Freelancer having issues with client

sascrob

Hi there,


Apologies if this thread doesn't belong here, but I wanted to see if anyone could help.


I'm a freelance music copyist (basically an editor and proofreader for music) and recently completed work for a client on the 13th Feb. The price and amount of work was all agreed in advance and the client settled the invoice in full on the 22nd Feb.


I always offer 3 stages of revisions for all clients, as people's needs vary. The client didn't get back to me until the 3rd April with his revisions, but I completed them within 2 weeks and sent the revised work back. On receipt of the revised work, he asked for another revision to be made. I normally do not do this, but I made this final revision and sent the finished work through last week (7th May).


Yesterday (12th May) the client demanded that further revisions were to be made. I explained that I had already completed several rounds of revisions, but I would be happy to look through this when I had time 3-4 weeks from now. He has now said that these need to be done immediately, as he now has a deadline, and that he would expect a refund if they are not completed.


Now please do correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty certain he is not entitled to any refund at this point. He made payment on the work on 22nd Feb (77 days ago) and the work was completed to satisfactory level on the 13th Feb. Just looking for any input and/or reassurance here, as I'm a bit baffled!


Anyway, hope that someone can ease my fears or let me know if I'm in any danger here.


Thank you!

unholyangel

Were you aware of the deadline when you entered the contract? What do the t&c's say about revisions? Do they limit the revisions to 3 and state anything with regards to timeframe on these? What was said about period for performance?

sascrob

The only deadline that was mentioned prior to the work being undertaken was that the client wanted the initial work to be completed before the beginning of March. As the work was completed on the 13th Feb, I certainly met that deadline.


Contractually, there was no mention of period of performance or anything relating to a commission, 3rd party etc.. The revisions aren't mentioned in the t&c's, but were verbally agreed. To be clear, I don't even mind doing further revisions, it's the sudden addition of a deadline that seems odd to me.

Socajam

Seems as if client is looking for free work.
I would hold off and see what takes place
Does this client expect you to endless revisions every time he/she have a brain wave.
Next time get this in writing that only x number of revisions are allowed and within x number of days/weeks.

sascrob

Indeed... Thanks for the comment. It is reassuring to know it's not just me!

unholyangel

sascrob wrote: »

The only deadline that was mentioned prior to the work being undertaken was that the client wanted the initial work to be completed before the beginning of March. As the work was completed on the 13th Feb, I certainly met that deadline.


Contractually, there was no mention of period of performance or anything relating to a commission, 3rd party etc.. The revisions aren't mentioned in the t&c's, but were verbally agreed. To be clear, I don't even mind doing further revisions, it's the sudden addition of a deadline that seems odd to me.

If a deadline wasn't in contemplation of both parties at the time they entered the contract then it didn't form part of the contract. Especially if he was a business, he should have done due diligence and made you aware of any time restraints or at least queried what the period of performance was.

One thing I would caution to keep in mind about a time limit - its a time limit for you as well as them.

sascrob

unholyangel wrote: »

If a deadline wasn't in contemplation of both parties at the time they entered the contract then it didn't form part of the contract. Especially if he was a business, he should have done due diligence and made you aware of any time restraints or at least queried what the period of performance was.

One thing I would caution to keep in mind about a time limit - its a time limit for you as well as them.

Thank you - that's very helpful!

pinkshoes

Is this a business to business contract?

Surely it will come down to what your own T&Cs say that you supplied to the client?

Sounds to me like they are taking the p*ss given you have already made further amendments as what appears to be a good will gesture.

sascrob

For all intents and purposes, it's a verbal contract between two sole traders. There aren't any written T&Cs in this instance, but I would assume that my services still fall under the consumer rights act. That said, my service to this client is for what is essentially a 'personalised' product, which further muddies the waters from his perspective.


The issue I have is that from my perspective, the work has been completed in a satisfactory, detailed and time-efficient manner. He has made payment on the invoice, which as far as I can tell acknowledges the completion of the contract from his end. I've then fulfilled all revisions, as you suggest, in good will, yet he has suddenly plucked a deadline out of the air when I mention I may not be able to complete further revisions for a few weeks due to other commitments.


Just a bit baffled and frustrated!

unholyangel

sascrob wrote: »

For all intents and purposes, it's a verbal contract between two sole traders. There aren't any written T&Cs in this instance, but I would assume that my services still fall under the consumer rights act. That said, my service to this client is for what is essentially a 'personalised' product, which further muddies the waters from his perspective.


The issue I have is that from my perspective, the work has been completed in a satisfactory, detailed and time-efficient manner. He has made payment on the invoice, which as far as I can tell acknowledges the completion of the contract from his end. I've then fulfilled all revisions, as you suggest, in good will, yet he has suddenly plucked a deadline out of the air when I mention I may not be able to complete further revisions for a few weeks due to other commitments.


Just a bit baffled and frustrated!

For the contract to be subject to the consumer rights act, he would need to be acting for purposes wholly or mainly outside of his business, trade, craft or profession.

sascrob

unholyangel wrote: »

For the contract to be subject to the consumer rights act, he would need to be acting for purposes wholly or mainly outside of his business, trade, craft or profession.

That's very interesting!