How to Report Fraud in Competition Pageants
- 1). Review your contract with the pageant carefully, if you have signed one. Be sure the pageant is in the wrong or has acted fraudulently before making any claims of fraud.
- 2). Contact the pageant director first. Try to remedy your concerns with the pageant organization or production company before taking any further steps.
- 3). File a report with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) if you cannot clear things up with the pageant organization or production company. A pageant is a business and will have to respond to the complaint within a timely manner. There will also be a public record of a complaint lodged against the organization.
- 4). Go public with your story to ensure that the pageant organization or production company and its officials are held accountable in the court of public opinion. Take your story to the local news media. Let the media pressure the pageant organization to remedy the issue. Most newspapers or local television stations take "tips" and have investigative consumer bureaus. Be vocal to prevent anyone else from falling victim to the pageant's fraudulent acts in the future.
- 5). Seek legal consultation to confirm your rights and determine whether you have a legal case against the pageant organization or production company.
