Dealing with Clients who don’t Pay

About the Author

Mike Rogers is a Web Developer who is currently at University studying Web Technologies. He also is the founder of Full On Design. He has several years experience freelancing and you can follow him on Twitter (Rogem002).

Here is a really easy check-list of how to deal with clients who don’t pay for work.

Send them an email

Your clients are very busy people, luckily they tend to have email also. A polite reminder to their email should jog their memory. Here is an example template email:

Hey [Name],
I done some work [describe work] on [date] and I have not been paid yet ([amount]). Please could you look into it?
From,
[Contact Details]

Call them

A Clients could have problems using computers (for example slow typing or poor vision), a phone call it a quick and easy way to remind them to send you money. Again, stay polite there could be a very fair reason for late payment.

Recoup your losses

If a client is still not paying up, it could be more worthwhile selling the work. Give the client a certain amount of time (such a 5 business days) and state they will lose all rights to the work and the work will be sold. Here is an example email/letter:

[Name],
I have called and messaged you over the last few days regarding [work]. You have failed to pay. You have 5 business days to pay or you will lose all rights to the work and I will recoup my losses.
From,
[Contact Details]

However, check your contact’s obligations. You could need to wait a certain amount of time.

Consider legal action

If the work you have done is unique and you have a contract, you should consider legal action against the client. However, consult a lawyer before taking legal action.

Related Links

Unpaid invoice, client ignoring me – advice please – DesignersTalk – A forum post which is a lot more in depth then this post.

A Guide to Copyright and Intellectual Property Law: The Easy Way (Easyway Guides) (Paperback) – A really useful book on copyright and various other legal things.

Posted February 21st, 2009