Client won't pay...now what?

B

blando3

Well-known member
Hey Everyone,
I have a question regarding a recent job I did for a client. I did a day of shooting for an out-of-town client via a referral from someone in my area.
At the end of the shoot we went our separate ways. The client has now gone silent. I still have the footage and need him to send me a drive and then ship it back.

I had requested a signed contract, but due to time restrictions on his end, he sent an email instead, outlining all the details (rate, date, hours, etc). He even stated in the email, "This email is binding."

So, he last told me via a short email one week ago that his ex-wife is in the hospital, so I've backed off for now, but that was one week ago.

What should I do now? It seems to me he doesn't want the footage, and clearly doesn't want to pay me. I have time on my hands and don't mind being a squeaky wheel or doing a little legwork to make this right.

Thoughts?
Thanks in advance,
Andrew
 
If you have the footage definetly DO NOT turn it over to him. That is your only leverage and hope of getting paid. If you want to take his wife/hospital comment at face value, then give him a little time and check back, because right now it seems like you are stuck and for a single shoot day, legal action is counterproductive. It'll cost you more in time and money than you'll ever hope of recovering. Hopefully you didn't turn down another shoot to do this one.

Almost everyone in this business will get stiffed at least once in their career. Hopefully this will be your just 'once'. Or maybe he will pop back up and everything will be fine and he will pay you. Just stick the drive over on a shelf in the office and in a month send him another email and in it say that he has one month to pay or the contract will be null-and-void for non-payment and you will no longer guarantee the safety of the footage and you will wash your hands of the situation. Of course "business" it up a little, but you get the idea. I usually tell clients that I will only keep a copy of the footage for a limited amount of time if it's shot on media I own.
 
Thanks.
Yes, I have no intention of turning over the footage without payment. I've been doing this for more than 12 years and have never been stiffed; most people are honest. This looks like it might be the first. I've never had someone be this bad at communication. Before the shoot, he picked up the phone on the 2nd ring every time. Now it goes to VM.

I just left him a VM, email, and text. We all have personal problems, family emergencies, etc, but IMO only dishonest people use those as leverage against paying their contractors, and I think the ex-wife story is to keep me at arm's length. My guess is the project has been canned and he doesn't see the point in getting the footage or paying me for my time.

Should I turn this over to a collections agency? If so, how?
Should I email all my colleagues and let them know not to work with this guy? I don't want to wind up on the wrong end of a slander or libel case.

Anyway, thanks again.
Andrew
 
People are very busy these days and things move fast in our worlds. The want or need for stuff seems to be more fleeting. I have gone to money up front payment, at least half, due to this trend. Contracts are kind of useless unless you are a larger company or can go through a small claims court and win. Either people are going to pay you or they are not. Paper or digital agreements do not do you much good when a deadbeat situation occurs.

Hope it works out!
 
Bassman2003 said:
People are very busy these days and things move fast in our worlds. The want or need for stuff seems to be more fleeting. I have gone to money up front payment, at least half, due to this trend. Contracts are kind of useless unless you are a larger company or can go through a small claims court and win. Either people are going to pay you or they are not. Paper or digital agreements do not do you much good when a deadbeat situation occurs.

Hope it works out!
Click to expand...

Thanks, yeah, I think I might just have to go down kicking and screaming. He probably won't pay me but I won't let him off easy. In my experience most people are honest in the freelance world. You don't get far if you're not. But the deadbeats need to be weeded out and shamed.
 
I would maybe give him a little more time. He might actually be telling the truth.
On average it takes about a month before I see a paycheck once a job is complete. It can be annoying, but it's the way it goes.

If you don't hear from him in the next week send him another email "hope the wife is well... just checking up on this project to see if we're still on track. I sent an invoice on (date), if you need me to resend it for any reason I'd be happy to do that." etc etc
 
Roxics - I hear you, but his excuses changed. First it was that he was tired (that was two days after the shoot). Then three days later after a firm email from me, he replied that his ex was in the hospital upon his return. Why not just say that from the beginning? And I just checked his Facebook page and it's littered with recent posts: videos, retweets, funny pictures, etc. Not exactly in line with his "too busy to do business" excuse.

I've been around long enough to know the whole thing is littered with red flags.
 
Worst case scenario, he no longer needs the footage or can't/won't afford to pay for it and you'll get stiffed.

Best case scenario, things really are crazy and this is a low priority but he'll get to it.

Interim case, he plans to pay you but things got a little hairy and he needs to buy time to save face and get you the check and get the footage - but doesn't want to look "poor" or like he's tight, so is buying a few weeks for $$ to come through.

As far as what to do for a worst case scenario, move along. Don't spend time, energy, and money on principle. Don't end up on the wrong side of slander or libel, in a legal back and forth, or in a bitter state. It's 1 shoot day. It's not worth it. Like you said, most people are honest. Divide every shoot day you got paid with this one and see the percentage of times you got stiffed, line item it in your business, and spend your energy on productive things and positive clients and experiences.

I say that not as pat advice but from the experience of having been there, done that - life and time is precious and short, even the wasted energy here isn't worth it. Send him a polite follow up in a couple weeks mentioning again payment/footage policies, and in the end, if you never get a dime, at least you got experience.

As others mentioned, 50% down 50% on delivery is a good way to go. At least if someone decides to stiff ya on the 2nd half it costs them something too.
 
This summer, during some super trying times, I posted light-hearted stuff for Facebook... could do it from my phone while in waiting rooms, hospitals, etc. I didn't want to go all that public with what was going on in my life. There's probably a name for that: Facebook Happylife Syndrome or something.

As for getting paid, I mostly agree with the others. Don't spend too much time on this, and especially don't spend much mental energy on it. But maybe spend a little. Like maybe write a demand letter. With a little paperwork, you may be able to get the guy to pay. And if nothing else, you'll have some records that --might-- let you deduct the nonpayment as a bad debt (not straightforward; I don't fully get the nuances; check with your/an accountant). I'd say the debt is too small for most collection agencies to want to deal with; I'm not sure, but would a collector see the possible return as being worth their time?

Anyway, here's a straighforward article from Nolo, my go-to source for reliable written advice on business and tax issues (not up there with talking with my lawyer or accountant, but useful stuff). Written by lawyers to be understood by normal people.

Collecting Business Debts
Communicating with clients who are headed for collections helps you get paid.
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/business-debt-collection-29910.html


Check that out, maybe write a demand letter, then as you say, get on with your day.

Good luck and let us know what happens!
 
blando3 said:
Hey Everyone,
I have a question regarding a recent job I did for a client. I did a day of shooting for an out-of-town client via a referral from someone in my area.
At the end of the shoot we went our separate ways. The client has now gone silent. I still have the footage and need him to send me a drive and then ship it back.

I had requested a signed contract, but due to time restrictions on his end, he sent an email instead, outlining all the details (rate, date, hours, etc). He even stated in the email, "This email is binding."

So, he last told me via a short email one week ago that his ex-wife is in the hospital, so I've backed off for now, but that was one week ago.

What should I do now? It seems to me he doesn't want the footage, and clearly doesn't want to pay me. I have time on my hands and don't mind being a squeaky wheel or doing a little legwork to make this right.

Thoughts?
Thanks in advance,
Andrew
Click to expand...
Ask him candidly if there is a problem with your work. By starting with the assumption it is you, it will open doors.

There may be many possible answers from, "It's not you but I am tight right now" or "It's not you but I don't want it anymore", "It is about you, I am upset about ......", "I thought we had a different agreement...." etc.

If it is a personal issue you might want to meet him on payment terms, if he changed his mind on the footage you might want to reduce the fees, I am sure he understands you made expenses. If he is upset about something you might learn something.


But take a positive approach on things.
 
Last edited:
Jim Feeley said:
This summer, during some super trying times, I posted light-hearted stuff for Facebook... could do it from my phone while in waiting rooms, hospitals, etc. I didn't want to go all that public with what was going on in my life. There's probably a name for that: Facebook Happylife Syndrome or something.

As for getting paid, I mostly agree with the others. Don't spend too much time on this, and especially don't spend much mental energy on it. But maybe spend a little. Like maybe write a demand letter. With a little paperwork, you may be able to get the guy to pay. And if nothing else, you'll have some records that --might-- let you deduct the nonpayment as a bad debt (not straightforward; I don't fully get the nuances; check with your/an accountant). I'd say the debt is too small for most collection agencies to want to deal with; I'm not sure, but would a collector see the possible return as being worth their time?

Anyway, here's a straighforward article from Nolo, my go-to source for reliable written advice on business and tax issues (not up there with talking with my lawyer or accountant, but useful stuff). Written by lawyers to be understood by normal people.

Collecting Business Debts
Communicating with clients who are headed for collections helps you get paid.
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/business-debt-collection-29910.html


Check that out, maybe write a demand letter, then as you say, get on with your day.

Good luck and let us know what happens!
Click to expand...

I'm not an accountant and I'm not a lawyer, but years ago I had a client/friend not pay and I asked my accountant about a way to write it off. I was not incorporated at the time and he said there was no way to write it off. Same thing if you have a staff job somewhere and they don't pay you, you can't write that off on your taxes. You can go after the company, but as far as the IRS is concerned, they don't care and you can't deduct. If the OP is 'out of pocket' on expenses associated with the shoot, they can deduct those, but otherwise he just worked for free.
 
As long as you can spare the storage space, hold on to the footage for a month....then contact him and give him a couple of days...let him know that if you get no response within a week, that you will delete the footage...if no reply, delete it....why should you store something you've not gotten paid for....if he asks for a sample, send him a watermarked copy for his approval...also let him know that if he wants the footage without watermark, as soon as he pays you, you will send him the unmarked footage....your good faith gesture lay in turning up and shooting the footage....the rest is up to him...if you hear nothing back, walk away....the red flags you mentioned are probably not a good sign...but dragging out your frustration just costs you more each day!
 
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