Indecisive Client - after liability assesed

How do you avoid clients leaving you without pay on the work you have done with them?

My client told me over a month ago, she would be getting a second opinion, so I asked her to take all her paperwork by that weekend if she was going to go with somebody else. Next day, she gives me the okay to keep working on her.

Once I was done with all the work, I sent her the draft return for signature, she sends me the signature PIN. Since she has liability, I asked her for confirmation of funds withdrawal, and now she does not understand, and wants a second opinion. I don't want a client like her...she contacts me all the time with questions, and she is kind of annoying...how to avoid this, and make them pay something at least once they decide they want to go somewhere else? What should the engagement letter say?

Thank you,
COD

Gstax are you located in Japan and are you dealing with foreign citizens? Because I am not familiar with different customs in other country.

BUT here in good old America we expect to be paid if we do the work!

If I know that a client is going to be looking for second opinion, more than likely I will end my engagement. If for some reason I really need the money that bad, I would ask for a retainer up front before I even do the basic calculation

The price for your services is not dependent upon them using the return you prepared. If you do the work, you should be paid. Your engagement letter should state that fact.

I've had clients get second opinions. When they bring it up, I usually respond by saying: "That's fine, but it seems silly to pay for the same return to be prepared twice." It usually teases out whether they have any question of whether they think I should be paid or not. I can, then, clarify they agree to pay me when they signed the engagement letter.

I also agree with you that you probably don't want this kind of client, if they think that is an option. It's probably worth a conversation to clarify how your relationship should work. Sometimes, clients need to be given a clear set of expectations like anyone else. If she'd like you to be constantly responding to her questions (sometimes a good thing), she's clearly preferring the "gold standard" level of service, which costs more than the mere preparation of the return.

Gstax are you located in Japan and are you dealing with foreign citizens? Because I am not familiar with different customs in other country.

BUT here in good old America we expect to be paid if we do the work!

If I know that a client is going to be looking for second opinion, more than likely I will end my engagement. If for some reason I really need the money that bad, I would ask for a retainer up front before I even do the basic calculation

Yes I'm in Japan, but technically not, because I still cater for only American citizens under the SOFA agreement. It's my first year basically, so I need to put some guards, to avoid this in the future. I don't need the money that bad, if at all, but I don't want to work for free. So, the retainer might work good in certain instances. Thank you.

The price for your services is not dependent upon them using the return you prepared. If you do the work, you should be paid. Your engagement letter should state that fact.

Fantastic....with that said, I have to work on my engagement letter to reflect payment.

I've had clients get second opinions. When they bring it up, I usually respond by saying: "That's fine, but it seems silly to pay for the same return to be prepared twice." It usually teases out whether they have any question of whether they think I should be paid or not. I can, then, clarify they agree to pay me when they signed the engagement letter.

>> I still cater for only American citizens under the SOFA agreement. It's my first year basically, so I need to put some guards, to avoid this in the future.

We Americans expect to get paid if we do the work! So my friend if you are running into a lot of jerks, change your business model and get a retainer with your engagement letter otherwise you will be chasing them to get paid or work for free! Seriously in all type business you have to account for a certain percentage of uncollectables and you have to price your fees to account for that

I require a 50% deposit before I begin working on a return.

1.Get a billing authorization form with Credit card and Bank ACH info signed with engagement. Very good way to speed up billing and not waste time on A/R Collections

2. Always get retainer for new clients, agree with previous person that 50% is good

3.One more thing : Demand payment from that awful client irregardless of any bull **** Then; sh%tcan client immediately ! Trust me , that’s an AWFUL CLIENT if they are trying to not pay you b/c of liability due.

Set up a PayPal account (tied to their email) easy - quick - Invoice her and if she doesn't pay "click on the Reminder button" until your paid.

Set up a PayPal account (tied to their email) easy - quick - Invoice her and if she doesn't pay "click on the Reminder button" until your paid.

It's been some 15 years since I accepted PayPal (good old eBay days), but are they still as aggressive in freezing accounts at the slightest hint of a customer complaints as they used to be?

I've never had any "freezing" of my account - PayPal is great for Invoicing - quick fast collections.

3.One more thing : Demand payment from that awful client irregardless of any bull **** Then; sh%tcan client immediately ! Trust me , that’s an AWFUL CLIENT if they are trying to not pay you b/c of liability due.

Thank you for hearing my pain I still have to hear from her, but I feel anxiety just thinking about contacting her.

Ask for the fees in advance. Most of my clients send payment with their work, which is so nice. Learned that from my old firm.