A young mum and her fiance have been left distraught after a so-called wedding decoration company scammed them out of their savings.
Danielle McCormack, 23, was planning her wedding to fiance Jamie Carlin, 24, which is due to take place in November, when she found a company specialising in decorations for the reception.
After speaking to the company, LA Weddings and Events, she paid them £730 in two bank transfers, one at the beginning of May and one at the end of May – and thought she had her reception sorted.
However, shortly after making the final payment, Danielle, who lives in Bermondsey, south London, noticed on Facebook that the company would be ceasing activity because they were short-staffed.
Worried about her own wedding, Danielle gave them a call – only to find there was no answer on the phone line, and nor did the company respond to her emails or her Facebook messages.
Danielle’s mum Anne, 45, said her daughter was “devastated” about what had happened, especially as Danielle and Jamie had worked so hard to earn the money, while also bringing up their son Harry, who is nearly four.
Anne said: “She’s extremely upset.
“The company was running an offer to do decorations, lights and tables for the hall where the reception is being held so Dani took up the offer and made the final payment.
“But unfortunately she then found out on Facebook that the company was closing down due to staff shortages.
“But they were still doing work, they had booked loads more weddings and even had five to do on one day – yet only had three members of staff working for them.”
Despite her calls going unanswered, when Danielle, who works at B&Q searched online, the young mum couldn’t find any information saying the company had gone bankrupt.
Anne added: “Dani is just heartbroken – she’s worked so hard to plan the wedding.
“She phoned the fraud department and is still waiting to hear back from them to see if she’ll get her money back.
“She just wants as many people to find out about what has happened as possible, as many people who have booked by phone or email may not know what has happened.
“She has phoned them and the phone line is just dead – it’s definitely a scam without a shadow of a doubt.”
The website for LA Weddings and Events did not seem to be working, and their Facebook page was also down when an attempt was made to contact the company for comment.
