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peteratefa
Community Member

Fraud Client / Unjust System

I Would like to share my poor experience on Upwork ...

 

I starting working on a contract with a client from India-Bangalore. He requested translating 2 books worth 30,623 words. I used the help of my wife, we worked for 7days and nights continious to finish the job, because of his tight scheduale. The contract should be finished and i should be paid, but he never did. I missed the fact that he only deposited in Escrow 10$ 🙂

 

He then requested that we proofread 3 more books worth 38,440 words. after finishing 2of them, he still wouldn't pay. I kept the last file as a mean to bargain.

 

13 days later, i'm still not paid. I started contacting other freelancers and they said the same, he hasen't paid. We all reported him on hopes to flag him and stop him, but that didn't happed too.

 

I had to do something a bit hasty. I faced the fraud client and threatened him politely. I told him that i will track any traces of any new similar fake accounts he makes and report him. I'll warn any other freelancers of his fake activity. and guess what happens... I WAS FLAGGED 🙂

 

Customer support didn't feed me back on any of the reports i filed against this guy. They asked me to ask him to put the funds in Escrow! I might as well beg for him! 

 

Right now, he changed the contract from 306 $, to just 10$. Because he simply can, and i can't do anything about it...

 

It seems that freelancers are the biggest loosers in all this. I would like to summarize my bad experience:

1- The Client can set scope of work as he likes. If you finish the scope, he can simple add more work and blame you of not finishing the scope.

2- Customer support won't help you when flagging a client, but will flag you if a client reports you.

3- Clients can post a job without guaranteeing the pay, and you will have to beg them to pay.

4- A client can have an account without a real photo. or at least that's my case.

 

It was a very humiliating experience, and a very poor feedback from the customer support too. The kind of experience that puts you off from pursuing freelance work ever again.

 

Thanks for your time

17 REPLIES 17
g_vasilevski
Retired Team Member
Retired Team Member

Hi Peter,

 

I`m sorry to hear about the bad experience you had. Feel free to send me your Contract ID or title via PM (Click on my name) and our team will investigate this further.

Please keep in mind that our Fixed Price Protection does not cover promised funds or unfunded milestones, to learn more about this check out our guide Here.  When working on fixed price contracts always make sure that the agreed budget is fully funded in Escrow.  When you submit your work on your milestone, after 14 days the funds will be transferred to your account if no actions are taken from the client side. Keep in mind that if you resubmit the work again you will reset the 14 days period.

To learn more how to protect yourself you can also check out the Safety First section on this thread. Thank you.

~ Goran
Upwork
petra_r
Community Member


Peter A wrote:

. I missed the fact that he only deposited in Escrow 10$ 🙂


You won't miss that next time, will you?

 


Peter A wrote:

 

I starting working on a contract with a client from India-Bangalore. He requested translating 2 books worth 30,623 words. I used the help of my wife, we worked for 7days and nights continious to finish the job, because of his tight scheduale.


Why? You are an architect, not a translator? Why would you accept a translation job?

 


Peter A wrote:

 

I had to do something a bit hasty. I faced the fraud client and threatened him politely.


There is no such thing as "politely threatening a client."

Threatening a client will never end well.

 

Ultimately you mismanaged a contract you had no business accepting in the first place.

If only $ 10 were in Escrow, you should have submitted only $ 10 worth of work.

 

 

You have a way of pressing on the swollen wound that is actually very annoying.

Here is what i think :

1- You haven't seen what i've been through to reach this desperate situation. not an excuse in any way, but i clearly said it was a hasty decision. I see you referred to him as a client, when he obviously turned to be a fraud. with the testimony of almost every one who dealt with him.

2- I finished the contract perfectly. I did the translation, what's your business as to what i should accept or what not?

3- all your comments were very negative. Of course i won't do this mistake any more, no need to mention it.

 

If you're not providing a solution, at least don't put on my burden more weight. I can't take more loss than i already did ...

Peter, that's a terrible story. How come you were doing a translation job while you're a graphic designer? Were you invited to do a translation?

Thanks Luce. 

i understand Hebrew, but my wife works as a professor in the university teaching Hebrew, so i applied accordingly. and i discribed my case to the client in the offer, He accepted that

OK. Because the "client" may have been targeting freelancers.

 

I find your story really horrible. I didn't know a client could just change the contract. What Petra says is true though, you should only have delivered a little bit of the translation, since he was planning to pay $10. But I guess you were too tired of translating to clearly see the trap.

 

 

You accepted a job that you are not qualified for (not a skill that you offer), used the help of your wife (not allowed, you can get suspended for that), did not even check the escrow amount (would have taken a second to do before you work night and day for a week), then accepted even more work (why oh why) and then threatened the client. (does not get more unprofessional.)

The next thing you did wrong is posting the whole sad story here. (no insight in your wrongdoings)

Just use the platform as intended, and you will be perfectly safe. One question, though: how did you contact other freelancers that worked with him? I don't think this is possible without posting a job? 


Martina P wrote:

... used the help of your wife (not allowed, you can get suspended for that)


No, with the client's permission subcontracting is acceptable.

 

Peter, which language did you translate into?

 

Luce N wrote:

I didn't know a client could just change the contract.

 


A client can't.

From English to Hebrew

Martina, I guess he's learning this lesson. Don't make it worse!

Petra, thanks for the info on clients not being able to just change the contract. That would be a nightmare!

 

Martina,

 

This new freelancer made many mistakes, no doubt. But anyone who thinks it is easy-peazy to use Upwork from Day One has been on Upwork long enough to forget more than a newby can ever know. 

 

You say, "you used the help of your wife (not allowed, you can get suspended for that)." 

 

I am not aware of anything Upwork has publicly stated in the way of whom a freelancer is "allowed" to use to help fulfill an Upwork contract. Where did you get your information from?

Never mind. I see Petra set the record straight on allowable helpers.


Will L wrote:

 

I am not aware of anything Upwork has publicly stated in the way of whom a freelancer is "allowed" to use to help fulfill an Upwork contract. Where did you get your information from?


They have, but it changed over the years. It used to be that subcontracting was not allowed, full stop. Then it was changed to only being allowed for fixed rate contracts. It's stated in the terms.

 

It would appear that "Peter's" account is gone anyway, but the point of those of us who originally commented went off on a tangent - We are translators. "Peter" or whatever his name is, is not a translator, does not list either translation as a skill nor Hebrew as a language he speaks, and even admits that he merely "understands" it. So he took a job doing something that is outside his skillset, translating from one language he does not master into another he doesn't either.

 

He is an architect. What he is doing is a bit like a translator trying to design a house using a can opener.

Those of us who are translators see the consequences of such things on a daily basis.

 

So yes, the client did behave apallingly badly, but likely got what he paid for. The translation equivalent of a house designed with a can opener.

 

yitwail
Community Member

Petra, this is one of the most egregious examples of a client cheating a freelancer by not fully funding a milestone that I’ve seen, and I’ve seen more than a few. It would be nice if one time Upwork could sanction a client for this kind of skullduggery. For instance, since the client had the gall to flag the freelancer, perhaps Upwork could balance the scales and suspend the client. It’s not as though the client is contributing a lot to Upwork’s bottom line.
__________________________________________________
"No good deed goes unpunished." -- Clare Boothe Luce
petra_r
Community Member


John K wrote:
. For instance, since the client had the gall to flag the freelancer, perhaps Upwork could balance the scales and suspend the client.

For all we know, they have already done so.

lysis10
Community Member

The honeypot of the Upwork forums strikes again.

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