Wedding Dress Scams
Deciding to take the plunge is a big step in one’s life and brides and grooms to be expect their big day to be absolutely perfect. With scammers around every corner preying on those who are looking to save a buck or two in wedding expenses, it pays to be careful when doing your wedding shopping. It’s not a free pass to be a crazy Bridezilla, but it does give you permission to ask questions and be smart.
One scam to avoid involved the prized piece of the day: the dress. This is usually the bride’s most important purchase and will be remembered for the rest of her life. Thus, it should be carefully picked out and examined before making any purchases. When scouting for dresses, looking into stores before going in and picking out a dream dress can save you time, money and a whole lot of headaches in the end.
Some scammers will take advantage of brides to be by claiming to sell designer dresses when in reality they are not authorized to sell the gowns. In this scenario, you will often find the perfect dress, order it and be told to expect a phone call when it arrives in store. However, the date will often be off when involved in a scam and the store will tell the customer that the dress will not be in until just days or weeks before the wedding date. Then, the dress will inevitably be a knock off which is indicated by no tags or an obvious fake tag or the dress will be used. Used dresses can be spotted by looking for make- up stains, underarm stains or dusty bottoms. The store will usually bank on the bride having no back-up plan and having to buy the dress due to being in such a tight time crunch. In some cases, the store will assume that the bride will not look for small stains and will never know the difference. Always check to make sure the store you’ve chosen in reputable and does not have any complaints filed by past customers.
Another scam that should be avoided by those to be wed is the limo scam. Some companies will advertise limo services that they simply do not provide. For example, the limo in the picture or on the website might look new and clean, but an old, dirty limo will show up on your wedding day, ready to whisk you away in a non-air-conditioned, smelly ride. It is always a good plan to look into companies and search for complaints, make sure the business is reputable and definitely go look at the limos provided in person. A real business will have no problem with showing you what limo you should expect on your wedding day. In addition, if you accept a limo that is not what you ordered or expected, you will have no recourse to receive money back and will have to pay for services rendered-whether they were to your standards or not.
Bridal Tips has more about wedding dress scams and other ways brides are swindled.