SALT LAKE CITY — New Year's Eve was the perfect night for Lindsey Foreman and Justin Penn to say, "I do."
The now-Mr. and Mrs. Penn hired Utah-based Tolman Media for wedding videography services. Their contract shows Tolman Media Wisconsin and Chicago IL, an LLC with a business license originating in Utah, charging $1,675 for 11 hours of videography with a 10- to 12-minute highlight video and raw video files.
When February began to roll around and Lindsey Penn hadn't heard anything, she set up a meeting with their Tolman contact. Their contract shows the LLC Tolman Media Empire — Los Angeles offering eight hours of photo and video coverage with 600 edited photos, a 10+ minute highlight video and raw video files for $3,046, which Dance said she paid in full between two transactions.In late February, she received an email from Tolman Media explaining that the company was closing.
The photographer and videographer were willing to work out a deal for the couple, but the couple couldn't afford the new price. With barely a month until their wedding, Dance had to start over to find a different team from scratch."They're basically running away with everyone's money," Dance said. "With the recent recession and its impact on the economy we have reached a point in our operations where there is no cash left in the business and we are forced to close our doors," the email read. "If you have been assigned an upcoming wedding from Tolman Media, please do your best to fulfill it."
Yerkes and Creech began to reach out to the 10 or so clients whose weddings they were set to work through Tolman Media to explain the situation. Yerkes said she and Creech have been paid for the weddings they've already worked, though the payment was slow and not on time. "My mom was able to dispute the charge on her credit card and was able to get $1,000 back," she said. "I'm still fighting the rest."
For questions or complaints concerning labor and wages, the Utah Department of Commerce said consumers can email the Utah Labor Commission at laborcom@utah.gov or call 801-530-6800.