Non-Payment issues for Hourly contracts and a solution for UpWork.

[russtice]

So this apparently has be come more then a trend on Upwork recently.

Clients asking for services, getting said services then vanishing in a week or slightly more. Then you guessed it, their account is suspended for insufficient funds. I also see a trend of UpWork refunding hours on the backend(basically to cover their_ _ _ _).

The payment gaurantee is heavly weighted towards work that requires keystrokes and mouse movements and clicks. Great if you are a writer, Not so great for a multitude of other professions that don't require it to be successful. So what could UpWork do to remedy or possibly improve on dilinquent client/payer situations. 

Why not have a system that protects both Upwork and Freelancers at the same time.

Currently the client can set a specific hours a client can not exceed without client approval. Why not be upfront with clients and escrow that amount for a given week (used or not). This ensures funds are available right up front for that given week and should eliminate the need to ever send the dreaded email that your clients funds didn't come through after the fact. 

A worried Freelancer looking for a better way. 

 

[feed_my_eyes]

Why don't you use fixed price contracts instead? Give the client an estimate of your hours, have them put it into escrow, then if it takes you less time than expected, you could refund some of the amount back to your client. (That's basically what you've just suggested, isn't it?)

[russtice]

I have been burned one to many times with Fixed-Priced contracts to be honest. They love the work right up to the time they need to pay, then dissapear.  Not only that, in my line of business it's extremely beneficial to pass assests back and forth to the client during the process. 

[russtice]

And no, that wasn't my recommendation at all. My recommendation would be to take a whatever the client agreed to in hours and place a hold charge for the hours agreed upon prior(used or not). If it doesn't go through for one reason or another both parties are notified up front at the begining of the week versus after the fact. 

[feed_my_eyes]

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Russell T wrote:

And no, that wasn't my recommendation at all. My recommendation would be to take a whatever the client agreed to in hours and place a hold charge for the hours agreed upon prior(used or not). If it doesn't go through for one reason or another both parties are notified up front at the begining of the week versus after the fact. 

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How is this different from an escrow payment on a fixed price contract? Are you saying that clients should actually release the payment before you do any work? I doubt that you'll find many who would agree to that.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Russell T wrote:

I have been burned one to many times with Fixed-Priced contracts to be honest. They love the work right up to the time they need to pay, then dissapear.  Not only that, in my line of business it's extremely beneficial to pass assests back and forth to the client during the process. 

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What do you mean, they just disappear? If there's money in the escrow account (and there should be, otherwise you shouldn't start working), then they can't just get a refund without your consent.

[petra_r]

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Russell T wrote:

I have been burned one to many times with Fixed-Priced contracts to be honest. They love the work right up to the time they need to pay, then dissapear.  

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How do you get burned in that case? You get paid automatically?

[russtice]

What I mean by being burned. Well, this forum is full of examples of issues with Escrow. That being said, I would love to see upworks stats on how many milestone projects get canceled/refunded after starting. That data alone should speak volumes on the issues with Escrow. Not saying you can't mitigate issues faced by Freelancers that relate to Escrow but its still prone to it. At least thats been my experience.