Wedding memories ‘have been ruined’
12:20pm Friday 25th May 2007 in News By Andy McFarlane
DISAPPOINTED: Victoria and Lee Muir with the wedding photographs they hoped would have been put into albums
A COUPLE who say they paid £1,000 to wedding photographers and never received the albums they wanted are to petition wedding fair organisers.
Victoria and Lee Muir, of Tonge Moor Road, Bradshaw Brow, Bolton, have teamed up with about 20 other couples angry at the service from Segal Studio photographers.
The couple met Salford-based Hilary and Gary Segal at a wedding fair and hired them for their big day after being impressed with their work.
They said in October, 2005, they paid £695 for a day's photography and the production of a wedding album.
"They turned up on the day and put everyone at ease and were great and we hoped we would get some lovely photos to remember it all by," said Mrs Muir, aged 34.
"But everything went wrong from there."
Mrs Muir and husband Lee, aged 33, were working on cruise ships and returned to sea a week after the ceremony, arranging to collect their photos the following April.
They were happy with the proofs they saw, but wanted extra artwork done for the album, costing an extra £209.
They also agreed to pay another £100 for family shots not included in the album.
The couple were told the album would take about two months to create but did not hear anything until December last year, when the Segals contacted them to say their firm had stopped trading, Mrs Muir said.
They eventually collected the proofs, negatives, a CD and a letter giving them copyright of the pictures in exchange for signing a disclaimer stating they would no longer pursue the Segals, she said.
But the CD contained none of the artwork they had paid for.
Mrs Muir believes the Segals could be trading again under a new name and she has begun campaigning to make people aware of their experiences.
Around 20 couples have joined their campaign, and it was recently featured on BBC1's Watchdog programme.
Their petition will be circulated around wedding fair organisers to explain their situation.
Mrs Muir said: "We can't blame the wedding fair organisers for what happened, but we feel they should be aware of individuals who advertise at shows."
A Bolton Council spokesman said trading standards officers had received some reports in relation to Segal Studios but had referred callers to Salford Council.
A Salford Council spokesman said no action had been taken.
The Segal Studios website has been removed in the last month and the Segals were not available for comment.
Mrs Muir still wants to hear from other couples with similar complaints. She can be emailed at: albumhunters@hotmail.co.uk
