Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

What If The Client Doesn't or Can't Pay?

redAPPLE

redAPPLE

macrumors 68030
Original poster
May 7, 2002
2,691
8
2 Much Infinite Loops
back story: i did some freelancing projects for a certain company (client support, installing printers, configuring email etc.). the work is like 5 hours per week. i get getting my money but the client stopped giving me my dues. the reasoning is, have a lot of stuff to do etc.

unfortunately, there is no written agreement. (yeah yeah, i know. but for a few bucks/hr, i didn't think this would be necessary at the time)

any suggestions what to do, to get my money? i have his passwords. what if i change his email, ebay, etc. passwords, so he stops getting emails and other stuff?

thanks a lot.
 
First and foremost:

DO NOT change anything using his passwords. You will be liable for anything you do using them.

Secondly. Walk away NOW taking your skills with you and make a mental note that you always, always have a written, legal agreement in future.

Been there, got the tee-shirt. This guy is never ever going to pay you, and without a contract you have no recourse to the law either...Take your skills away now.
 
Does Judge Judy still have a show?:p

Seriously, you might want to try small claims court. Other than that you are going to have to just take the loss. I agree with Macman45 that you shouldn't try and mess with your former client's passwords etc. In the future get a signed contract before you start working.
 
Just walk away. If you're lucky they'll find themselves in a hole at some point and will call you out of desperation. Then you get the chance to tell them you're not interested because they never paid you for other work done, and you get closure on the whole thing.

But learn from this. Get a purchase order before you put yourself out. It's not a hobby, it's a career.
 
Macman45 said:
First and foremost:

DO NOT change anything using his passwords. You will be liable for anything you do using them.
....
Click to expand...

mobilehaathi said:
Walk away, and don't even think about doing something with the passwords. How immature are you??
Click to expand...

If you have a friend with the company, have them talk to the owner and get the passwords changed. If the owner wants to make things difficult for you they can claim you've been mucking around on their systems until those passwords are changed. How do you prove you didn't do anything?

Also, if they get coincidentally get hacked by a someone else - when the authorities ask "who knows your passwords?" guess whose name is going to come up first?

Get those passwords changed asap.
 
iJohnHenry said:
By letting them prove that he did? :confused:

Chalk it up as a lesson learned, and if he gets desperate down the road, ask for cash-up-front.
Click to expand...

It is much harder to prove the absence of an action. In this case the company merely has to say that they were breached, and that they are investigating all avenues - which includes the following the list of contractors. Since it is not an allegation, merely a statement of what they are doing there is no defamation.

For our contractor, who may be trying to sign up a new client, they may now have to prove to the new client that they are not involved with the breach. In this case just the whiff of scandal may be enough to hurt their prospects. How much easier for our contractor to be able to say that the company changed the passwords the day they left - therefore the company is tooting up the creek without a beaver (to create a totally nonsensical new metaphor).
 
snberk103 said:
It is much harder to prove the absence of an action. In this case the company merely has to say that they were breached, and that they are investigating all avenues - which includes the following the list of contractors.

Since it is not an allegation, merely a statement of what they are doing there is no defamation.
Click to expand...

In that case one would assume that later, when their investigation has been completed, they would publish the names of vendors vindicated.

With equal vigour!!
 
redAPPLE said:
...but for a few bucks/hr...
Click to expand...

If that is the case... unless you have been working and not getting paid for a long time, I wouldn't think the monetary effect would be that significant. Along with everyone else, I'd say leave it.
 
Leave now and never work for them again. If he won't pay, he won't pay. Don't lose more by trying to fight them.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back