It’s probably a good thing this is the slow time of year for me. Yesterday was awash in issues that had nothing to do with work. Run to the bank and deposit funds for one of the offspring (herein known as the Jedi), take another Jedi to the doctor, inch through an ice storm to get prescriptions filled (the doctor looked at my ear too and found the fluid was not yet gone – joy). Thank goodness yet a third Jedi didn’t come home on the train at the same time. If I had been busy with work, something would have had to give (namely my last nerve). When they come home from college things become, well, interesting. December is not so much of a problem. May – it’s a problem because I’m at my busiest.
I managed to get through a revision yesterday despite everything. And can we count this high? That overdue check I’m owed? Six months now. The litigation notice went out, causing the predicted panic and promises. A week ago I received a call asking to let the client know how long the check took to get to me because they’re using a new check processing source. Do you mean the time it takes from the day you called or the time it’s taken from the first invoice that went unnoticed? The fact that I received that call is a good sign that something is in the works (it wasn’t provoked as the invoice had gone out two weeks prior). Good thing. We’re just a few short weeks from another month overdue and I’m not going to hesitate to file in small claims court if the check doesn’t appear before that date. I know where they live, so to speak. I’ll file in their jurisdiction.
In fact, it may turn out to be my first litigation filing due to unpaid fees. Typically I’ll give them three months, then I’ll send out a litigation notice. This case was a little different in that there was a hiccup in the process when the client’s client wanted revisions but then left us both hanging for a few weeks. One thing I’m sure I won’t see – the late fees. I don’t know why but in every case I’ve charged them, I’ve never received them.
To be honest, if we get to the point where multiple layers of late fees exist, I’m not going to want to work with this client again. Chasing those late fees after the main bill is paid is, at this stage, sending good money running after bad. In other words, until I find a cost-effective way of getting those fees collected, I can’t afford to chase them. But the minute I figure out a way to do so, I’m doing it.
How do you feel about late fees? Have you ever been successful in collecting them? Is there a way to do so without causing yourself a ton of work?
What a pain that this has to be part of the freelancing world, eh? grrr Do you have late fees and such stated in your contract? Hope it gets resolved before the new year!
Yes. I get my late fees. They are stated in the contract, and it’s part of the whole “I retain copyright until paid in FULL” clause.
I run into less of those problems because I don’t like having a middle man — a client for the client. I like to deal with the client directly. Too many warning bells go off when the person who hired me is actually supposed to be doing the writing, but has hired me to do it instead and the client has no idea it’s been outsourced.
That additional layer is usually more trouble than it’s worth.
I tend to agree, Devon. The client is a large global company, and that in itself adds layers of red tape. When taking this one on I understood the client to be someone I’d worked very well with in the past. My suspicion is the end client hasn’t yet seen it.
Late fees are stated in my contract, as is what Devon mentioned above – copyright transfers to client upon full payment of amount due. It does make it possible to prove a case in court of money owed, but again, collection could cost me too much.
Lori, a conversation here between you & Devon encouraged me to add late fees to my contract. 6 months? That's terrible. Good to know Devon has had no trouble getting late fees from her clients; I wondered about whether I'd be able to collect late fees owed as well.
I will stay tuned to this situation hoping your client has the decency to resolve this issue before the close of the year.
Devon’s the strong woman we all want to be, Kimberly. :))
@Lori: “Multiple layers of late fees” sounds like a major red flag!
I had a client bounce a check this week, and you would have been proud of my response. First I called my bank and asked them to refund the fee they charged ME for cashing a bad check. Then I called the client’s bank and they hung up on me, but it turns out that the state where the check originated has a law against bad checks which entitles me to charge them a “statutory penalty” if they don’t send payment within 30 days of my re-requesting payment. So, I sent registered letter #2 (the first one was reminding them that my check was 2 months late) to my negligent client today and included a request for them to reimburse me for BOTH registered letters, plus the amount of the bad check. Probably won’t get any money out of them, but it felt good to write a strongly worded letter using such phrases as “statutory penalty” and “per state law.” In future, my contracts will include a clause stating the fee for bad checks and late checks and listing MY county as the jurisdiction should a visit to small claim’s court be deemed necessary.
Hi there,
Just dropping by to read your blog. You sounded like a lawyer or an accountant when you mentioned chasing after people for cheque. HEhehe… anyway, its difficult to chase after money, no matter where you are.
Sometimes I feel like a lawyer, Willie! No, I’m not. But I get advice from my sister, who is an attorney. It helps to have one in the family!