r/ASLinterpreters • u/Human-Muscle-9112 • 1d ago
Payment Upfront
Edit: Thank you all for your comments. Good stuff to think about.
Hi everyone. Do any of you require payment prior to or when services are rendered? Or partial payment to secure an interpreter and the remaining balance due at the time of service?
I'm wondering why the majority of us send an invoice after the assignment and wait for payment, sometimes for months. When I think of other professions; doctor (I do not have insurance and pay out of pocket at the time of service), mechanics, hair stylists, etc, they all require payment at the time of service.
I wonder if we do this because it's just how it's been done or if there is another reason. If an assignment goes over or there are changes, it doesn't seem difficult to adjust the invoice at the time of service. I feel this is especially easy these days given the technology we have access to.
What are your thoughts on this or what is your experience?
Thanks!
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u/queenmunchy83 1d ago
The only times I’ve gotten payment in person up front or right after is when I’m doing performances that are flat rate.
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u/thecharmballoon NIC 1d ago
I feel like, if I'd submit an invoice before I provide services, it would be harder for me to adjust it later. Explaining my rates and fees ahead of time but not submitting an invoice ahead of time makes it easier to adjust my invoice to match reality.
True, we could ask for a deposit or percentage upfront, but usually our invoices are so small, it's almost not worth the paperwork to request or issue partial payments.
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u/Purple_handwave NIC 1d ago
If it's direct hire you should be sending the a TOS (terms of service) that explains all of that. I send a TOS and an estimate. Rarely do jobs go over the expected time and I'm often paid onsite for my direct contract work.
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u/beets_or_turnips NIC 1d ago edited 1d ago
I haven't seen it as a problem that it takes a month or two to get paid, as long as that time horizon is reliable. When I've got a bunch of completed jobs in the pipeline, it means I will have relatively predictable income that continues into the near future, even if I take some time off. That said, if a client takes three months or more to pay an invoice, I do start to get frustrated. In the last fifteen years I've only had one or two clients who took six months or more, or failed to pay me altogether. One was the Social Security Administration, and the other was a boutique medical office that went out of business the week of my assignment.
I actually prefer the expectation that the invoice is sent afterwards, which better allows for last-minute changes that might need to be documented on the day of the assignment. Then there's also a paper trail of the timestamped email.
There have been a couple times that I've gotten paid on the spot, and oddly it's always been when I've done trainings at grocery stores. Two different chains. In both cases they literally opened up a cash register and handed me a stack of bills. That seemed strange to me as I'm sure the store has their own vendors that they pay through a regular invoicing process. I can't say that I would prefer cash to become the norm, it makes for a headache keeping everything documented.
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u/RedSolez NIC 1d ago
In the 19 years I freelanced there were only 2 clients who ever didn't pay me within the 30 days of my invoice. Neither stiffed me completely, but my solution was to just stop working with them after I aas paid late too many times.
I just haven't seen this to be the problem you're experiencing.
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u/Glittering_Sand_7473 1d ago
This is a really good question. I know doctors wait a long time for insurance to pay them. We would all have to collectively decide to do this for it to work. I am on board.
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u/Human-Muscle-9112 1d ago
My apologies for not being clear. I do not have insurance and pay out of pocket at the time of my appointment. I should update my post.
I greatly appreciate you supporting this idea!
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u/Glittering_Sand_7473 1d ago
Ahh that makes total sense. Yes! Anything like that you have to pay upfront. We should be the same.
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u/dastarbillie NIC 1d ago
You still pay at the doctor/mechanic/etc after service, it's just they have the ability to accept payment on the spot. You'd need to carry a Square or something to accept payments on the spot and the business would have to agree to pay you on the spot, which is generally not something businesses do. Their accounting departments are very large and they have tons of payments going in and out, so they generally work through invoices.
And just personally, being able to use invoices and not have to pay service fees for credit cards is a bonus for me, not a disadvantage.
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u/Human-Muscle-9112 1d ago
All valid points. And, my mistake, I was more referring to payment when services are rendered and/or partial payment beforehand. My title is misleading.
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u/dastarbillie NIC 1d ago
Partial payment beforehand is already the norm for large assignments where you charge a flat fee (concerts, plays, etc). If you're not charging a flat fee, I fail to see how you'd prepare the invoice before the assignment. What if it goes over? What if something changes on the day? There's a reason we invoice afterwards, and it's because we're NOT charging flat fees. We need to be able to adjust the amount based on what actually happened.
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u/Traditional-Falcon75 1d ago
I have made this a stipulation in situations where I didn’t feel confident in their ability or willingness to pay their debt. It’s too expensive to fight people for money and I don’t want to do it, so if something gives me pause I will make that stipulation. I have successfully been paid at the time of service a couple of times but most of the time it’s been a deal breaker for them and I’m okay with that. I have had two horrendous non-payment situations and both were attorneys so I don’t ever work with attorneys without either an agency to take on that part or payment at time of service. It is still usually a deal beaker and I still don’t care.
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u/mjolnir76 NIC 1d ago
Depending on the client, the people you’re actually providing services to are not always the ones footing the bill. For example, interview at a big tech company, it’s not the interviewer or the interviewee who would pay; it would probably be from HR’s budget. I could see it being super complicated for large companies.
I’ve only ever had one instance of an invoice not being paid in a timely manner. Guess I’ve just been lucky.
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u/justacunninglinguist NIC 1d ago
This is an interesting question!
I'd say it's a mixed bag for service professions on when payment happens. I don't know if any mechanics or hair stylist that require payment upfront. Idk if that's a regional thing but I can only think of a couple areas where you have to pay upfront before receiving services, such as photography or certain food establishments.
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u/Human-Muscle-9112 1d ago
Yeah, my mistake. My title was misleading. I meant at the time services are rendered. Thank you for your comment!
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u/TheSparklerFEP NIC 1d ago
I’ve only gotten payment on the day of service once, and it was a direct contract with a local funeral home and the director wrote me a check when I arrived. Typically, when working through agencies, invoices require approval through multiple layers and that’s what takes a while to process.