Article about the Construct Data (Fairguide) / Wolfgang Valvoda in the Daily Mirror, 2nd August 2002
Original Headline: KEEP WOLFGANG FROM YOUR DOOR: AUSTRIAN BROCHURE SCAM'S A NET LOSER

The Online Article can be found Here

02/08/02 Text Only, if you have a scan of the Original, Please Please emial

JUDGING from the look on his face, Wolfgang Valvoda never expected to see Sorted on his doorstep.

Perhaps because he operates his Europe-wide scam from a suburb of Vienna, Valvoda imagined he was beyond our reach. Well, we've set him straight on that score. His company Construct Data preys on businesses, large and small, from its base in Austria.

He obtains details of firms attending trade fairs and asks if they want to feature in the show brochure. Despite using the word "free", victims are invoiced for a piddling mention on a website - as Richard Hogg of Cheshire engineering firm Klaruw RMS Ltd discovered. Richard says: "I was preparing for an exhibition at the Birmingham NEC and received this letter from Construct Data. "I thought it was for free inclusion in the show guide and heard nothing more until I got a bill for 757, about £450. "In their latest letter they're demanding £504. All we've got is a listing on their website, which is no use at all

"Nobody would find our company there, it's like having a shop stuck in a dark alley. It's a complete waste of money for a small firm like ours." Outraged, Richard contacted other companies listed on the website and 248 replied saying they too felt misled. Some of the victims are charities such as Thrive, which runs nationwide garden projects for the disabled and dis- advantaged. Thrive spokeswoman Elizabeth Hayden said: "It's so upsetting that Construct Data can use a cleverly designed form to try to wangle out of us money we work so hard to raise."

We asked if he has ever sued a British company to recover an alleged debt. His answer speaks volumes. "No, of course not," he admitted.

The Austrian Association of Directory Publishers has listed Construct Data under: "Companies that use questionable marketing practices". "What they are doing may be legal, but it's not very fair," said an association spokesman. When we found Valvoda at the Construct Data offices in Voesendorf, Vienna, he denied misleading companies. So we presented the list of 248 angry victims. "Every company has complaints," said Valvoda. "Every company has people who refuse to pay."

We asked if he has ever sued a British company to recover an alleged debt. His answer speaks volumes. "No, of course not," he admitted.

"You know how much we charge ... it's hardly worth going to court over £500." So there you have it. Despite the nasty letters, when push comes to shove, Construct Data will not go to court.

In a way that's a shame. We'd like to see him try.

Copyright, Daily Mirror 2002

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