Unpaid invoice from magazine interview

SewingWritingQueen

Hi,

I did an interview with a well known women's magazine back at the end of May and was told I would be compensated £100 for my input. I sent the invoice on the 1st June and I still haven't been paid.

I've emailed the original contact, I've emailed their managing editor, I've phoned (unsuccessfully a number of times because of their stupid automated system) the HQ and finance and I can't seem to get anybody to respond. Last contact I had was the managing editor two weeks ago saying "she would look into it" and haven't had any response since.

I'm a stay at home mum and I could really use the cash, but I'm literally at the end of my tether of who to chase. I wouldn't have agreed to the interview in the first instance had I known I wasn't going to be paid. Can anybody help at all?

reehsetin

Send them a letter before action, hopefully they'll just pay up but if not then it would be the first step in a small claims court claim anyway
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/going-to-court/going-to-court/taking-court-action/step-one-write-a-letter-before-action/

C_J

Maybe write to them and say that you post on a very popular consumer website forum, and you might have to seek advice from forum members regarding the non-payment of the invoice and hope they don't mind negative publicity.

SewingWritingQueen

Thanks for the response guys. I've sent another couple of emails and not received any response yet.

I've mentioned that if I don't hear from them within 14 days I'll start legal proceedings but I'm scared I'm going to end up even more out of pocket because of it.

One other thing was when I was speaking to the original journalist I asked if I could take a look at the copy before publishing as I said a couple of things, clearly stating they were off the record (I'm a trained journalist myself and have been stung in the past). I didn't receive any version of the copy until it was printed and then it was only a fuzzy photo. Luckily they hadn't included things but it could have left me in a lot of hot water and sued for defamation and libel if they had printed it.

I would normally push the forum side but the writing and media circuit is small and I have to be careful that I conduct myself professionally or I could end up blackballed.

I'm really at a lost now of what to do

Wizzbang

Do you have it in writing (i.e. an email) that they were going to pay you that? Otherwise you probably won't have a leg to stand on in court, unless you can provide a written contract. They may consider an audio recording of the person telling you that you will be paid £100.

Did you devise the invoice, or did they send you a pro forma? There are certain things that legally have to be on an invoice for it to be valid. Check the web for info.

Finally, did the magazine advise you what the turnaround period would be for payment? Often large organisations delay making payments to help their cash flow. Maybe they have a 6 week or 2 month turnaround?

Read up on the late payment legislation and send them a letter using that first, before going to small claims. I personally wouldn't bother of going through all the hassle of court for £100. Cut your losses, publicise on the internet the name of the magazine that doesn't pay out for interviews and move on.

libra10

Have you tried contacting them through social medial channels?


Might be worth a try.


Good luck

SewingWritingQueen

I've not tried the social media side so far but it's something I'm considering but it's difficult how to word it.

I have an email chain from the freelancer saying she has checked the budget and I'll be paid £100 and to send an invoice, I've also got a confirmation email from her that she had forwarded the invoice on. One of the most recent emails she states she doesn't sign it off though which is a bit of a concern. However surely the contract was made when she asked for an invoice etc?

I wasn't given a pro forma and I did ask for any particular details that needed to be added but she stated just my usual invoice should be ok. I'm a freelance writer myself and I have never had any issues with getting paid from some very large companies and government agencies using it.

With regards to turnaround she said it would take around 30 days but that came and went quite quickly.

The thing that really irks me is that the editor who was meant to be arranging it is touting on her own personal twitter about £££ for interviews etc. I don't want to tweet her demanding a response and find she just hasn't got my email. As previously mentioned the freelance community is small and it could end up getting me blacklisted for future work.

I spoke to a few freelancer friends who referred me to the government page which costs £25 and returns the fee to you from the client etc. I wouldn't normally bother with £100 but I need the money and, in addition, I hate the fact that this big company can use my image and my words without paying. They were trying to get me to let them use a picture of my 1 year old in the piece as well and I said absolutely not, I'm so glad I stood my ground in that respect.

lincroft1710

SewingWritingQueen wrote: »

One other thing was when I was speaking to the original journalist I asked if I could take a look at the copy before publishing as I said a couple of things, clearly stating they were off the record (I'm a trained journalist myself and have been stung in the past).

Surely a "trained journalist" should know never to say anything they didn't want published.

dave2319

SewingWritingQueen, was that you in that article I read about dating your best friend's sister's ghost?

Seriously, like Wizzbang says, maybe they're just slow.
Obviously I'd keep reminding, but if the writing world's small then maybe send out positive vibes that they've paid you now and focus your attention on new work without letting the other place get you down.

Also, since you said you could use the money, have you looked at the "Families and Income" guides?
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/family

There's so much info there about ways to boost your income.

SewingWritingQueen

There are certain stipulations when giving and printing of interviews within the media to cover oneself from defamation and libel laws. One thing that is particularly important is that any remarks stated as "being off-the-record" before the statement is uttered must be adhered to. The importance is that you must state this clearly before the remarks are made. I spoke to another magazine previously (but it was on behalf of one of my flatmates at the time) and they literally made up another statement that I never said, so obviously I was being cautious. Ultimately the wording itself was ok but it was extremely unprofessional and unethical on the journalist's part.

It was nothing too damning but without knowing the angle they would paraphrase (as it was written in the first person) it was important for me to see before it went to publication. It was about building a picture and there was a direct quote from my employer that was used but I needed to make sure that this wasn't left on its own or it would look awful.

This was something I was promised prior to the interview and something I was very insistent of. Lesson learnt now obviously!

Lol Dave, nahhh my life isn't that interesting! It was a comment piece about a debate that was really stupid. In fact the opposing view was written by the freelancer because she couldn't get anybody to take that view.

I've put the ball in their court now and I'll just see how it plays out now. My experience with women's glossies has been a murky one over a 12 year period so I think I'll definitely be steering clear in all instances from now on.

Thanks again guys X

dave2319

SewingWritingQueen wrote: »

It was a comment piece about a debate that was really stupid. In fact the opposing view was written by the freelancer because she couldn't get anybody to take that view.

As a trained journalist yourself, to what extent do you reckon stuff is made up in magazines?