Freelancer completed the job but his account was blocked

[aabramowitz]

Hello, 

I have hired a freelancer here at Upwork to develop some web designs and he completed the job with no worries and the payment was released and completed. After that, he asked me for my email where he told me his account was blocked and he wasn't able to get paid. He then said he would do a refund to me so I can pay him which is weird since he said his account was blocked. But he did refund the money back to me since I wasn't sure what to do.

What's the right policy and what should I do? I want to pay him for his work since it was completed successfully but I feel uneasy to do so outside Upwork.

Any help would be great!

Thank you

[jodypm]

Hi Andre,

Whatever you do, don't do it outside of Upwork. I think that the designer, in leaving Upwork, may be trying to further maximize their earnings by circumventing the Upwork fee or as you've touched on, perhaps their account is not at all closed and they are just trying to circumvent the fees.

I would not pay him or her except on Upwork. Just reach out to them and explain that you're not willing to jeopardize your own good standing and you would be in direct violation of Upwork's TOS.

If the freelancer resists or the account is actually closed, Upwork does have ways of securing deposits and payments through other methods, so I'm reasonably sure that if his or her account is indeed closed, they can still be paid via Upwork with an alternative payment method that allows Upwork to retain their rightful fees and you to remain in good standing.

I am very sorry that you're dealing with this and certainly disappointed that a freelancer would put you in this position.

Jody PM

[aabramowitz]

Lovely, can I send his payment back to him as a bonus and tell him to deal with Upwork about his funds? Thank for your help.

[aabramowitz]

Hey, I have spoken to him and I made a payment back to him with the same amount refunded and told him to deal with Upwork about his payment and not me since I'm using the platform correctly. Thank you!

[jodypm]

Bravo Andre,

That was exaclty the correct thing to do. Freelancers know very well what the rules are here on Upwork. I'm very glad that you made the right decision.

And please don't let that one freelancer spoil the rest of us (the vast majority) who strive to great lengths to follow the rules and provide professional services. 

Best of luck with all your endeavors,

Jody PM

[3ce98b4b]

That's the right thing to do, Upwork is providing best services al over the world seller may be avoiding the Upwork fee which is unethical as platform brings customers to the sellers and why to leave such a huge platform just to save 15-20%?

[khanzada01]

In any case, dont go against the TOS of UPWORK. Upwork provides you best services and is most trust worthy.

[baafbb5a]

I have the same issue - freelancer did the job, and claim they gave Upwork all documents and even had a call with someone there. Now his account has been closed, and he's not sure if he will be paid. I've written to Upwork about this but no reply yet. I previously got a notification from them that they were having trouble verifying his identity. 

[NikolaS]

Hi Adam,

I shared your report with the team handling your case and one of our agents will follow up with you on your support ticket as soon as possible to assist you further.