Poor quality of a job by freelancer. What should I do?

[Sergey G]

I have posted a job to translate my documents from English to German. Today I have received the work, showed it to native German and the translation is awful! Looks like freelance just used google translate with minimal corrections and clearly he doesn't speek good German.

What should I do in this case? I do not need this translation. I definatelly will order new one but I don't want to pay for the current job.

[John K]

Sergey, if it was a fixed price contract, you can ask the freelancer to make changes, or just close the contract, assuming you haven't approved a milestone. If you approved the milestone, you probably have to dispute. If the job was hourly and the freelancer used time tracker, then you're not going to get your money back, unless the freelancer is willing to refund some or all of the money earned.

[Prashant P]

The quality also depends on the price you paid.  Buyers should know that in the end you get what you pay.  There are many high quality German translators, but they do charge north of $50/hr.

[Jennifer R]

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@Prashant P wrote:

The quality also depends on the price you paid.  Buyers should know that in the end you get what you pay.  There are many high quality German translators, but they do charge north of $50/hr.

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That is not true. You find several highly qualified translators working for less as well as unqualified translators for more. The problem is that many clients cannot check the quality of a translation and give good reviews for a really bad job because it was quick and cheap.

[Nicolae C]

Prashant with respect i disagree deeply with your statement! When we look for a contractor we ask for an estimate! Is not about cheap or expensive! Give me a price you re comfortable with! Dont give me a price to get the job than use googke translate or cut corners and give me a shocking unacceptable product! I dont feel bad for canceling contracts when the freelancer is taking me for a fool. I was shocked with the quality of work produced by some and I underline some upwork freelancers! I think they should vet people more. Eg i was looking for a full stack developer, job was priced right but freelancer could not deliver the goods to the agreed timeline?! Why are they allowed to advertise services?! I doubt I ll he using such platforms again. Appalling! And no is not what you pay for, us contractors ask for quotes! Quote properly and bid on jobs you can actually do! Rant end

[Sergey G]

Hi, thanks for a quick reply!

Yes, it was a fixed contract. I've send the documents in advanced and recieved a quote that I latelly agreed as a contract price.

I just send the message to the freelancer explaining why I cannot accept the job. As I understand, then I  need to cancel the contract and put the reason, right?

[Jennifer R]

I have never been in this situation but I guess you can refuse payment for a job that was not really done. Once the freelancer requests the payment to be released you have 2 weeks to check and approve the work. So if it is obviously a google translation with some minor corrections you can dispute the work. Does the freelancer give any proof for his/her qualification?

I think if you want to do a service for other client you should pay a small amount just to be able to leave a written warning for other clients in the feedback. The freelancer might even be happy to get away with some money not thinking of the review at that moment.

I am a translator English to German myself, native in both languages, have graduated as translator and some 20 years experience. I am struggeling on a daily basis to find client willing to pay a decent price for a translation because there are so many low price offers out now. A low price can be an indication for poor quality but a higher price does not necessarily indicates good quality.

[Janean L]

@ Jennifer --

Your English is quite good, but definitely not "native." 

[Ramesh K]

Like John said, if it is a hourly job, Filing a dispute through Upwork’s process must be based on the hours a freelancer has billed you for. That means cannot file a dispute  because you are not satisfied with the quality of the freelancer’s work. In those cases, you and your freelancer should discuss the matter and work together to resolve any issues. You can also request a refund from your freelancer. Still can’t resolve the issue and within 30 days of payment? Please contact customer support to learn about their mediation assistance.

[Rene K]

Many translation clients don't have the work proofread before closing a contract. It's a strategic mistake which leaves bozos with shiny feedback on their profiles.

Upwork is full of bozo translators who are either, a) not native speakers of their target language, or, b) native speakers but who suck at writing. A good translator is someone who has a native command of their target language and who has excellent writing skills.