bride won't pay full balance

So I am generally speaking, new to the wedding photography business, so I need

a bit of advice here. I shot a wedding 2 weekends ago and have not received a

payment from my bride/groom yet. I state in my contract that payment is due

before receiving final images, its in bold letters. Included is a hi-res disc

and 20 pg storybook album (that only I design, there is no bridal editing).

Well I offered to email her a link to view the album when it is completed and

I will send her a tracking number when everything is shipped to her home.

However, she needs to pay me first. So she came back to me that "she would

like to pay 2/3 of the due amount and pay the rest when they receive

everything." I have been leniant with her because this was a short notice

wedding and we didn't even review or sign the contract until the day of

nuptials and she was already in her wedding dress, nor was there ever a

deposit. Should I just roll with it and let her pay the rest when she receives

everything? The first thing my head says is, "no Liz, this isn't ok with me,

get the check first!" Thanks for any advice!

Tell her that she can pay 2/3's of the amount due and you'll deliver 2/3's of the products. I've turned down a quite a few customers who had that mentality. I told them that plumbers were paid that way but they take lousey pictures.

If it says so in your contract, you should stick to that. Don't let anyone think they can get away with things because they were done last minute. Definitely still treat her with respect, but I wouldn't budge on this one. You may end up getting stiffed. Maybe you could tell her that your work is guaranteed (like if she is not satisfied with the quality of the album, she would get a refund)? That may give her a bit of peace of mind that she is looking for. Lots of luck on this one! :o)

If she wanted to pay me 2/3rds now, and the remaining 1/3rd when she came to pick up the album I could live with that. But I wouldn't deliver anything until it was all paid in full. If she was expecting me to ship the album to her and leave her, "on her honor" so to speak to send a final check afterwards that would not be OK. I would suggest that you get all the money due by the wedding date.

It's like they say in the movies - "half now and half when the job is done".

 

You job isn't done until the client has the products so get the last 1/3 upon delivery.

Conform to the terms of your contract. Do not make partial deliveries as your acts may alter your contractual rights and some may be satisfied with getting most of the images. If you think getting paid now is a hassle, wait until you accept 2/3rds and she has the product already.

 

You should require full payment before wedding dates or you will run into this time after time. There are certain professions that require up front payments. Some are criminal defense lawyers, oral surgeons and wedding photographers. This is because people need them but are notorious for not paying after the servives have been tendered.

"no Liz, this isn't ok with me, get the check first!"

 

I forgot thisa part. Make sure the check clears first. You have a big red flag on your hands.

You job isn't done until the client has the products so get the last 1/3 upon delivery."

 

OK a third response here...

 

NOOOOOOOOO!!!! Your contract says full payment BEFORE delivery not upon. Its the CLIENT'S job that is not done. Get cash in hand or make sure the check clears

Ultimately it boils down to how much risk you want to take on behalf of the client. If you are already getting bad vibes, I would require full payment before sending anything, because once they have the images in hand, or any glimpse of the images, you have no leverage if they either don't pay or are very slow to pay. On the other hand, some people just want a little leverage in case something is wrong with the photography. You have to trust your intuition in these cases.

 

You could also agree to the 2/3 now and the rest later if you send her only the album, and send the hi res images on disk when you've gotten the last 1/3. If she balks, you can say that the album proves there is nothing wrong with the images, so there is no need for her to have any concern over the quality of your work.

We get paid 100% by the day of the event. This eliminates this type of trouble.

Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

If they wanna see pictures,

Full payment is due.

 

I suggest that from now on, you state in your contract that full payment is due 30 days ahead of time.

 

Later,

 

Paulsky

get paid! as said above, if you are having bad vibes now they will only get worse. if you do not get paidd in full before you give her the photos you will NOT ever get paid in full!

 

keep us posted!

 

eddie

Listen to your head!

She'll have quite the time when she's dealing with the divorce attorneys a few years from now, won't she?

 

Full payment. Now. Make sure you have the funds cleared. Change your contract to get paid up-front.

One third on delivery is acceptable for many but you should draw the line on the contract. That means that you would change your contract now to accept that for everyone or you stick to your actual policy.

 

I guess it depends if you are willing to let go some clients to get an higher paiement safety for you. It also depends how most other photographers get pay.

Liz

 

While I've not been a pro forever I have learned a valuable lesson along the way. Stick to your contract! If people think they can run all over you that's what will happen. There are those that say you are losing other potential business but I don't beleive that.

 

We have wedding contracts for a reason. It spells out what the couple receives and when, and it also protects both you and them from these types of problems. If you don't stick to your contract, why have one?

 

For my business we require full payment at least 2 weeks in advance. If they aren't cool with that, I don't do the work. In your case you didn't have that amount of time. I'd still stick to your contract.

 

Hoep that helps.

No tickey no washey. :)

 

Stick to your contract. No product without payment in full.

Paulsky: I like your advice...and the catchy jingle.<br>Liz, I would be cautious. You can take 2/3 now, and the final on delivery , but you may get stuck with a bad check. For wedding packages, I require 90% of the balance 30 days before the wedding, and the final 10% is due when I deliver the proofs...no payment, no proofs. I've never had a problem, because I make it crystal clear. "After" wedding purchases, such as wall portraits, albums, etc, require payment in full. I've found that if I have a bad feeling, it's generally for good reason. Best of luck.

She's broke, all of the money is gone. Spent on the vacation, the food, and everything else. Ask her to be honest with you and you will try to arrange something for her. I's happened to us, so now all bills must be paid by the wedding day, for nothing gets developed.

 

One lady waited 2 years, got devorced and only got her family shots. Still paid full price.She didn't care.

The fact that the bride didn't see the contract or know the terms of the contract until her

wedding day, means she never had a fair chance to disagree with those terms. Had she

said, "I don't feel comfortable with that" you would have left and she wouldn't have had a

photographer. She was put in a tight spot. Just keep this in mind before you do future

day-of contract signings.

 

Put her images in a gallery online. She can review them there, and send payment upon

"approval". You, in turn, can send the products upon receiving payment. (Give it a couple

of days and make sure the check posts.)

 

You might also consider opening a PayPal account and allowing her to pay you via PayPal

with her credit card. This way, if the issue IS "no money in the bank", she can just pull out

her VISA and handle it that way.

"The fact that the bride didn't see the contract or know the terms of the contract until her wedding day, means she never had a fair chance to disagree with those terms.

 

No way!

 

There exist many defenses against enforcing a contract that arise from fairness issues. Some of them concern events after a contract is formed such as impossibility or frustration of purpose. Some attack the validity of the contract in the first place such as those executed by a minor or by use of misrepresentation. There are many of these defenses.

 

There is one fairness defense that never developed. The "I signed the contract the day the services were performed defense". Imagine if this were real. The plumber fixes your broken pipe spraying water about the kitchen. Under the theroy above, the plumber would be compelled to disregard the terms agreed to with the homeowner because the home owner 'didn't see the contract or know the terms of the contract until that and she never had a fair chance to disagree with those terms' We can run that example over and over with doctors, musicians, funeral homes, transportation providers, lawyers, and and endliss list of others. If that were the appropriate practice, even on a voluntary basis, the economy itself would suffer because no one in their right mind would work under those circumstances.

 

Moreover this works the other way around. Liz may have altered her terms to accomodate the last minute run around involved. Under the reasoning offered above, the photographer too can claim unfairness resulted because she didn't know of the terms to the day of the shoot. The reality is that the bride wanted a wedding shoot, the photographer wanted money. They struck a bargain. No one was forced to do anything. Good grief.

 

While we are on the concept of fairness...

 

The photographer was not hired until the last moment. I gather Liz charged a normal amount nevertheless. The bride was lucky to get anyone at all. Also, the terms are that "payment is due before receiving final images" Why would these terms be there? Could it beeeeeeeeeee..... ??? To avoid this exact situation?

 

Many wise photographers require advance payment before the shoot itself. Liz didn't even do that. If that is not fair, what is? What was she supposed to agree to? Agree to give the images and let the bride pay when she gets around to it?

 

There is absolutely nothing here at all to indicate that Liz has treated the bride unfairly.

Another P.S.

 

As discussed in similar scenerios before here, showing the images online will invite a client, who has not yet paid their bill in full, to find faults with the product. These criticsms are used to badger a photographer into lowering the final cost.

 

Liz is facing the classic situation. The client is either unable or unwilling to pay the final bill. If Liz budges, the other part of this typical scenerio is bound to play out. The execuses, delays and tactics. Stick to the contract Liz.

I agree to stick to the contract. We have had some recent irritations along this line even one where the clients tried to bully using and attorny.

 

In that case I just kept saying over and over, the amount owed is X upon receipt of payment product will be delived. Gave them options to pay, send a check, use PayPal, have the items send COD to the attorney. The attorney finaly figured out that the client was being annoying had a check overnighted, we deposited it bank says ok on the funds and sent the product. Nothing heard since.

 

EVERY TIME I have this hassle on payment schedule and don't walk away it ends up causing problems in the long run. Stick to the contract and make it clear it is not personal just business.

 

Amazing how many people just think we do it becasue we love to do it not because we have a life to live and support. Don't do anything you would not by contract do SO if there is no posting included don't do it it will only lead to hearthache.

 

Good luck!

Brooke

John, I'm not suggesting that the bride was right to sign a contract she perhaps did not agree

to. But the photographer might have avoided this problem if the contract details had been

hashed out before the wedding day. It's always good to consider ways to avoid these types

of conflicts in the future! :)

 

I agree, and said above, that the contract should still be honored. :)

Anne has touched on my response. The contract should have been done well before the wedding. No contract before, no photographer at the wedding! This was your first mistake. Whether you took the job due to need of the funds or not, the situation you are in now is a hard lesson to learn. You take the job because you need the money, but now you have time and effort in a job that hasn't paid a cent. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS have a signed contract with all details of coverage with retainers and fees paid in advance. NEVER shoot a job without getting any money. I had one wedding I was supposed to shoot for a friend. He and his fiance wanted me to shoot the wedding. I repeatedly told them to call me to setup an appointment to talk about their wedding. NO CALLS CAME! Two weeks before the wedding, I called to talk to him at his place of work. Not there. I went to his place of work several times when I could. Not there. I e-mailed him several times. No reply. I looked for a phone number. Not listed. I later found out his computer wasn't hooked up due to moving into their new house, which I did not know the location of. Result... no money, no contract, no way to reach them to settle on terms. Therefore on the wedding day I left town to go to the in-laws camp for the day. I wasn't booked. When the groom came over to see me I told him why I wan't there and the whole thing about calling me to talk before. He apologized to me for not treating this as a business deal. He knew this was a business and not personal. I really wanted to do the wedding, but I would not, and could not do it without it having a contract and being paid at least a retainer in advance. Did it once, never again for anybody!

 

As for what to do now? You're between a rock and a hard place. I can be a softee from time to time and would probably agree to the 2/3 payment, but past experience would tell me that getting the last 1/3 would be like pulling teeth without novacaine. If your contract says full payment, get full payment. Show her the contract and her signature binding her to YOUR TERMS! Not hers! If she doesn't want to pay, then you have some sample images for your portfolio. She can go without on her terms. She has no legal recourse since she hasn't paid you a dime! A contract is only binding when all parties have fulfilled their obligations in the order set in the contract. No payment nullifies any obligation on your part to fulfill the terms. You cannot be expected to without payment.

 

Sorry I've been rambling. Just get your money in full and don't let this happen again. Lesson learned for the future. I'm sure you already plan on avoiding this.