Agency not paying final invoice

[NotAllThere]

Get legal advice. But if you've done the work, then you're entitled to payment. It doesn't look like their not signing because they're not happy with the quality of your work, so if it goes to court, you'll have a strong case.

I spoke to the consultancy and my agent on the phone before I commenced the work, and they told me to continue as normal and invoice them appropriately.

So you were working with their approval (even if you didn't get permission in writing).

It's the agency that owe you money. The fact that the client isn't paying the consultancy, and that the consultancy isn't paying the agency isn't your problem. It seems to be you've a legal debt against them. Send them another invoice, including the relevant admin fee (payontime.co.uk) and interest (same site), requesting payment with 7 days. When that's not paid, send them another invoice, as FINAL DEMAND, warning them that if that's not paid within 7 days you will take legal action. You should also include blurb that if they've trouble paying they should contact you.

By giving reminders and time to pay, you've acted reasonably.

if they still don't cough up, start the recovery process.

How much do they owe you? A few thousand, a few hundred or what?

[Spikeh]

Get legal advice. But if you've done the work, then you're entitled to payment. It doesn't look like their not signing because they're not happy with the quality of your work, so if it goes to court, you'll have a strong case.



So you were working with their approval (even if you didn't get permission in writing).

It's the agency that owe you money. The fact that the client isn't paying the consultancy, and that the consultancy isn't paying the agency isn't your problem. It seems to be you've a legal debt against them. Send them another invoice, including the relevant admin fee (payontime.co.uk) and interest (same site), requesting payment with 7 days. When that's not paid, send them another invoice, as FINAL DEMAND, warning them that if that's not paid within 7 days you will take legal action. You should also include blurb that if they've trouble paying they should contact you.

By giving reminders and time to pay, you've acted reasonably.

if they still don't cough up, start the recovery process.

How much do they owe you? A few thousand, a few hundred or what?

This is pretty much my idea of things too - though I still don't know exactly how the law works with these kind of things.

They owe me around £2k, which I could have really done with over Christmas.

I'll re-send them the original invoices with the full amount on with an outstanding balance. I'm sick of wating now, I didn't want it to get to this point.

I'll read up on that website tonight and form an email asking for payment or I will seek further legal advice.

[Hex]

Although this all sounds a bit scary and heavy handed, what NotAllThere has said is spot on.

First of all send a new invoice with the admin charge and interest added so that they know that the longer the wait the more it will cost them.

Then, if they don't pay start a small claims court claim against them. This is actually very easily done on line. You don't need to go near a solicitor.

If you have proof (and e-mails will do) that they authorised you to do the work and that e-mails were exchanged during the course of the work being done then that should serve as a good indication that you should be paid for the work done.

Don't let them bully you.

[virtualm]

You could also prove you visited the customer site daily when you signed the visitors book I guess?

Do you have any email comms. to prove you were working there as well? It all adds to your case.

Good luck, not a nice position to be in.

[Another Dodgy Agent]

No, no signed timesheet unfortunately... just a verbal agreement over the phone that the days should be completed, and a load of emails proving I worked those days.

Check your contract wording regarding payment. If your contract from the agency states something along the lines of "Fees are not due or payable unless and until the Supplier has provided to the Agent an invoice supported by duly authorised timesheets...etc." then you could be stuck.

If it doesn't stipulate that authorised timesheets are required then you could try to invoice the agency with copies of the emails you mentioned attached.

[Spikeh]

Well, I read my contract and it states quite a bit about timesheets, but it's also quite ambiguous. Some contract points below:

In order to facilitate <AGENCY>'s accounts department to process invoices and payments smoothly, the Contractor undertakes to comply with and be subject to the rules contained within the <AGENCY> Invoice/Timesheet Procedure (Ltd. Co. ‘Opt Out’ Contractors) document, which shall form an integral part of these Terms.

And:

Time sheets (or where applicable, project reports detailing the work performed together with an analysis of hours spent), provided by <AGENCY> or the Client and signed by the Client's authorised representative, shall be sent by the Contractor to <AGENCY> each week.

However - we agreed on the phone / via email that timesheets would not be signed as the consultancy and I were both remote, which made it very difficult to get anything signed at all. I sent my timesheets via email each week and they authorised them with the consultancy over the phone.

[suityou01]

Well, I read my contract and it states quite a bit about timesheets, but it's also quite ambiguous. Some contract points below:


And:


However - we agreed on the phone / via email that timesheets would not be signed as the consultancy and I were both remote, which made it very difficult to get anything signed at all. I sent my timesheets via email each week and they authorised them with the consultancy over the phone.

I think its important to remember that you are a business. As such your business is owed money, not you per se. If for example you owed money on your gas bill, they would send red letters, and then put you out to a debt collection agency.

Now I' not saying you should send your invoices in red or anything, but selling the debt to a debt collection agency means you would recoup most/some of your money. This is an option for you, if you can find a debt recovery service willing to take on such a small amount and you are willing to accept less than you are owed.

If this is not the way you wish to proceed, then your only other course of action is the small claims track, as mentioned previously. What I would do is go to the county court, and pick up the forms and fill them all out. Then photocopy them in triplicate and send them to the agency (and may their client - its a judgement call on your part). A covering letter to the effect of 7 days notice before commencement of legal proceedings to cover debt for invoice number xxxxxxx, plus damages.

Once the shock and awe is in place, they may pay as they don't want to pay damages and legal costs, especially as you say this agency is a one man band. So they may settle before it gets to court. Once the seven days have elapsed then file the papers - I think it costs around £25.

I'm no lawyer, but I have been down this route a couple of times and it rarely gets to court.

Good luck, we're all rooting for you.

[Hex]

Make sure you keep all those e-mails. Start adding interest to your invoices as detailed on the payontime website. That might get their attention.

[Spikeh]

You could also prove you visited the customer site daily when you signed the visitors book I guess?

Do you have any email comms. to prove you were working there as well? It all adds to your case.

Good luck, not a nice position to be in.

I was not at the office, as I explained - I was working from home. I do have plenty of emails to prove I was working those days though. I put them in to a zip file and wrote a long email to the consultancy themselves explaining the predicament.... that was over 3 months ago.

The agency and the consultancy are both saying that they cannot pay me until the client signs off the days I worked.

[Spikeh]

I just found this in the contract too:

4. CONTRACTOR PAYMENT

(a) Payments will be processed by <AGENCY> as per the frequency stated in the Contractor’s Pay Schedule, provided the provisions of this document have been complied with.

(b) Prompt payment of accounts is conditional upon the receipt of timesheets/project reports that have been signed by a duly authorised representative of the Client. The Contractor expressly understands the following:

(i) <AGENCY> is under no duty to make payment for hours worked, unless it has received the relevant timesheet/project report from the Contractor, specifying those hours worked, which has been verified and signed on behalf of the Contractor.

(ii) <AGENCY> will be entitled to withhold payment from the Contractor on the basis that the relevant timesheet/project report has not been verified and countersigned by a duly authorised representative of the Client.

(c) <AGENCY> shall make payment via direct bank transfer (normally via BACS). The Contractor is therefore under a duty to ensure that <AGENCY> have been informed of the Contractor’s correct bank account details, including branch address, sort code and account number. Any change of bank account details must be immediately notified to <AGENCY> (failure to comply will result in payment being delayed until <AGENCY> recovers all monies sent to the account details previously notified by the Contractor). It is not sufficient to change bank details on invoices; <AGENCY> need specific written confirmation.

This doesn't bode well... but we managed to work together for 2 months without a single signed timesheet? Does this nullify the contract?