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irfanwebexpert
Community Member

Won the award from AAA and still did not receive that award amount.

I won the dispute and AAA award me with the amount in escrow and I have not received it yet and it is showing in pending from a month. The amount was in escrow with upwork and why did I not receive it yet? I paid for AAA and did everything you asked, but this is not fair. It has been long. Please help. 

 

You guys asked me to proceed with AAA and I did for that, now when I got awarded. The reply i get from upwork is that contact the client? Why? and how can I even contact him? Why should I?

 

I have been working from the past decade and I do not know why you are treating me and not responding me like you should. 

29 REPLIES 29
wlyonsatl
Community Member

Irfan,

 

Please come back to this board and let us know how this worked out for you. We don't see many posts here from freelancers or clients who have actually used arbitration.

 

Good luck!

Hi Will,

I had a dispute with a client for $2050 and after paying $1000, he filed a dispute and then he wanted to proceed towards attribution. And for that case the total amount payed to AAA is $891, which gets equally divided between freelancer, client and upwork.

While, in start, I was not sure what to do but work said that if I do not proceed and pay the fee for attribution, I will be one who will be accused and they will deactivate my account.

Anyhow, I moved forward and paid my cut for the case.

Then each party gave their statements, an attributor was appointed for the case. This took few working days and then they gave the result based on the statements, conversations between the client and freelancer.

I was awarded with $950 and the client got $100 out of the remaining project amount which was $1050.

Now, the award was stated at december 2nd and till now the amount is showing in pending, their is no release date.

I contacted upwork support several times but they do not have any solution. Sometimes, they say that the client account has some issues and we will pay you once client account gets fixed.

Sometimes they say that you can contact the client ( how can they even say that )

Sometimes they say that mediation team will get back to you but nothing happens.

The question comes in here is when the amount was already in Upwork escrow, what is all this delay for?

In total I have been waiting for almost 4 months this, worked for the client, then dispute on work, the client wanted to work again but he went for attribution. I

What's the timeline here? How long ago did this happen?

If the sum is showing up as pending in your account, I'm sure it's either a standard hold or it's awaiting some sort of manual approval from an Upwork employee before it hits your account. As long as the milestone had been actually funded, getting the money shouldn't be a problem.

Hi Irfan, 

I apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you. I will go ahead and follow up with the team handling your case so that you can be assisted further through your support ticket. Feel free to follow up on the same ticket thread if you have further questions about your concern. 


~ Avery
Upwork

Hi Varun and Avery,

The amount I have to receive was completely funded and was in escrow. I am going to attach the award which I got from AAA.

Also, I got an email from the upwork ticket that the client was not charged properly and that is why they are contacting the client. But when it was funded and the amount was in escrow, I did the work trusting Upwork escrow and now you guys are like the client will settle, and then I will receive the payment. This client was unethical and he is never login to respond.

If this was the case, then why did you pushed me for AAA? When that does not have any value. I paid non refundable amount for American attribution. $290 something and now $950, plus 4 months of work.

Please see the attached award I received from AAA, which also stats that the amount was in escrow.

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

Hi Irfan, 

If you have any additional questions feel free to follow up directly on your ticket and our team will assist you further as soon as possible. Thank you.

~ Goran
Upwork

In Upwork’s Fixed-Price Escrow Instructions, Section 2.1 Release Conditions, Paragraph 10:

https://www.upwork.com/legal#fp

 

“Submittal of a final award of an arbitrator appointed pursuant to the Dispute Assistance Program, in which case the funds will be released in accordance with such award.”

 

You were smart not to work without the disputed milestone(s) being funded by the client.

 

If your AAA arbitrator has reached the point of a final award as you described, I’m sure Upwork will release the related funds to you, as provided for in the Escrow Instructions.

Hi Goran,

I am getting the same reply from the ticket that once the client settles his account, then I will receive the payment. But this does not make sense brother. I need a reasonable solution to this.

According to the legal agreement with upwork, I should have received the payment till now. Which I did not receive yet.

Thank you, Will! For the reference

If Upwork doesn't have the money - because that money has already been withdrawn - then winning arbitration does not necessarily mean you get money immediately. May need to wait for the other party's account to get the money.

If the money is still showing as funded in escrow, that should mean it has not been withdrawn, right?

Hi Preston,

The amount was funded and was in the Upwork escrow. How can Upwork not have the money when it was already in escrow?

Irfan, I was not looking at any details pertaining to your situation.

 

Winning arbitration generally means you get money immediately.

 

I was just trying to think of a situation in which that would not happen. What I said probably has nothing to with you.

 

But imagine a situation in which a client has a disagreement with a freelancer and wins a full refund during arbitration, but the freelancer has already withdrawn the money over the course of multiple milestones. Upwork would not pay the client out of its own pockets. It would wait for that freelancer to earn more money and use those funds to pay the client.

I understand but in that case upwork holds the account mostly. And this is a different situation, the amount was already in Escrow and we cannot compare it with the situation you have described 🙂

Escrow ensures that the payment is secure and I deliver service, then get paid with that amount. But even after getting the award and not receiving the amount in escrow makes me feel insecure

I wonder if the client filed a chargeback for the funds in Escrow...

It wouldn't be the first time.

If the client did file a successful chargeback with his credit card issuer and that means Upwork won't make payment to the freelancer in line with the arbitrator's decision, then that will be a common out for dishonest clients and escrow would lose most of its meaning for freelancers.

 

 


Will L wrote:

If the client did file a successful chargeback with his credit card issuer and that means Upwork won't make payment to the freelancer in line with the arbitrator's decision,


Upwork can't make payment of funds that are no longer there (chargebacks remove the funds instantly they are filed)



The other case I remember where a client filed 2 chargebacks after losing arbitration was to the tune of $ 3400 - but Upwork were (eventually) able to successfully defend it.

Of course it can, Petra, though it may not want to.

 

Upwork can/should pay a freelancer as provided for in its terms of service and then go after the deadbeat/dishonest client for the funds.

 

If Upwork doesn't stand solidly behind its own terms of services and ultimately puts the full risk of non-payment by a client back on the freelancer, then the true value of freelancers paying Upwork 20% fees is much lower than 20%.

 

 

 

 

 

 


Will L wrote:

(Upwork) ultimately puts the full risk of non-payment by a client back on the freelancer,


This has always been the case except for hourly contracts which are tracked according to the terms of the hourly protection.

That is very interesting information, Petra. And something I'd guess many freelancers are unaware of. 

 

You are claiming Upwork does not provide - and has never provided - reliable payment protection for freelancers who deal with fraudulent clients regardless whether the freelancer has followed the requirements outlined in Upwork's own terms of service.

 

Why are fixed price clients able to file successful chargebacks but hourly clients are not?

The possibility that dishonest people (clients, customers, cardholders, etc.) will file chargebacks has always been a possibility. It is not specific to Upwork. It is a problem that all credit card-accepting businesses face. Fortunately most credit cardholders do not abuse chargebacks. But some do.

 

Some Upwork clients may think that it is "acceptable" or "okay" to file a chargeback. It is not. It is a violation of Upwork ToS, and it is unethical.

All very true, Preston, and a big reason why freelancers pay Upwork a 20% fee to handle this particular problem (among others).

 

I suggest we wait to see how this plays out before we accept the implications of your and Petra's comments - that Upwork only pays freelancers if clients pay Upwork.


Will L wrote:

You are claiming Upwork does not provide - and has never provided - reliable payment protection for freelancers who deal with fraudulent clients regardless whether the freelancer has followed the requirements outlined in Upwork's own terms of service.


Have you not seen the posts about chargebacks? Is this really the first time you've heard of an Upwork freelancer losing money because their client filed a chargeback?

 


Will L wrote:

Why are fixed price clients able to file successful chargebacks but hourly clients are not?


Even though clients are not allowed to file chargebacks according to the terms of service, some do. It's a violation of the terms of service and such clients are suspended, but that does not get the money back.

 

There is no difference between the physical ability of a client with an hourly and a fixed rate contract to file a chargeback, but freelancers who have logged their hours in line with the hourly protection policy are generally protected in that Upwork eats the loss for hours that were protected.

 

Can we also bear in mind that we do not know whether that's what happened here. I was just wondering if that was the case, as it might be a possible reason for what happened.

 


Will L wrote:

I suggest we wait to see how this plays out before we accept the implications of your and Petra's comments - that Upwork only pays freelancers if clients pay Upwork.


What makes you think otherwise? Except for hourly contracts where the time was logged in line with the terms of the hourly protection, that is and has always been the case.


You even keep preaching that to anyone who may think of using manual time.

If the client does not pay, the freelancer does not get paid.

 

No, Petra, I have never seen a post here that reflected a freelancer winning at arbitration and being told by Upwork that they won't pay the freelancer the funds in escrow because the client didn't pay Upwork.

 

But, as I said and you repeated, let's see how this particular case pans out before anyone assumes Upwork is not going to pay this freelancer.

 

Now, please, let it go until we see more information. I know you need to have the last word, so I'll not bother replying to any further posts until we know what the ultimate resolution.


Will L wrote:

No, Petra, I have never seen a post here that reflected a freelancer winning at arbitration and being told by Upwork that they won't pay the freelancer the funds in escrow because the client didn't pay Upwork.


You may read this thread then, where the client, upon losing arbitration, charged back $ 3400 and Upwork blocked the freelancer's ability to withdraw any funds until they finally managed to defend the chargeback.

He'd not have got the money had they not been able to defend it.


Will L wrote:

No, Petra, I have never seen a post here that reflected a freelancer winning at arbitration and being told by Upwork that they won't pay the freelancer the funds in escrow because the client didn't pay Upwork.

 


lol You must have missed the guy who paid for arbitration and so did the client, and the client dropped out as soon as arbitration started to screw the freelancer out of $300. Like clients can be nasty pieces of work for sure.

The client is never going to respond as he is was very unethical. What next then?
kochubei_valeria
Community Member

Hi Irfan,

 

We've been actively working with our mediation team to sort this situation out. I understand that this has been very frustrating for you and the information provided in the ticket hasn't been clear. While I won't be able to share more details here for privacy reasons, I can assure you that you'll be getting an update via the ticket within the next few hours.

 

Thanks for your patience while we're getting this resolved. 

~ Valeria
Upwork
kochubei_valeria
Community Member

Hi All,

 

There isn't a chargeback involved in the OP's situation and since this thread has gone off topic, I'll be closing it from further replies. We will continue assisting Irfan privately until the issue is resolved.

 

I'd like to also use this opportunity to remind everybody of the Community Guidelines.

Please refrain from making personal attacks in your posts going forward.

 

Thanks and Happy New Year!

~ Valeria
Upwork
wlyonsatl
Community Member

Irfan, 

 

If you are still on the board, did you ever get paid for your arbitration award?

 

Won the award from AAA and still did not rece... - Upwork Community

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