It has come to our attention here at FRONT of HOUSE that an East Coast (possibly New Jersey-based) individual claiming to be the “tour technical director” of a (well-respected and legitimate) production company working on a new touring Disney musical has been contacting sound rental and production companies in an attempt to procure gear under suspicious circumstances. Among the items “needed” by this individual included DiGiCo consoles, Meyer speakers, Shure and Sennheiser wireless rigs.
Although in this case, the owner and employees at one sound company were suspicious by the person’s clumsy effort and lack of details about the sound requirements, other similar (yet far more intricate and well-planned) scams have succeeded in the past, such as last year when possibly more than $1 million in gear was lost to an individual claiming to be the “tour technical director” of Sony Music.
Some Words of Advice
Everybody wants new business, yet nobody wants to get ripped off. Take a little extra time to check out any customers you haven’t done business with in the past. Make a few phone calls. Check references. Check into their insurance certificate. Be especially wary of the “last-minute” routine, where someone shows up with a lucrative sounding offer, but there isn’t enough time to adequately check references or documentation. And if an offer seems too good to be true, then it might be a scam. Anyway, be careful, be smart, be aware and don’t get ripped off!
For more details on last year’s scam, CLICK HERE.
