Poll: What do you do when a client refuses to pay late fees after months of being past due? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "What do you do when a client refuses to pay late fees after months of being past due?".
This poll was originally submitted by Helene Olsen Richards. View the poll results »
| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 19:56
Spanish to English
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I don't recall a client ever refusing to pay. The majority of my clients are direct, not agencies, and only my main customer pays regularly at the end of each month. The rest pay whenever they can get it together (regardless of whatever the current EU rulings may say, this is the way things have been in Spain since I came here decades ago, and I'm used to it by now).
In terms of invoicing, I understand the "due date" on my bills as a sort of wishful thinking component, rather than some leg... See more I don't recall a client ever refusing to pay. The majority of my clients are direct, not agencies, and only my main customer pays regularly at the end of each month. The rest pay whenever they can get it together (regardless of whatever the current EU rulings may say, this is the way things have been in Spain since I came here decades ago, and I'm used to it by now).
In terms of invoicing, I understand the "due date" on my bills as a sort of wishful thinking component, rather than some legalistic stick to beat clients over the head with when they don't pay within a certain time.
Perhaps I should add that I also have some clients that pay me in advance, so what you lose on the roundabouts you gain on the swings. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Rita Utt 
France
Local time: 19:56
English to German
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| I won't work with them again | Apr 21, 2022 |
I'v never heard of client paying late fees.
So either it's just a mistake and than it is okay as long as they pay.
Or, I come to the conclusion that this client is not trustworthy anymore and I won't work with them any longer.
| | | | Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 19:56
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
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| Well, I don't charge late fees anyway | Apr 21, 2022 |
"What do you do when a client refuses to pay late fees after months of being past due?"
I suppose if I were to charge late fees, and the client would refuse to pay it, and the client was legally obligated to pay the late fees, then I would simply re-evaluate whether it is worth continuing my relationship with the client. One can't force late fees upon a client if this wasn't agreed to beforehand, and the statutory late fees are very small (pennies!).
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I don’t think I’ve ever charged late fees to a client. I haven’t had any payment problems in a long time. I have been working with the same loyal client base and over the years I developed a sixth sense for these things. The last reminder I had to send was a few years back. In almost 40 years, I faced 2 serious non-payment issues (in both instances I had to hire a lawyer and stopped working with them).
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I think in that scenario I'd just be grateful I got the money in the end.
I do theoretically charge bank rate +8pp penalty interest but it's never been worth pursuing as I've never had anyone pay more than a couple of months late (and even then it's always been an oversight).
Pick your csutomers wisely!
| | | | Matthew McKay
Switzerland
Local time: 19:56
Member (2022)
Chinese to English
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| It depends on where the client is based. | Apr 21, 2022 |
If the client is based in my country, then there are legal means of recovering the fees owed.
Not so for clients based abroad, I which case:
i) add to my blacklist, ensuring correspondence is well documented
ii) share with colleagues in professional or work-related forums on ProZ, LinkedIn, and Facebook
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I have never been in that situation. I check clients out before working for them.
On the one occasion when I really did not get paid, it was because a long-standing and formerly very good client had gone bankrupt. I discovered later that several colleagues were owed far more than I was. When I finally did get paid part of what I was owed, I knew I was lucky, and moved on.
The great majority of my clients pay on time, and after more than twenty years I can count the real non-pa... See more I have never been in that situation. I check clients out before working for them.
On the one occasion when I really did not get paid, it was because a long-standing and formerly very good client had gone bankrupt. I discovered later that several colleagues were owed far more than I was. When I finally did get paid part of what I was owed, I knew I was lucky, and moved on.
The great majority of my clients pay on time, and after more than twenty years I can count the real non-payers on the fingers of one hand. Most of my clients are based in northern Europe, where it is relatively easy to collect debts. When I have worked for clients on other parts of the world, I have never had problems with payment either.
It is worth remembering that this is generally the case - but no one starts polls or discussions about all those who pay on time! ▲ Collapse
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Michael Newton
United States
Local time: 13:56
Japanese to English
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The chances of collecting late fees from a late payer are slim to non-existent. Be happy if you get the payment at all. I've had to bring legal action (Small Claims Court) against two clients in my career. In my suit I claimed the original debt, late fees, round-trip airfare to the client's location, legal and attorney's fees as well as hotel and transportation charges. In both cases the incidental fees were far greater than the original debt and they paid immediately. This system is useful if t... See more The chances of collecting late fees from a late payer are slim to non-existent. Be happy if you get the payment at all. I've had to bring legal action (Small Claims Court) against two clients in my career. In my suit I claimed the original debt, late fees, round-trip airfare to the client's location, legal and attorney's fees as well as hotel and transportation charges. In both cases the incidental fees were far greater than the original debt and they paid immediately. This system is useful if the client is located in the same country as you. I am very very careful whom I accept as a client outside of the United States. If they are a proz.com member, I know I can shame-and-blame them on-line with proz. if they don't pay up. From time to time I get queries from Argentina (non-proz members) and as I have no way of collecting if they renege, I ignore the request. This is why I require a purchase order from non-proz members). Many of them refuse to provide it which is a good indicator of their intentions to pay. When vetting a client, there are two orders of due diligence: (1) proz member? (2) geographical. ▲ Collapse
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Forget about late fees! The one time a client was extremely late, I was just grateful to finally receive the money. It was a well-known international organization. I had blind faith that they would eventually pay, so I kept on working for them -- over a period of two years. Other translators were in the same boat. In the end, they owed me about $9,000 (twenty years ago). After two years of complaining to higher-ups in the organization, the money finally came through and I was just happy that the... See more Forget about late fees! The one time a client was extremely late, I was just grateful to finally receive the money. It was a well-known international organization. I had blind faith that they would eventually pay, so I kept on working for them -- over a period of two years. Other translators were in the same boat. In the end, they owed me about $9,000 (twenty years ago). After two years of complaining to higher-ups in the organization, the money finally came through and I was just happy that the struggle was over. ▲ Collapse
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Anybody who allows months to elapse before chasing up a client for payment is not a serious professional.
It doesn't happen often, but if a client is late paying I'll give them a couple of days after the due date, and then I'll let them know in no uncertain terms that I expect them to pay up or face consequences.
So far, this has always been enough. In the rare cases where it happens more than once with the same client, that client gets dropped - after they've pa... See more Anybody who allows months to elapse before chasing up a client for payment is not a serious professional.
It doesn't happen often, but if a client is late paying I'll give them a couple of days after the due date, and then I'll let them know in no uncertain terms that I expect them to pay up or face consequences.
So far, this has always been enough. In the rare cases where it happens more than once with the same client, that client gets dropped - after they've paid me. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Kay Denney
France
Local time: 19:56
French to English
I've never applied late fees. It didn't actually occur to me to apply them. Given that both companies that were late have paid up all their bills (one, after three years! I'd given up, thinking they would be going bust due to Covid) and now give me interesting work and pay promptly, I think I made the right decision.
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Kay Denney
France
Local time: 19:56
French to English
Philip Lees wrote:
Anybody who allows months to elapse before chasing up a client for payment is not a serious professional.
Ouch! OK, I suppose you're right, but it depends somewhat on the amount owed (never more than €300 for me) and the client's circumstances. Both clients who paid me very late were badly organised, and staff had quit, leaving accounts in a shambles. They just needed time to get the department back in shape, and I think they appreciated my patience.
So really, it was the client who wasn't very professional, rather than me. I'm still working with these clients and payment is smooth now, so it's all good.
[Edited at 2022-04-22 08:34 GMT]
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