Typical payment period from agency

[MrMarkyMark]

If you're the kind of contractor who blows all he/she earns and has no warchest, it's worth knowing you still have a month to come when you're struggling to find your next contract in a market like this.

That's as maybe, however I would rather the cash was in my company account, rather than being used by the agency to pay other contractors.

What if the money never comes?
In fact, that's how people lose real money, an agency goes bust and you are at the end of the line with a lot of other people who wish to be paid.

So, sorry, as I said earlier I can't see any advantage there at all there really.

[LondonManc]

That's as maybe, however I would rather the cash was in my company account, rather than being used by the agency to pay other contractors.

In fact, that's how people lose money, an agency goes bust and you are at the end of the line with a lot of other people who wish to be paid.

So, sorry, as I said earlier I can't see any advantage there at all there really.

Same with builders - sometimes people get left high and dry because they've spent your money on someone else's bricks.

[BigRed]

I did a monthly with a months delay. They were very fond of picking up queries on overtime and callout, then delaying the total amount until next months payroll run

[northernladuk]

I did a monthly with a months delay. They were very fond of picking up queries on overtime and callout, then delaying the total amount until next months payroll run

I've been on the same terms for as long as I can remember now and in all that time I've only had one cock up so far with no delays or buggering about. I think I've been a bit lucky but won't lose any sleep if the next gig is the same.

[SimonMac]

That's as maybe, however I would rather the cash was in my company account, rather than being used by the agency to pay other contractors.

In fact, that's how people lose money, an agency goes bust and you are at the end of the line with a lot of other people who wish to be paid.

So, sorry, as I said earlier I can't see any advantage there at all there really.

But until it hits your account, its not your money, I know lots of people complain about Month + Month invoices, but I know every few people who have successfully negotiated them down, and even fewer who have walked due to the terms.

Doing your due diligence on an agency and anyone else in the chain is all you can do, those with IPSE+ membership will have some cover in case an agency goes under

[MrMarkyMark]

But until it hits your account, its not your money, I know lots of people complain about Month + Month invoices, but I know every few people who have successfully negotiated them down, and even fewer who have walked due to the terms.

Doing your due diligence on an agency and anyone else in the chain is all you can do, those with IPSE+ membership will have some cover in case an agency goes under

Eh, what on earth are you on about, its still money owed to my Co ?
Surely, it is one of the due diligences of a director to try and get money owed to the company paid ASAP.

Fair enough, I threatened to walk from one, when Client Co tried to get me to use their internal agent, after I had been there for a certain period of time.
This was going to move me from weekly to similar payment terms, as described by the OP.
Obviously, the Client Co agency I was to be passed on to were keen and wanted the commission that would come after the transfer.

I fought them tooth and nail for around 6 weeks, or so, until it got escalated to a Senior Management level where it got resolved and I continued to be paid weekly.

Anyway, I don't really give one iota what others do, manage to do, all they can do, roll over, let their belly be tickled etc. it's their business after all.

Having personally known people that lost £20K, maybe that's the reason for my different attitude.

[LondonManc]

As soon as I've got a timesheet signed, I've got a legitimate claim on that cash - it is owed.

Monthly terms certainly isn't a deal-breaker and there is clearly a risk and reward issue at play here; I'd want a higher day rate to expose more of my money for longer.

That said, many permie-tractors won't even think of negotiating; they'll just get their next bum-on-seat role and take whatever terms are given, blindly accepting the agent's word that it's an outside IR35 gig.

[sal]

As others have already said 1+1 months is not uncommon. No one likes it, but it's next to impossible to negotiate something different that the agency default payment terms/runs. Definitely not something worth jeopardising a contract over, unless it's a dodgy agency.

Personally i don't care if i get the money 2 or 3 months after i have done the job as long as i get it.

My last couple of contracts where:
1m invoice + 1m payment
1m invoice + 1w payment
friday invoice + payment by next friday
1w invoice + 1m payment
friday invoice + payment by next friday

HTH

[MrMarkyMark]

As others have already said 1+1 months is not uncommon. No one likes it, but it's next to impossible to negotiate something different that the agency default payment terms/runs. Definitely not something worth jeopardising a contract over, unless it's a dodgy agency.

Personally i don't care if i get the money 2 or 3 months after i have done the job as long as i get it.

My last couple of contracts where:
1m invoice + 1m payment
1m invoice + 1w payment
friday invoice + payment by next friday
1w invoice + 1m payment
friday invoice + payment by next friday

HTH

A right mixed box of frogs there, right enough.

Its funny though, when I returned to this client I ended up going through the very people I was arguing with before, regarding payment terms.
They, too, have started to do weekly now, so the argument, with exactly the same people, was about the contracts terms this time around.

They are probably bloody sick of me TBH.

However, I did get support from Senior Management that said they needed me to be happy with the contract, so they "greased" the wheels.

It was very refreshing

[Lance]

of course if you don't like month long payment terms you could always factor the invoices to help cash flow.

But IMO if you're cash flow is that tight that you can't wait 2 or 3 months then you're in the wrong business, or not charging enough.