If you see this logo 
Bin the paperwork and do not sign anything!
I am not sure if any of you will have come across this scam. If you are not involved with your company exhibitions then probably not, but forwarded this to those in your company who are.
I fell foul of this scam in December 2008 when I received a letter with an attached form which on the surface looked like a free entry into an exhibition guide brochure and it has been ongoing since then. In this case it was it was a Food and Drink Expo in Birmingham.
The letter asked for some details to be entered for the Exhibitors Directory for Fairs and Exhibitions, it even included the exhibitors organisers address. It was a fairly innocuous form, I have attached one below, which at first glance seemed just a formality from the organisers, but the T&C’s at the bottom in very small print do indicate that a payment was required……………this just goes to prove that you should read even the smallest T&C’s.
I should have read closer, especially when the print states that you can pay in Euro’s or Mexican Peso’s….stupid really but I am one of thousands that has been caught.
There is even a website dedicated to the problem I have provided a link below and William Reed Publications have issued warnings about the fake listing scam.
http://stopecg.org/expo-guide.htm
The next step is that you receive a letter with an invoice, in my case for Euro 1,181.00 payable to a credit bank in Hungary with an account holder’s address in Mexico If you do not pay, which I did not, you then start to receive threatening letters about final payment and legal action. At one point allegedly my costs went as high as Euro 2,362.00 and the bank account was now in Slovakia.
I then searched on the internet and found I was one of thousands, which was a little more reassuring and that there was a campaign on the website above to help you with advice. Basically the company is not selling a directory listing and that’s why it is scam, even if you have signed a document. As far as I can ascertain from the Stop It website no one has yet been prosecuted.
I have received further letters to complete other directory listings for MEDTEC UK, ICSE and also the recent NCS Show in Birmingham http://www.nationalconvenienceshow.co.uk/page.cfm/Link=21/t=m/goSection=4
But its not only the food and pharmaceutical industry so pass this one to as many people as possible.
http://www.railtex.co.uk/exhibiting/warning
So please if you recognise the logo, report it to the organisers of the exhibition and let them deal with it but do not sign………..also always read the T&C’s
FoodWorld 