non-payment of freelancer

feline · 06-25-06, 05:09 AM

I have been accepting online jobs from various employers and it came to my mind that what if these employers don't pay? Can the worker demand from the employer and get what was due to her/him? If so , how?

**Baby Boy** · 06-25-06, 05:27 AM

Do like I always wanted to start doing, have them sign a pre-made Service Agreement... its also smart to have them sign the Service Agreement in front of a notary or something of that sort. You do this and your sure to get your money if they dont pay.

Other then that, I'd say, do the work on your servers and provide screenshots and request payment before they receive the work. This is also an option I sometimes do.

taiarain · 06-25-06, 08:57 PM

You can't always guarantee that you'll get payment as a freelancer, but you can take steps to protect yourself.

1) Always have a contract
2) Require a deposit before beginning work
3) Require partial payment part of the way through
4) If deposit & payment are on-time, require remaining payment on completion
5) If not, require payment prior to submission of final work (include this in the contract)

**Baby Boy** · 06-25-06, 11:05 PM

Quote:

You can't always guarantee that you'll get payment as a freelancer, but you can take steps to protect yourself.

1) Always have a contract
2) Require a deposit before beginning work
3) Require partial payment part of the way through
4) If deposit & payment are on-time, require remaining payment on completion
5) If not, require payment prior to submission of final work (include this in the contract)

Good strategy, but you should also include in your contract one thing people try to pull, no refunds without logical excuse. A lot of people get some of the work done (or request the final before the job is done.) DO NOT trust these people. The point is... clear up a refund situation.

feline · 06-28-06, 06:15 AM

Thanks again, Babyboy and taia. Seems like having a contract in front of a notary would be an impossibility coz I and my employers are from different parts of the world

but perhaps the idea of requiring them to pay me an advance payment would be a good
move.

**Baby Boy** · 06-28-06, 02:15 PM

Well, technically, thought I'd throw in one more thing. On the contract, you could require the notary to also at the same time sign it and provide a phone number. Once you received the contract back (if the notaries do like around here, they keep the signature on file until noticed to remove it by the contract owner... which in this case should obviously be you) --- then call the number, verify that the notary is a legal and registered notary (or atleast make sure they are a legal notary and no fake signature has been done.)

But yeah, best of luck with whatever it is you do... and paying in an advance as well is , yes, a good idea (but like I said, be careful, some may be legitimate but just to be on the safe side are NOT willing to pay in advance, then again, some may be lying and still not want to pay in advance. Judge by their characters and I'd still recommend the contract in anyway. With their signature on the contract, then if anything is broken you still legally have their signature and can file a court document if the need arises to for you to receive your unpaid bill.)

**Baby Boy** · 06-28-06, 02:15 PM

Well, technically, thought I'd throw in one more thing. On the contract, you could require the notary to also at the same time sign it and provide a phone number. Once you received the contract back (if the notaries do like around here, they keep the signature on file until noticed to remove it by the contract owner... which in this case should obviously be you) --- then call the number, verify that the notary is a legal and registered notary (or atleast make sure they are a legal notary and no fake signature has been done.)

But yeah, best of luck with whatever it is you do... and paying in an advance as well is , yes, a good idea (but like I said, be careful, some may be legitimate but just to be on the safe side are NOT willing to pay in advance, then again, some may be lying and still not want to pay in advance. Judge by their characters and I'd still recommend the contract in anyway. With their signature on the contract, then if anything is broken you still legally have their signature and can file a court document if the need arises to for you to receive your unpaid bill.)

Slashmire · 06-28-06, 09:44 PM

I am maybe not aware enough of the market, but from what I've seen, there's a whole lot of freelancers out there; if you were to impose such and such, wouldn't the employer simply look at someone else instead of taking the time to go through the paper?

**Baby Boy** · 06-29-06, 01:21 AM

Well, you'd figure the contact proves professionalism. Not only should the contract quest the fact that you require payment, but also that you'll complete the job in a timely manor as well.

taiarain · 06-29-06, 11:14 AM

There are a lot of freelancers out there and many of us require deposits on new customers or those with poor payment histories. I'd be leary of the job a freelancer was going to do if (s)he didn't have a comprehensive contract.

Taia