Non-Paying Clients

I'm just going to echo what everyone else is saying: Contract. Contract. Contract.A contract isn't some scary legal document full of cryptic legalese. It's a clear description of what services will be provided and what the compensation will be. And on what schedule everything will happen. With details about what happens if things go south.Most client problems are not as cut-and-dry as "he took all of my work and is laughing at me and lighting cigars with $100 bills whil

You're second guessing yours. Client just follows you. Break the cycle by sending client the [reasonable] bill for services rendered so far.If he'll pay - he's yours.If he won't - he never was.

A number of years ago, the term "F*ck you, pay me" was going around in popular vernacular. That jives with my own experiences - ask for deposits up front, make payment net-15, tack on a giant fee in the event of slow / failure to pay, and make sure your contracts are written so that the client pays legal bills in the event you have to sue. Create contract disincentives to encourage good behavior. Keep your rates high and don't give anyone a deal. Be willing to say no both to

Your story is a school case, unfortunately.The law is never in your favor as a single man or small shop. It's too expensive to go to court, then determining what should have been done or not done as per the contract is a lengthy and uncertain proceeding.Clients who wanna pay per project basically want to move the risk over to you. They should pay a premium. Write a solid contract and increase the fees/duration. Most should give up when you start increasing the quote just to estab

I doubt future clients would be discouraged by this kind of behaviour. The good clients, the kind you want, understand the value of work and the importance of being paid. They will no doubt be able to emphasize with this coder.

Random advice from the internet:The most useful thing you can do is a "mission debrief".+ Identify what were the warning signs of non-payment. Sometimes they will be there from the start and the client never intended to pay. In longer relationships, non-payment is part of changing behaviors and often due to other financial stresses (this is how it tends to play out in economic downturns).+ Identify the reasons you accepted this particular job/client. It is one thing if th

I had a client that was most always 2-3 months behind paying me. I simply laid it out for them. I need to get paid or I cannot support my family. I will also have to take on other work to make ends meet. I was just being honest with them. Nobody is going to look out for me, but me.

Some lessons I learned the hard way:0. Getting paid is your job. Getting paid is more important than doing the work.1. Pick better clients. Good clients don't have a problem with paying (and great clients are good clients who have regular work).2. Be blunt about money. Upfront. Require a retainer as part of your contract. You will avoid clients who never intend to pay.3. You are not a bank. Your retainer is to be applied against final invoice. You owe the client work. They don&#

Although it doesn't help with your current problem: for future projects, consider demanding payment in installments, linked to project milestones. When the final invoice is small, the motivation for unscrupulous clients to stiff you becomes less, and if they do, the downside for you is also less.

Shut everything off if he doesn't pay up and move onto the next client. No reason to let their company rip you off.