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I just have to share this story of "Karma" coming back on a deadbeat client.
When I first started my business I was "loose" with my policy and often worked with "clients" with the expectation they would complete services and pay.
One of my deadbeat/vampire "clients" called yesterday. He wasted hours of time and never paid.(three months ago) His hard drive crashed and he had lost all his files. He had sent me a copy of his file previously and wanted to know if I still had it. I said I retain client files for a year. He replied "Good, you should still have the file since "we worked together" three months ago." I told him "I retain CLIENT files, since you never paid me for my time you are not a client." He STILL doesn't get it though and asks me if there was any way to recover the file from MY system or a way he could pull it off of his backups. He actually expected me to waste even MORE time with him?
The funny thing is when he hung up I checked my recycle bin and there it was. No, I did not take the time to send it to him, why throw good money (time) after bad? I don't feel obligated to send it, not my problem.
When I had jackasses like that I would tell them I would send the file after their check cleared the bank. And I'd triple what they owed me from the previous work. Screw me, scr3w you.
Then after the payment was made and the file transferred you could send them a letter telling them you would no longer work with them.
I realize I could have used the opportunity to get paid however being "new" at the time I started "working" with him we did not agree to an hourly rate. The service should have been completed in one day. (If I didn't let the guy drag it out.) If I demanded payment based on the release of the file it might cause problems and he could hurt my reputation in my review site. Better just to let it go.....
It sucks to be him because he lost his professionally designed logo, his customer list, his vendor list, his inventory list and other files. It is probably going to take a while to recover from it. I don't know why he didn't take my "free advice" about backing it all up
You'd better hope that client doesn't read this forum and see your posts. If he figures out that you are talking about him and lied about the availability of those files, I see more than a bad review in your future...
I think I would have sold it back to him at your current rate of pay, just because I like money more than I like grudges or holding them, but that is just me, LOL. I would inform him that yes you found the files, and since you have a better idea of what to charge, that your current rates are such and such and that you would be happy to reinstall the lost files for the current rate, including the time that you spent in the past for this guy. He may decide to never pay, but he may pay you just to get the information. Let him know that if he does not decide to do this that you will gladdly erase the files so as to not have any of his proprietary information on your computer.
A flooring contractor got a judgement against a fast talking developer...
The Developer refused to even speak to my contractor friend.
Out of the blue, some guy calls my friend saying he wants to buy the judgement... being suspicious... my friend told him it wasn't for sale and yet the guy persisted.
Eventually, my friend gave him a price and he said cash or cashiers check at your office in the morning OK?
Turns out the guy buying the judgement had been swindled by this same Developer in the past... and he needed the Judgment to force the sale of the Developer's home.
Funny thing is the next day... the Developer shows up at my friends business with 12k and change cash to pay off the judgement... my friend says I can't help you... I sold it to some guy yesterday...
Turns out the guy called the Developer and told him to start packing because he was going to take his home...
You'd better hope that client doesn't read this forum and see your posts. If he figures out that you are talking about him and lied about the availability of those files, I see more than a bad review in your future...
The OP doesn't have any obligation to tell his former deadbeat customer whether he has his files or not. He has no obligation to give it to him either.
Yes, that would be an interesting legal question. I didn't realize I had a copy of the file in the recycle bin so "technically" I was't lying about the availability. At the time, to the best of my knowledge, I did not have the file.
I think it would be an interesting business law question. Is there a contractual relationship that obligates me?
Another "out" I have is the data he requested is the file I had put a considerable amount of my own work into. Stupidly I sent him a copy for his review before I was going to install it into the accounting file.(this is before I learned better than to trust people) The file he wanted is not the original he sent me.
Then there is the question of if I am obligated to store data for someone that isn't a client and NEVER WAS a client? Is there an obligation to perform work (sending the file) uncompensated?
The only thing I didn't modify was his company logo. I have nothing to do with that issue and if he didn't keep a back up copy safe somewhere it's too bad. If he needs a copy of that he can contact the vendor that sold it to him.
He's just lucky I am not a vindictive person for not getting paid. This guy hasn't paid taxes in quite a while, he does not collect/pay sales tax as he should be doing AND I did have access to his entire supplier list. He's LUCKY all I did was forget his data was in my recycle bin
Deadbeat client stories are fun, what can be even more fun is having the proper boilerplate. Among other things, my boilerplate states that any hardware on site remains fully my property until the last check clears, and that the user agrees to allow it to be removed without notice by an authorized representative if his account falls into arrears. I have since amended my policy to all hardware must be pre-paid. Those who don't want to do that get referred to a factoring company. Software is much easier - once the renewal date hits, it gives a fifteen day notice, once per day, then stops working.
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