non-paying clients
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- shankd0g
just starting a little thread to hear your stories. solutions.. suggestions.
i've been lucky to date with only a very few minor issues.
share your experiences to help the community.
keith.
- InVivio0
GO to thier offices and refuse to leave until they write you a check.
- mrming0
Yep - i've used that one before. Make sure you've got a whole day free. Turn up when their office opens and sit in reception asking repeatedly (and loudly) if you can see someone about your late payment. They'll give you a cheque eventually just to get you to go away!
NB: Don't use this tactic if you're ever planning on working with them again.
- kodap0
contract and agreement written and signed in the hand. pay half first, then its up to you...
that's what I learnt when some smart asses didn't want to pay, muthafuckas.
- Mick0
I don't accept freelance jobs anymore unless I get full payment up front. Clients that I have relationships with that I have worked with several times, I ask for 50% up front.
Contracts are important and having a clause for "penalties for late payments" is important, but in the real world most clients know what they can get away with.
- KingMob0
I've had horrible luck with this lately. Just did some freelancing for this small agency in Chicago. They only owe me about 300 bucks and suddenly -poof!- can't get ahold of my contact at the company anymore by any means. Turns out the company's "main line" is the dude's cell phone and they don't seem to have a physical address. I know it's pure stupidity on my part but what can I say? Times are tough and I needed the money. Anyway, here's a link to his "company's" website. Go there. Laugh at how shitty it is.
- esko0
Got screwed out of 1500 bucks once and then the company went under.
- sp0
this isn't mine...but it's the best story i've heard.
one of the developers i've worked with wrote a custom application for a corporation one time. when they refused to pay him after like 2 months, he wrote a "patch" for their application - he mailed them the cdrom telling them it was a bug fix...
yea, it was, it termintated the operation of the application after 5 days. the message they got was, operation rights revoked until paid in full.
this was a system critical application - financial syatems for their progress database and symix systems.
the amount of money they probably lost during the few days without that application must have been huge.
they tried to take legal action, but since the contract wasn't met, they didn't have any grounds.
they paid in full and then he charged them to remove the patch.
- kodap0
nice one, sp
- enobrev0
sp, hilarious.
arson works well.
- mrming0
Good one SP. Next time I make a site with PHP I might build in a way of disabling the site from a secret login page!
- soultooth0
I know a guy who does the same shit with flash, and uploads a new movie that disables everything. Sound familiar Keith?
- sp0
i always build back-doors into projects for the 'just incase' clause.
i've never needed to use it, but just incase it's there. of course this only applies to web projects...because it's next to impossible to back door into a desktop application running on corporate workstations. it's possible, but very hard.
a good way to mask it, is by using features like automatic update for software. the client thinks this is a good idea, because they feel they get free upgrades to software, and it's easy because they don't have to install anything.
but, the same socket connections used to transfer upgrades to software can be used to access the app from a back door.
it just takes some further development.
:)
it's a good plan if you run into a lot of client sandbagging.
- dsmith70
I always do payments in halves, sometimes thirds if its a large job. I get half up front and the other half when finished. I _ONLY_ hand over the finished product if I have been paid.
Now if it is one of my regular clients I usually go Net 30 and they have 30 days to pay me after I have given it to them. But if its a new client and I could get stiffed out the arse then I require payment on delivery.
- BonSeff0
show up to their office with two fat sweaty italian bros in addidas warm ups and gold chains.
- Mick0
When I do flash work and show it to clients I host it on my server and use an external text file that loads a variable of something like "owner=mixart". If they take the SWF from my site and try to run it, it goes to another frame saying "property of mixart.com" and won't load.
- monkeyshine0
I know so many designers right now who have a non-paying client story. I myself am in an odd situation where I have a client who is so close to signing the dotted line but he is bulking at the 1/2 up front clause cause he wants to see some work first?! I said NO...I'll negotiate. You give me a payment plan with some $$ up front and if I agree I'll write it into the contract. Well, he keeps saying the check is in the mail while reiterating that he is in a mad ass hurry to get moving on this project...I keep not getting the check. Is this supposed to inspire confidence? I can't figure it out and if I weren't desperate for money, I'd tell him to go code himself where the sun doesn't shine. :(
- unknown0
monkey. DO NOT work till you get the check.
mothafuggas owe me grip right now.
- badzenjt0
i have learned recently that it is wise to set up contracts that specify the job scope and payment terms.
Even with people you trust. I had a client say that our work was all wrong, but would not give a reason, etc, so my feeling is that he just did not want to pay the bill. I still dont know. Either way, I did not get paid as I had no recourse to even take the matter to small claims court.
Basically get it in writing, so that should a client fail to pay, you can serve them and get their ass to small claims court.
- jevad0
I simply don;t do work for anyone I think is going to be a problem - I work on trust - if there is none - I don;t work.
- badzenjt0
jevad: i see what you are saying here, and that is a great sentiment.
However, I feel that legal structures are in place to "simulate" trust.
Basically, if you cannot trust an individual, you can trust a written contract, and trust that they would rather pay you than go to court.
I work with some people on a trust basis, but these are people who have built a credit with me by paying regularly in the past.
For new clients, or those who I dont necessarily trust, I insist on signed contracts, or refuse to deliver the final product until the payments are made.