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sourceprouk
Community Member

Fixed price contract cancelled by client - escrow release.

I would like feed-back from people who have had this experience please.

 

I am in a dispute with a client. I did a first milestone for a fixed price, it was completed, delivered and the client released the funds (he was happy). Then he deposited money in Escrow for milestone 2. As I was carrying out the work on milestone 2, I delivered to him reports and/or work I had been carrying out. He was aware of it. He then cancelled the milestone, before I could complete it, and asked for the whole amount in escrow to be returned to him. I said I wanted the proportion of the work, I carried out in the milestone, paid and the rest could be returned to him. It has gone into a dispute.

 

My main question is about what the support team told me which I do not believe: if the milestone is cancelled, the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client. This would be unacceptable in any business transaction in the outside world. In fact, there I would ask for the whole amount to be paid to me as it was a mutual commitment. They referred me to the terms of work but there I found that this was only the case if the freelancer cancelled the job.

 

Who is right?

37 REPLIES 37
wlyonsatl
Community Member

It isn't about "right." Federico.

 

It's about what's easiest and least expensive for Upwork to administer.

 

Upwork can't afford to adjudicate every potential conflict between clients and freelancers, so there are some hard rules about how certain things are done on Upwork that are absolute and non-negotiable. This is one of them.

 

Not that it's much help to you now, but this is why I break down the very few fixed price jobs I do into multiple milestones with the largest milestones first. And why I formally submit the work on a milestone before it is 100% complete, telling the client as part of the submission what I think remains to be done to complete that milestone. That starts the 14-day time clock and gives the (honest) client plenty of time to review and revise before releasing payment. It's harder for a client to avoid payment on a funded milestone once work has been submitted under it.

 

 


Will L wrote:

It's harder for a client to avoid payment on a funded milestone once work has been submitted under it.


Is it? I'm not sure that's true. What's to stop a client requesting changes and then closing the contract? Or even closing the contract without requesting changes? I could be wrong, but I suspect that in either case the freelancer will receive the same "refund or dispute" message that they would have received if they hadn't submitted the work.

I don't know, Richard.

 

Perhaps someone who works for Upwork or our non-paid Upwork experts here can perfectly answer that question.


Richard W wrote:

Will L wrote:

It's harder for a client to avoid payment on a funded milestone once work has been submitted under it.


Is it? I'm not sure that's true.


It isn't.


What's more, cutting a contract in lots of milestone is no protection either, because clients can dispute the entire contract, all 67 milestones, including the 66 approved and paid ones if they like, as long as they dispute within 30 days of the last one being charged.

Well, perhaps there's one advantage to having already submitted the work when the client cancels. If the case goes to arbitration you'd have irrefutable proof that you'd already done the work before the client cancelled, and so the arbitrator may be more likely to award you the full escrow. (But from what I've read here, if it gets that far, the freelancer usually wins anyway.)

 

ETA. ...and that might strengthen your negotiating position during mediation.


Petra R wrote:


What's more, cutting a contract in lots of milestone is no protection either, because clients can dispute the entire contract, all 67 milestones, including the 66 approved and paid ones if they like, as long as they dispute within 30 days of the last one being charged.


Petra, in this situation is the onus still on the freelancer to pay for arbitration (because the client wins by default if neither party pays for arbitration)?


Richard W wrote:

Petra R wrote:


What's more, cutting a contract in lots of milestone is no protection either, because clients can dispute the entire contract, all 67 milestones, including the 66 approved and paid ones if they like, as long as they dispute within 30 days of the last one being charged.


Petra, in this situation is the onus still on the freelancer to pay for arbitration (because the client wins by default if neither party pays for arbitration)?


In this case the freelancer either pays for arbitration, agrees to the request, or gets suspended.

 


Will L wrote:

It isn't about "right." Federico.

 

It's about what's easiest and least expensive for Upwork to administer.

 

Upwork can't afford to adjudicate every potential conflict between clients and freelancers, so there are some hard rules about how certain things are done on Upwork that are absolute and non-negotiable. This is one of them.

 

Not that it's much help to you now, but this is why I break down the very few fixed price jobs I do into multiple milestones with the largest milestones first. And why I formally submit the work on a milestone before it is 100% complete, telling the client as part of the submission what I think remains to be done to complete that milestone. That starts the 14-day time clock and gives the (honest) client plenty of time to review and revise before releasing payment. It's harder for a client to avoid payment on a funded milestone once work has been submitted under it.

 

 


I am really talking about the strict 'legality' as per the Upwork terms.

I sincerely doubt what you say works. I do not  know your field, but on mine it will be evident to the client when the milestone is not complete and I guess 90% will say that they cannot release the money before the job is complete. Then they will scream about the 14 day period. 

 

Yes, Federico, each freelancer specialty has its quirks and best payment structure.

 

My projects nearly always have multiple detailed elements, all of which are interconnected - one cannot be completely finished until it is part of the finished whole. I haven't yet had a client who didn't understand that. With so few fixed price projects, I may never have that happen.

 

However, sometimes clients go silent partway through a project, never to be heard from again. By putting the highest value on the earliest milestones the client going AWOL loses me less income. Obviously, that arrangement isn't appropriate for every project. But it typically is for mine.

 

Good luck with this particular client. Please come back to this thread and let us know how it works out for you.

jkrl
Community Member

I am going through this right now, over a small first milestone. The client simply says "the work is off-point", with no definition. He thinks he has the right to not pay me???

This is shocking. I've been designing over 25 years with major corporations and don't remember this ever happening to me. Why should anyone work on a fixed price contract? Why does Upwork allow this to happen? This is illegal, clients hiring and not paying for work completed.

re: "I am going through this right now, over a small first milestone. The client simply says 'the work is off-point', with no definition. He thinks he has the right to not pay me???"

 

I don't know. Maybe he genuinely thinks he has the right to not pay you. Or maybe he is just saying this as a way to try to avoid paying you.

 

Either way, he is wrong.

 

How a fixed-price contract is meant to be used is simple:

- Freelancer agrees to do a certain task for a client

- Freelancer does the task

- Client released agreed-upon payment to freelancer

 

It is NOT a "contest" or a "lottery." If the freelancer does the task, the client is supposed to pay her.

 

What if a client believes that the freelancer's work is aesthetically "off-point"? It is absolutely the client's right to feel that way. If that happens, then the client should choose to NOT work with the freelancer again. But the client still needs to pay for the work.

 

The client is NOT obligated to use the work in his final project.

 

In fact, a client may hire as many freelancers as he wants to work on the same task, and doesn't need to use ANY of their work. But he does need to pay for all for the work he commissions.

 

re: "This is shocking. I've been designing over 25 years with major corporations and don't remember this ever happening to me. Why should anyone work on a fixed price contract? Why does Upwork allow this to happen? This is illegal, clients hiring and not paying for work completed."

 

I agree that this sort of client behavior is completely inappropriate. I am glad to hear that you haven't had this happen to you before.

 

You are CORRECT that the Upwork fixed-price contract system has PROBLEMS in that it DOES ALLOW clients to behave badly, if they choose to do so. Such clients are NOT acting within the "spirit of the law," but there ARE buttons they can click to request a refund, or "request changes" purely for the purpose of avoiding payment.

 

Fortunately most Upwork clients behave responsibly and do not abuse the client-side controls available to them. But some clients do abuse these, causing problems for freelancers.

 

That's where we are now. I don't know that there is an easy fix. Because by putting money in escrow, Upwork is obligated to allow clients to approve or disapprove of work submitted by freelancers.

 

As freelancers using fixed-price contracts, we are somewhat at the mercy of clients, and rely on them to behave responsibly and ethically.

 

Ultimately, if clients refuse to release payment for fixed-price work, freelancers can file disputs, and even go to arbitration.

 

There is no button available to freelancers labelled: "Well, Despite What the Client Says, I Know I Did the Work, So Force Release of the Payment."

Upwork needs to have a job overseer who will look at job done and approve payment. Otherwise, freelancers get scammed. Clients can't refuse to pay because they "don't like" work done for them. 

petra_r
Community Member


Jennifer K wrote:

Upwork needs to have a job overseer who will look at job done and approve payment. 


No. Who in the world would pay for that?


Plus there is the fact that Upwork can not legally decide over Escrow funds.

 


Jennifer K wrote:

Otherwise, freelancers get scammed.


Why? The client can not get the Escrow funds back without your permission (yes, you'd have to dispute.)

 

 

 

jkrl
Community Member

My impression is that if mediation is not successful, the freelancer can choose to arbitrate at a cost of $291. Releasing of the funds is always in control of the client, correct? Is the mediation cost worth it for a $200 job? 

re: "My impression is that if mediation is not successful, the freelancer can choose to arbitrate at a cost of $291. Releasing of the funds is always in control of the client, correct? Is the mediation cost worth it for a $200 job?"

 

Yes: The release of funds is controlled by the client.

 

There is NO COST for mediation, which is what happens when either client or freelancer files a dispute.

Mediation is NOT binding. Mediation means that an Upwork mediator encourages a client and freelancer to work things out.

 

If mediation does not resolve the issue, then the next step is arbitration.

 

That costs $291 for the freelancer, client and Upwork. Each. The money is NOT refundable.

 

So... there is essentially no "financial risk" in going to mediation... because there is no charge for that. If the client is NOT releasing any money, and the case goes to mediation, then maybe that results in the client releasing money. So going to the dispute/mediation stage can make sense for a freelancer.

 

Your final question was wondering if it is worth it to pay $291 to go to arbitration for a $200 job?

 

Obviously the math here may not make sense.

 

If I'm a freelancer, should I pay $291 in order to POSSIBLY receive $200?

It would seem that I would be guaranteed to lose $91, at least.

 

HOWEVER: If the client BACKS DOWN, and decides to NOT go forward to arbitration, then NOBODY pays $291, and the money goes to the freelancer.

 

So there is a bit of a gamble here. As a freelancer, I can tell the mediator that I will not accept a settlement, and I am willing to go to arbitration. If the client backs down, then I get all $200.

 

The whole topic may seem infuriating or preposterous... but it is better to understand the system than to not undestand it.

 

My own practice is to avoid the whole dispute/arbitration scenario by proactively only accepting small fixed-price contracts with unfamiliar clients. That way I don't get in "too deep" with a lot of work and I can afford to just walk away if a client is being unreasonable. I start out with fixed-price contracts worth only an hour or two of my time. I can take a hard line with clients if necessary and tell them that they need to pay the agreed-upon amount, without me doing extra work beyond the scope of the project, or they will not receive ownership of the work and I will not be able to continue working on their project.

Upwork has said it will, in certain circumstances, make decisions about money in escrow, such as:

 

Upwork’s 2018 10-K, Page 4

 

We are licensed as an internet escrow agent by the California Department of Business Oversight (“DBO”). Pursuant to the DBO’s regulations, funds that we hold on behalf of clients and freelancers are held in our escrow account and are released only according to escrow instructions that have been agreed upon by freelancers and clients.

 

(If it were strictly a matter of law, freelancers and clients would not have to "agree" to it. Laws aren't enforced based on whether individuals have previously "agreed" to abide by them."

 

... and this from Upwork's Web site...

 

Upwork’s Escrow , Section 5.1 Item 7.


(If we) believe, in our sole discretion, that fraud, an illegal act, or a violation of Upwork's Terms of Service has been committed or is being committed or attempted... Client and Freelancer hereby irrevocably authorize and instruct Upwork Escrow to take such actions as we deem appropriate in our sole discretion and in accordance with applicable law, in order to prevent or remedy such acts, including without limitation to return the funds associated with such acts to their source of payment.

 

Upwork doesn't violate the law if freelancers and clients have both agreed to specific escrow account terms and conditions.

 

https://www.upwork.com/legal#escrow-hourly

 

But, generally, Upwork doesn't want to get in the middle of who gets what on fixed price projects, so after free Upwork mediation fails to find common ground for freelancer and client, either or both freelancer and client can decide to spend $291 for professional arbitration.

 

I'd expect a tiny fraction of Upwork projects with a value below $291 are ever arbitrated.

petra_r
Community Member


Federico D wrote:

 

My main question is about what the support team told me which I do not believe: if the milestone is cancelled, the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client.


This is wrong. ONLY if you agree to return the funds, or if mediation fails to find a mutually agreeable solution (it is NON-BINDING!) and you fail to pay to go to arbitration and the client pays.

 


Federico D wrote:

 They referred me to the terms of work but there I found that this was only the case if the freelancer cancelled the job.

 

Who is right?


You are. If what you recall is what happened and not some misunderstanding, I have to say that I wish they trained support reps to either know what they are talking about, or to say "Sorry, I don't know, let me find out for you!"

 

If the client cancels a funded milestone and you dispute, it enters dispute mediation.Most disputes are settled during this stage. Only if no resolution can be found, the mediator will offer (expensive at $ 291 a pop) arbitration to make a ruling.

If the freelancer ends the contract and there is a funded milestone, the money goes back to the client.

 

That said, I am not sure why you contacted Support, the place to ask questions about the dispute process is in the dispute.

 

 

 

 


Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

 

My main question is about what the support team told me which I do not believe: if the milestone is cancelled, the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client.


This is wrong. ONLY if you agree to return the funds, or if mediation fails to find a mutually agreeable solution (it is NON-BINDING!) and you fail to pay to go to arbitration and the client pays.


...OR if neither party pays for arbitration. If mediation fails, the onus is on the freelancer to pay for arbitration, because, if neither party pays, the escrow is refunded to the client. Effectively, escrow is no protection against an unscrupulous client unless you're willing to risk $291.

 

If you DO pay $291 for arbitration and the client doesn't, then you win by default (without arbitration), get all the money in escrow and your $291 is refunded.

 

If both parties pay $291 each for arbitration, then the arbitrator decides how much of the escrow money you get, but once the case has gone to arbitration you won't get your $291 back.


Richard W wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

 

My main question is about what the support team told me which I do not believe: if the milestone is cancelled, the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client.


This is wrong. ONLY if you agree to return the funds, or if mediation fails to find a mutually agreeable solution (it is NON-BINDING!) and you fail to pay to go to arbitration and the client pays.


...OR if neither party pays for arbitration. If mediation fails, the onus is on the freelancer to pay for arbitration, because, if neither party pays, the escrow is refunded to the client. Effectively, escrow is no protection against an unscrupulous client unless you're willing to risk $291.

 

If you DO pay $291 for arbitration and the client doesn't, then you win by default (without arbitration), get all the money in escrow and your $291 is refunded.

 

If both parties pay $291 each for arbitration, then the arbitrator decides how much of the escrow money you get, but once the case has gone to arbitration you won't get your $291 back.


That happened on the only other dispute I have had, I called the client's bluff. I paid my $291 for arbitration. The client did not and he did not get his money back.

I did not contact support, the client did. 
Another thing is that the support team want to end the disputes ASAP and they are given to tell you porky pies for you to accept an immediate solution, even it is disadvantageous to you. This happened to me in a previous dispute and, if I had listened to the mediator, I would have lost money.

I suspected it, that is why I came to ask here.


Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?

tlbp
Community Member


Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?


That was my first thought. Cheaters gonna cheat.


Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?


Hang on a sec, lying how? About what?


Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?


Hang on a sec, lying how? About what?


About Support saying that to him


Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?


Hang on a sec, lying how? About what?


About Support saying that to him


No, support said that to me. Do you know that they send copies of the same messages to both parties?


Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?


Hang on a sec, lying how? About what?


About Support saying that to him


No, support said that to me. Do you know that they send copies of the same messages to both parties?


So this was a conversation in dispute-mediation, **NOT** from Support?

 

If the mediator really said that (that "if the milestone is cancelled (by the client), the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client."), that's outrageous.


Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?


Hang on a sec, lying how? About what?


About Support saying that to him


No, support said that to me. Do you know that they send copies of the same messages to both parties?


So this was a conversation in dispute-mediation, **NOT** from Support?

 

If the mediator really said that (that "if the milestone is cancelled (by the client), the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client."), that's outrageous.


Yep, the mediator said it. She said if it is cancelled (not by whom) and that is what bothers me about telling you things in order to get rid of the problem quickly. Believe me, Upwork loathe disputes. Last time I had a dispute, the mediator got upset with me because I was not accepting the solution that was easy for him, but at my expense. Then he tried to scare me with the cost and process for the arbitrator.


Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

Petra R wrote:

Federico D wrote:

I did not contact support, the client did. 


Ah...

Have you thought about the possibility that the client is lying to you?


Hang on a sec, lying how? About what?


About Support saying that to him


No, support said that to me. Do you know that they send copies of the same messages to both parties?


So this was a conversation in dispute-mediation, **NOT** from Support?

 

If the mediator really said that (that "if the milestone is cancelled (by the client), the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client."), that's outrageous.


Yep, the mediator said it. She said if it is cancelled (not by whom) and that is what bothers me about telling you things in order to get rid of the problem quickly. Believe me, Upwork loathe disputes. Last time I had a dispute, the mediator got upset with me because I was not accepting the solution that was easy for him, but at my expense. Then he tried to scare me with the cost and process for the arbitrator.


--------------

In the dispute stage, the mediator, can only SUGGEST. It may sound scary, upsetting, and it may even sound like this is the decision and this is what you Have to do. Whatever they say to you is NOT, I repeat NOT binding. It can not be binding, or a final decision because they are employed by Upwork. They should NOT be using scare tactics or any other tactics. They can only suggest. 

It is NOT appropriate for an UPWORK MEDIATOR to get upset with you because you didn't accept their SUGGESTION. 

 

Some people are Extremely sensitive, and may fixate on one word or take one word out of content and interpret it the wrong way. (NOT saying you did) but if the mediator got upset, that is not professional and that is not what they are supposed to do. So if that did happen, I hope that someone will look into that matter and re-educate the mediators on the appropriate behavior that they should exhibit when dealing with clients and freelances no matter how difficult the situation may be. 

 

Remember, this is YOUR problem and you need to do what is right for you. I have no idea what the total cost of this project is. What you're been paid so far, and what amount is funded into the 2nd milestone. I also do not know what percentage of work was done, in relationship to the requirements of the 2nd milestone. 

 

If neither one of you can come to a decision about payment, then the next and last step is arbitration. That is done through a 3rd party not affiliated with Upwork. Whatever their decision is, it IS binding. And to go into arbitration there is a cost. It's $291 for you and also $291 for the client. There are 3 possible scenarios that can happen.

  1. If you pay the fee and the client doesn't you automatically get your fee back plus the entire amount that is in escrow
  2. if you AND the client both pay the fee, neither one of you will get that fee back, The "winner" will only get what is in escrow.
  3. if the client pays the fee and you don't, the client will get their fee back plus whatever is in escrow and YOU will have your account suspended. 

This is only a decision that you alone can make, And it depends not only on the amount of money involved that's in escrow and the amount of work you did, how sure you are of winning in arbitration, but also on just the principle of the thing.  

lysis10
Community Member


Federico D wrote:

I would like feed-back from people who have had this experience please.

 

I am in a dispute with a client. I did a first milestone for a fixed price, it was completed, delivered and the client released the funds (he was happy). Then he deposited money in Escrow for milestone 2. As I was carrying out the work on milestone 2, I delivered to him reports and/or work I had been carrying out. He was aware of it. He then cancelled the milestone, before I could complete it, and asked for the whole amount in escrow to be returned to him. I said I wanted the proportion of the work, I carried out in the milestone, paid and the rest could be returned to him. It has gone into a dispute.

 

My main question is about what the support team told me which I do not believe: if the milestone is cancelled, the whole amount in escrow is returned to the client. This would be unacceptable in any business transaction in the outside world. In fact, there I would ask for the whole amount to be paid to me as it was a mutual commitment. They referred me to the terms of work but there I found that this was only the case if the freelancer cancelled the job.

 

Who is right?


 

Not sure if this is a misinterpretation of what was said, but the best way to handle these things is just figure out how much you'll take until you want to go into arbitration and let the mediator know. The money is taken out of the review portion of your financials, so I guess technically escrow is not there until you guys come to an agreement. I think in this situation there is some mininterpretation going on, maybe even the mediator is misunderstanding you.

VladimirG
Community Manager
Community Manager

Hi Federico,

 

I'm sorry about the issue you're having on this contract. I reviewed your dispute ticket and didn't find the agent's message you referenced about Escrow funds being automatically returned to the client when canceling a funded Milestone, which is incorrect of course. Could you please send me a screenshot of that specific message?

~ Vladimir
Upwork


Vladimir G wrote:

Hi Federico,

 

I'm sorry about the issue you're having on this contract. I reviewed your dispute ticket and didn't find the agent's message you referenced about Escrow funds being automatically returned to the client when canceling a funded Milestone, which is incorrect of course. Could you please send me a screenshot of that specific message?


Can I ask why you are asking me for this:
1-Because you think I am lying and you want to show people?
2- Because you want to help?
Is it not enough for you to confirm or deny that if the client cancels the job half way in the milestone, and knowing that the freelancer has been working on the job, he gets all the money he deposited in escrow back?


Federico D wrote:


Can I ask why you are asking me for this:
1-Because you think I am lying and you want to show people?
2- Because you want to help?
Is it not enough for you to confirm or deny that if the client cancels the job half way in the milestone, and knowing that the freelancer has been working on the job, he gets all the money he deposited in escrow back?


When a client asks for a refund of the milestone, the *entire amount* is up for dispute, so yes the entire amount is pulled from your financial reports until it's settled. Once it's settled, then you get whatever you agreed on within 5 days of the dispute settling.


Whatever the dispute agent said, I think there is a disconnect in communication and I think it  happens often in these situations because people are all riled up cuz it's money that people are arguing over.

 

If I can pass anything down from my experience in my many manyyyy disputes, mediation is NOT A BIG DEAL. It should take you three seconds to reply to an agent and just tell them that you will take x amount or you want arbitration. The whole mediation process is templated. The mediator will come back to you and ask you if you'll do this thing to settle it. Say "no" and say again "I want x amount or arbitration" and then she will tell you to pay up. Pay up and leave it on the client to pay up and 99% of the time they will back out.

 

Mediation will last like 3 emails and two weeks if you just do what I say and people stop trying to be "right" all the time. It doesn't matter who is right.

I have already said how much I want for the work I did during the milestone time but if you have a bad and stubborn client, he will continue to cause trouble.

 

What Vladimir is not saying about what has been said, on examining the exchange of messages in the dispute, is that the client has threatened legal action outside Upwork and it would be directed against them as well as going in the Internet and saying publicly that Upwork is a rip off organisation that fooled him and took his money for nothing, etc. etc.

If Upwork does not realise who they are dealing with, from the messages this client has sent to them and me, then I really do not know what the mediator is thinking.

I sincerely hope that Upwork will remove the negative feed-back this client has left from me in retaliation because, in fact, they will know how it feels to be the recipient of it once he goes on the Internet.

That is a question all of us would like to know the answer to, Federico. 

 

Some people on this board claim to know all of Upwork's policies, procedures, etc., but if they are not written and available to the rest of us Upwork's great moderators (like Vladimir) are always our best source of reliable information.

Hi Federico,

 

I'd like to clarify that I followed up on your report in the Community that you've received incorrect information from the Upwork dispute agent managing your case and asked for a confirmation. After reviewing the whole conversation and additional support tickets, in order to make sure I cover all bases, I responded confirming the policy in my response and asking you to provide additional information since I wasn't able to locate the response you mentioned. We are keen on addressing any misinformation that might originate on our end as well as clarifying any misunderstanding of the information we provide in communication with our users. To that effect, I've also consulted our Dispute team and received a confirmation that the agent provided correct information.

Feel free to follow up on your ticket if you'd like to receive private clarification about any detail mentioned in the conversation on your ticket and our team will be more than happy to assist you.

~ Vladimir
Upwork


Vladimir G wrote:

Hi Federico,

 

I'm sorry about the issue you're having on this contract. I reviewed your dispute ticket and didn't find the agent's message you referenced about Escrow funds being automatically returned to the client when canceling a funded Milestone, which is incorrect of course. Could you please send me a screenshot of that specific message?


Hi, 
I have checked the message the mediator send me. She said that the client has got the right to cancel the milestone but that money paid to me and/or returned to him was by mutual agreement. This is what worried me. Why do I need the client to agree to pay for the work I can prove I have done when the money is in escrow. Although she did say that the nexy option was arbitration.

Hi Federico,

 

Thanks for the follow-up. While I won't share the exact wording the agent used in the response and also the wording from the ToS section she referenced, I can confirm the agent was referring to the mediation part of the dispute process and to agreeing on terms to end the dispute at that stage, with outlining arbitration as the subsequent step. For the benefit of other users, I would like to confirm the agent used accurate terminology, correct information and related ToS references. My intention with reiterating this publicly is to address any possible questions or suspicion of the quality of support we're providing, especially in case of sensitive issues and processes like disputes usually are, which reports like these legitimately raise and which we take seriously. Feel free to reach out to me personally or on your open ticket in case you'd like to discuss any specific information directly. 

~ Vladimir
Upwork
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