RE: FN-FORUM: experiences of non paying clients???

date posted 1st November 2003 13:35

I got caught like this many years ago and ended up having to get bailed out
by the families firm and spending a fortune on solicitors letters/winding
up orders before I got the money.

The hard lesson is that we now specifically write into all jobs clauses
that allow us to either bill all work in progress or write off
redundant/scrap time and double our rates when THEY change specs half way
through.

If they don't like it then we don't sign the contracts because it normally
means they don't know what they want and the spec is undoubtedly wrong.

The last one we had like yours was quoted at around 1500 and 4 weeks to
link their back office products/subscriber database to their 3rd party
content delivery platform.

They changed Project manager 3 times (it ended up with the one it'd started
with !!!), designers (and design) twice, delivery platform once and SQL -
SQL replication to VPN - Total = 8 Months being pratted about and 7+ grand
later they got what they originally wanted and with our contract clauses NO
Arguments - Although conveniently the cheque arrived on the 30th day and
with a well known law, to late to get to the bank on 24th of December :(

In your case, if you can't afford to take the 1200 and run, then don't
accept anything but the full amount, settling on less will infer that
there's something wrong/faulty/overcharged with what you've delivered
(unless of course there actually is) and they can hold you to fixes,
patches, support until hell freezes over and you'll have little or no
chance of billing/recouping any time spent as they'll claim "well obviously
it wasn't right because you accepted that when you reduced your fees"

The bottom line is do you really need clients who p!ss you about, IMHO, if
they do it once, they'll keep doing it.

BTW - if I'd got all the jobs promised of "more work if you can do this one
cheaply" over the years I'd be in the pub/Bahamas today and not waiting on
another spec from another potential PITA :(

Alan S

On 01 November 2003 11:41, Debi Sykes [EMAIL REMOVED]
wrote:
>
> Hi all.
> Ok I know a few of you had your opinions on what I ought to do the other
da=
> y
> regarding this annoying client I have who doesn't want to pay me what I
hav=
> e
> asked for, well it turns out instead of the requested =A32000 my client
wants
> to give me =A31200...im not exactly pleased with that, I am really
confused
> about what to do...I feel like my options are to either take the whole
thin=
> g
> offline and cause a few probs, or take the 1200, and plus they want me to
d=
> o
> a few dreamweaver tutorials with them, and they owe me money for logo
> design- thing is I cant afford to turn any extra work down, but I cant
> afford to take =A31200...confused!!! have any of you on the forum had to
come
> to the drastic measure of taking the clients website offline cause of non
> payment or because they wouldn't pay enough, what happened, did they pay
u,
> or did it get nasty?
>
> this was my original email--
> Hi everyone on the forum, Haven't been on the forum for a while , but I
hav=
> e
> a question for all the website designers out there, I have almost
finished
> my first webpage, just a few minor adjustments---which I had been working
o=
> n
> for 4 months or so, not my fault, the customer changed their minds about
th=
> e
> design 3 times- they didnt know what they wanted, so effectively I
started
> the website twice got half way through and they changed it again, untill
> they deceide they knew what they wanted and the third design, which is
what
> I have uploaded... I put my invoice in, =A31900 approx, they think its a
bit
> 'high' I don't- really it should be more than that...I know big website
> design companies, charges 1000's!, for 4 months work on and off, plus
being
> messed about, and there are a huge amount of pdfs I had to convert and
link=
> -
> (about 250-300 pdfs/links).... what are your experiences, thoughts etc? I
> feel like just cause I am a 'one person' company or a freelancer, they
thin=
> k
> I should undercharge.
>
>