Contract suspended! What is the reason can be?

[miltechhaseeb]

Hello Experts!

I was working on a contract and this morning I got a message from upwork that the project is suspended - Can you guys let me know what can be the issue?

Suspension Muhammad **Edited for Community Guidelines** with contract xxxxx with abc xyz was temporarily suspended. You will be notified as soon as the problem is resolved.

[petra_r]

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Muhammad H wrote:

I was working on a contract and this morning I got a message from upwork that the project is suspended - Can you guys let me know what can be the issue?

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The issue is on the client's side. Upwork will not tell you what the issue is for privacy reasons. Encourage the client to resolve the matter with Upwork or stay out of it and just wait until you are told that the contract has been resumed.

[rainmaker1145 · Accepted solution]

The usual reasons for this are:

1. Someone in the client business activity chain is stuck and the process had to be put on hold.

2. Client isn't satisfied with your work product or progress.

3. Client has run out of money.

4. Client has abandoned their project and won't admit it to themselves.

I feel for you.  I do high-end consulting on securities offerings (i.e., "capital raises") and there are a forest of issues that have to be brought to heel in order for a deal to move forward.  Clients don't have the necessary information to get my work done.  They have to figure that out.  Then they have to get it done.  They have to have the money to pay for it.  They have to have the time to do what needs to be done while doing everything else.  Bottom line:  I carry quite a few client deals that are not going anywhere until the client does their end.  Nothing to be done about it as it is the nature of the industry.

Don't let this rankle.  Keep on keeping on.  Wash, rinse, repeat.  Beat the drum until the beater breaks, then get two new ones and continue.  You can do this!

[ashrafkhan81]

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Clinton L wrote:

The usual reasons for this are:

1. Someone in the client business activity chain is stuck and the process had to be put on hold.

2. Client isn't satisfied with your work product or progress.

3. Client has run out of money.

4. Client has abandoned their project and won't admit it to themselves.

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Hey Clinton! 

Correct me if I am wrong, but when you receive an email from Upwork it usually means the No.3 or some other ToS violations that may result in Upwork suspending the client account. Once the payment source or whatever caused the suspension has been fixed the contract is fixed. I received such emails for two of my contracts and the clients informed me the problem was with the credit card! 

For #1,2 and 4 Upwork will not suspend the account. 

For # 1 & 4 Client may "Pause" the contact and for # 2 Client can and will end the contract.:) 

[prestonhunter]

Clinton:

The original poster is working on a contract that was suspended by Upwork.

That is different from a contract being paused by the client, which is what your post addresses.

Either way, the freelancer does the same thing: stop working on the project for now.

[miltechhaseeb]

Thank you all of you guys for shedding light on it and also for the advice.

One thing is for sure that the client was very satisfied with my work even the project was complete but we both were working with some other guys for another piece of the work. We had planned to work on it for the long term.

The verdict from your guys' opinions -- that the client is having an issue with his credit card because I remember when he contacted me (in beginning) that he had some trouble with is his card, he is fixing it back then.

Well, in short, I need to stop worrying about it and pause the work in the meantime.

[prestonhunter]

re: "in short, I need to stop worrying about it and pause the work in the meantime."

Yes.

Don't worry about this.

You didn't do anything wrong.

The best way to think of the situation is:

"Not your problem."

You can't fix somebody else's credit card problem. If you contacted Upwork about it, they would tell you they can't say anything about it.

When this happens to me, I just wait until I receive notification from Upwork that the contract is un-suspended. Sometimes that takes a few hours. Sometimes it takes a few days. Sometimes the matter is never resolved. Not my problem.