advice....

[thr33designs]

hello. so im having some problems concerning someone not paying me..i invoiced him over a month ago..and he has continued to tell me that he will pay me next week..or tomorrow etc etc..he then said, im really sorry but im putting money into my business..(he is a hairdresser who is about 19) and i wont be able to pay you till next friday, but i definitely will then..so i was like ok ok ill give him a week..its not been 30 days yet..so i was being quite calm..i also dont really like to kick up a fuss..

but then that day passed..so i was like, right im going to email him loads to get him to pay..this then occured:

me: hello

sorry to get a bit arsey but i definitely need you to pay the money in by tomorrow.

him: (note the brilliant grammer)

hey sorry alex, went to the bank today to pay you the money.. and running out of funds fast tis month. its coz i had to pay money into my works business so that has to come first .. really sorry but would be able to pay you for another 2months tbh.. need to get my funds n savings backk up.. n i understand why u have been onto to me to get it being ur job n waht not sorry.

me:

to be honest it isnt on..it has nothing to do with me what money problems you are having..i am having them because i have to wait for you to now ow me money, which i rely on as my income, to eat and pay bills..its not just OH YEH PAY ME WHENEVER..you need to find the money to pay me..

him:

i havnt used your logo for anything to i dont ow you anything .. and since u are wanting £70 which i was going to pay for a logo that seem to take u ten minutes.. is a little bit much.

me:

urgh i hate getting angry at stuff like this, but its really annoying when people just assume you can just draw things really quickly and its nothing..its involves more time that just the actual doing, the thought process etc..being an illustrator really isnt easy..say you get £6 an hour..70 divided by 6 is 11 hours..which is about a day and a bit of work..if i cut a bunch of peoples hair, or served people at a shop..that would be seen as ok..but to ask someone for money for something that is completely original and takes time to think up and draw out and edit, somehow that is completely easy..i really dont want to get angry at you..because im not that kind of person..but its just really differcult for me..i have about £20 and its my birthday next week..and i rely on people like yourself to ow me the money so i can actually have some form of life, and eat etc..freelancing is hard as i dont get a pay packet at the end of the month..i get money where and when i can..its not fair when people just assume they can ask me to do things and then not pay me for 4 months..

i really hope you understand.

him:

n if i am having money problems then obv i am going to cut down on luxuary things i.e a band logo aint i. so then it is your problem.. my business is more important than my band at present.sorry

me:

thing is, i know its shit when you have money problems..but you should of thought about that when i did the work for you..imagine if you hired a builder, and you wanted a new roof..then it was done, and you were like oh sorry i have no money i cant pay..that just wouldnt happen..so why is it any different for me? why shouldnt i get paid? i have done work..and therefore i am owed the money for that work..regardless of whether you are going to use the logo soon or not..

him:

i do understand, but like urself i have no money for food. so atm i cant sorry


so yeh, basically i cant believe the utter shit that is coming out of this boys mouth..i need advice on what to do next..he doesnt really ow me loads..but its just the principle, and now he has said all this it has made me even more angry! i dont have a 'pay within 30 days' thing on my invoices..so i dont know if i have any legal contract that i can freak him out with..

[victor_howitzer]

Have him cut your hair and call it even?

[3d glasses]

as i said il go and piss on him if you like..
this sucks alex..

[withremote]

knee caps.

[thr33designs]

haha, he would probably give me the most horrific hair cut..and anyway i can cut hair already! not even useful...pissing it is..

[thr33designs]

oh and also it was two bits of work..not just the logo....

[Joshua Lexvold]

You need to make customers aware of terms. I'd go down and see him in person. Cut the BS. Pay me.

[3d glasses]

thats it.. road trip!

[Brad]

(note the brilliant grammer)

.

[Sydlexic]

I'm glad in construction you can file a lien when you don't get paid and it helps protect your interest. In cases when it really isn't about the money and more about the principle, I find it best to hand it over to a collection agency. Typically they only get paid if they collect. They take a chunk and you get at least something. However if they don't pay, the collection agency does a better job of smearing their credit. Depends on the amount though, a collection agency might have a minimum.