So it's vitally important that
:23:01. > :23:06.you know exactly what you're signing Plenty to think about,
:23:07. > :23:11.Phil, thanks very much. There are just two days
:23:12. > :23:22.until the deadline for all private landlords to register
:23:23. > :23:23.with Rent Smart Wales. Many will also need to pass
:23:24. > :23:29.a training course and get a licence. But so far, less than half
:23:30. > :23:32.of landlords have signed up. Failure to comply could mean
:23:33. > :23:35.fines and legal action! New plans to crackdown on whiplash
:23:36. > :23:39.claims could mean cheaper car The number of crashes has fallen
:23:40. > :23:46.sharply, but whiplash claims have risen by 50% in a decade,
:23:47. > :23:49.with an average payout The government's now
:23:50. > :23:56.considering capping the payouts, And Black Friday is nearly here,
:23:57. > :24:03.but you might want to think twice before you go crazy over
:24:04. > :24:07.the bargains on offer. Found almost half of all the deals
:24:08. > :24:13.it tracked last year were actually cheaper in the months before
:24:14. > :24:21.and after the sale! Now, Omar's been finding out
:24:22. > :24:24.about the fitness company backed by a Hollywood star,
:24:25. > :24:26.but some customers say they're not Rhiannon Owen from Cardiff
:24:27. > :24:35.is a busy mum-of-two, but manages to squeeze in a gym
:24:36. > :24:38.session twice a week. She was looking for some stylish
:24:39. > :24:41.new workout gear when a clothing range backed by one of her favourite
:24:42. > :24:47.actresses, caught her eye I think the girls love
:24:48. > :24:49.Fabletics because it's cute. Fabletics was created by Kate
:24:50. > :24:55.Hudson, daughter of Goldie Hawn. And she wasn't just aiming it
:24:56. > :25:02.at her Hollywood friends. I'm going to hopefully create
:25:03. > :25:04.a community where women who can't afford the things that most of us
:25:05. > :25:08.can afford in this room, Yeah, it's my Fabletics
:25:09. > :25:23.outfit, gives me strength. I just liked the patterns,
:25:24. > :25:27.I liked the designs, I like the fact that
:25:28. > :25:29.they're colourful, jazzy. I just wanted something different
:25:30. > :25:32.from your normal, black gym gear. This full outfit, so the leggings,
:25:33. > :25:38.the top and the sports bra was ?26, so I got a very big discount
:25:39. > :25:45.because then I became a VIP. VIP members make big
:25:46. > :25:47.savings on their outfits, but Rhiannon says she didn't realise
:25:48. > :25:55.she'd have to pay ?44 With a hectic lifestyle,
:25:56. > :25:59.nine months went by before she noticed, and by then,
:26:00. > :26:01.she'd racked up almost ?400 Didn't they tell you that they were
:26:02. > :26:09.going to take the ?44 a month? Apparently they do say
:26:10. > :26:13.on lots of separate pages but it's very small print and especially
:26:14. > :26:15.if you're buying something on your smartphone,
:26:16. > :26:17.you know, late at night, Rhiannon isn't the only member
:26:18. > :26:24.of Kate's exclusive club who claims she didn't realise what
:26:25. > :26:27.she was signing up for. We've spoken to other unhappy
:26:28. > :26:29.customers, who've taken So after all this, did
:26:30. > :26:38.you get your money back? No, I emailed Fabletics and I asked
:26:39. > :26:41.them if I could have it back and they said no,
:26:42. > :26:44.it was just to be used to buy more outfits,
:26:45. > :26:46.more jazzy leggings. I just gave up and bought ?400
:26:47. > :26:48.worth of jazzy leggings. So that's why you keep
:26:49. > :26:50.changing your leggings. Who needs a new outfit, a new pair,
:26:51. > :26:55.gym outfit every month? Rhiannon told Fabletics she wanted
:26:56. > :27:03.to cancel her VIP membership, So that's another ?132 that they'd
:27:04. > :27:10.just started taking out And they said I can't
:27:11. > :27:14.cancel through email, How do you feel about Fabletics
:27:15. > :27:18.and their community? Well, I just feel like
:27:19. > :27:22.I've been duped really. I'm never watching a Kate Hudson
:27:23. > :27:33.film ever again. They told us the terms
:27:34. > :27:37.of the VIP experience are made They also point out that VIP Members
:27:38. > :27:41.can cancel their membership at any time over the phone or by letter,
:27:42. > :27:44.but not email, for security reasons. Now, Rhiannon has spent almost
:27:45. > :27:51.?400 on sports clothes, but there is some good news,
:27:52. > :27:55.Fabletics are going to refund the ?132 of credit in her
:27:56. > :28:01.account, which is fab! Remember, if there're anything
:28:02. > :28:05.you want us to investigate, Next week: And would you sleep
:28:06. > :28:16.on a bed like this? I'll be investigating the hotel that
:28:17. > :28:57.has a few hidden Hello, I'm Riz Lateef
:28:58. > :29:06.with your 90 second update.