🐈
» Forums » Clients » Re: Scammed by a freelancer
Page options
63dd8fd5
Community Member

Scammed by a freelancer

Hello ,

as my title says I think I got scammed by a freelancer , I had a task for iOS development , easy to do task with a fixed price , the freelancer agreed on everything then i funded the project , and immediately he withdraw from it , now I cant see any credit on my account !

 

first time on Upwork ! I have no idea whats going the this **edited for Community Guidelines** site explains nothing at all ! 

ACCEPTED SOLUTION
AveryO
Community Manager
Community Manager

Hi Linux, 


I'm sorry to learn that you find using Upwork confusing. I checked your account, and can see that the money in escrow (when you funded the project) has already been credited back to your billing method. This should reflect on your statement within 3 to 5 business days. If you check your Transactions page (Reports > Transactions), you will see that you have already been refunded as noted on transaction with Reference ID 219232041. 


Since you are new here, I recommend that you read up on the resources we have compiled here to help you familiarize yourself with the Upwork platform.


~ Avery
Upwork

View solution in original post

14 REPLIES 14
yitwail
Community Member

You should calm down. If you funded it, it must be a fixed price project, so the money you paid is in escrow, and the freelancer cannot withdraw it until you approve a milestone, or the freelancer requests milestone approval and you do nothing for 14 days. Before any of that happens, you can always cancel the contract and then the money will be returned to you.

__________________________________________________
"No good deed goes unpunished." -- Clare Boothe Luce
63dd8fd5
Community Member

John tank you for your answer 

as I mentioned I am new here so I am really confused ! 
Shouldn't the refund be in my upwork wallet ? 

this is the status of the offerl : Declined - by contractor on January 27, 2019

dzadza
Community Member

 freelancer declined your offer?
so he/she never started working on the project, right?

63dd8fd5
Community Member

Hello Sanja

 

I think he did as long as I hired him but after 2 mns he said sorry i won't do it and withdraw but I see no funds back on my balance like I paid him for nothing .

I've seen posts about this in the forums before. I don't know how the refund process works exactly, but my recollection is that it can take several days.

It seems Your pressed Hire Now Button and sent an offerwhich was declined by freelancer. Hence No contract was started. A contract is started only when your offer is accepted by the freelancer.

Thus there is no question of being scammed. The freelancer has not taken your money but just declined to work for You on this project.

The amount would be refunded to your payment method in a few days.

I am not sure exactly How many days? But Probably upto 5 days.

dzadza
Community Member

I believe he declined your offer - you need to approve milestone release for each milestone your funded. So - if you didn't approve the release of funds - you didn't pay him - so no worries.

AveryO
Community Manager
Community Manager

Hi Linux, 


I'm sorry to learn that you find using Upwork confusing. I checked your account, and can see that the money in escrow (when you funded the project) has already been credited back to your billing method. This should reflect on your statement within 3 to 5 business days. If you check your Transactions page (Reports > Transactions), you will see that you have already been refunded as noted on transaction with Reference ID 219232041. 


Since you are new here, I recommend that you read up on the resources we have compiled here to help you familiarize yourself with the Upwork platform.


~ Avery
Upwork
63dd8fd5
Community Member

John thank you for your answer 

as I mentioned I am new here so I am really confused ! 
Shouldn't the refund be in my upwork wallet ? 

this is the status of the offerl : Declined - by contractor on January 27, 2019

yitwail
Community Member

Linux, I'm not a client or a moderator so I'm not certain about this, but if you want an immediate refund, you may have to cancel the job. Otherwise, I would think the money will remain in escrow, so you can use it to hire a different freelancer for the same job. It's Sunday in US so there may not be any moderators reading this, but if there are, one of them can give you a more authoritative answer.

__________________________________________________
"No good deed goes unpunished." -- Clare Boothe Luce
tlsanders
Community Member

It's always a good idea to read about how a system works before entering your credit card information. As John said, the freelancer has no access to the funds you escrowed--but, you should have known how that worked before you starting shelling out money, don't you think?

Tiffany I agree

I did read some few tips, everything was simple and through but I thought in case of withdraw money is back immediately and you can bid for another freelancer ... 

yitwail
Community Member

Linux, please read my earlier answer.

__________________________________________________
"No good deed goes unpunished." -- Clare Boothe Luce

re: "I thought in case of withdraw money is back immediately and you can bid for another freelancer ... "

 

You can immediately hire another freelancer. There is no limitation on doing so.

 

When a fixed-price contract is cancelled, the money immediately begins is way back to your financial account. It takes 3 to 5 business days. YOU DON'T NEED TO DO ANYTHING. It is completely automatic.

 

As a I client, I have been through this many times.

 

But don't look for the money in your "Upwork wallet." That's not how it works. The money is refunded to your funding source.

Latest Articles
Learning Paths