| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Poll: Do you apply charges for late payment? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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Interlangue (X)
Angola
Local time: 20:13
English to French
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Astrid Elke Johnson wrote:
Have you ever tried it yourself, Jeff?
I mean, can you honestly say that you manage to make your clients pay late payment fees, and that they continue to give you work after that?
I can! The agency for which fees are now automatically included in the rates still comes back but I very often "have no time"
One day, after a payment, I went to visit them. I did not meet the big boss but told the PMs bluntly that I was not satisfied with their payment policy. They now nag the boss to get him to pay all translators more quickly.
True, the two customers I sued (a direct client and an agency) did not come back
| | | | Jeff Whittaker 
United States
Local time: 14:13
Spanish to English
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Yes, I can. I have one client that habitually pays one month late, but always pays the late charge. As translators, we would be penalized for delivering late, so why shouldn't they?
That having been said, I am usually flexible and send a reminder notice before charging a late fee. Besides, the existence of a late fee is a great incentive for them to pay on time.
Astrid Elke Johnson wrote:
Have you ever tried it yourself, Jeff?
I mean, can you honestly say that you manage to make your clients pay late payment fees, and that they continue to give you work after that?
| | | | m_temmer
Local time: 12:13
English to Dutch
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| terms and conditions? | Apr 9, 2010 |
Jeff Whittaker wrote:
Why wouldn't you just specify a late fee in your terms and conditions that your clients and agencies must sign before you start working for them? Or do people work without signed terms and agreements?
I once suggested this as a poll question, but it never made it...
I think 98-99% of translators do not expect/want agencies to sign any terms and conditions. However, agencies do not hesitate to have translators sign theirs!
I have never had any problem or whatsoever (except for one case when I had just started as a freelancer) but the times that I asked agencies to sign my terms and conditions, they bluntly refused, saying that none of their other translators asked them to do that. I bluntly refused to work for them and they never contacted me again. So perhaps their intentions weren't all that good... I have also refused to work for one agency because I did not agree with one of the stipulations in its terms and conditions. If all responsibility is put on the shoulders of the translator, I will never accept them.
We translators should remind agencies more often that we are businesses, just like them, and that we need to be treated as such too. But all too often, translators think they are in a weak position. It's amazing how flexible agencies can be if you stick to your guns though...
| | | | Jeff Whittaker
United States
Local time: 14:13
Spanish to English
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Michaël Temmerman wrote:
We translators should remind agencies more often that we are businesses, just like them, and that we need to be treated as such too.
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| Directive 2000/35/EC | Apr 9, 2010 |
If both you and your client are in the EU, it makes sense to remind them of the Directive 2000/35/EC and the respective national law implementing it. This directive regulates the payments between small businesses. It stipulates the default payment term of 30 days unless explicitly agreed otherwise by the parties, sets fairly stiff collection charges you are *automatically* entitled to, and provides for simplified court enforcement. Maybe it's a coincidence, but two or three times I mentioned it ... See more If both you and your client are in the EU, it makes sense to remind them of the Directive 2000/35/EC and the respective national law implementing it. This directive regulates the payments between small businesses. It stipulates the default payment term of 30 days unless explicitly agreed otherwise by the parties, sets fairly stiff collection charges you are *automatically* entitled to, and provides for simplified court enforcement. Maybe it's a coincidence, but two or three times I mentioned it to a late-paying client, I got my payment wired promptly. ▲ Collapse
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