Originally Posted by Vicky

I was reading on another topic and I come across this link and I thought it may be of interest. It just shows how careful you have to be in keeping copies of sent emails containing completed work. Regards, Vicky

WHOA! *note to self* keep copies of signed work agreements and completed work showing client signature.

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Margaret Salmond, Bay Area VA
http://www.bayareava.info

Thank you. This really answers my question.

I just wanted to add something quick on the NSF charges. My sister and I were talking this morning and she has a terrible customer who NEVER has the funds in his account. I have 13+ years in Banking so I told her that since this guy is local she can go directly to his bank and (depending how the check is made out) she can ask them to turn the check into a Cashiers check, made out the exact same way. This can save you the headache of waiting until the customers check clears, or in her case does not clear. Some banks will require that you show your business identity and prove that you are the business owner. That is if the check is made to the business name.

It gets a little harder when the client is out of state....or is not using a chain bank...

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Kristina ~Success Office Solutions
Our Solutions Equal Your Success!

Great information! I am just starting my business and one of the questions I had was should I get payment up front before delivering work done or should I wait until the client reviews the work? Getting payment up front before delivery makes a lot more business sense to me.

Thank you everyone!

Thanks, i have been accepting checks and now I am re-thinking that! I was curious about fees with Paypal, or if you really need a certain volume to be worth it?

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Lara
Prairie Dog Communications Virtual Assistance LLC

I just set up my Paypal account yesterday, and the standard merchant account does not have a monthly fee, they charge a very low percentage of the funds that go through the account plus $0.30. You can do your invoicing through them also. There are a lot of other features that you should check out at their website.

Originally Posted by teel03

Here is a paragrah from my service agreement and terms of service: • 2% late fee of any unpaid balance; • Payment is due upon receipt of an invoice. In most cases it the 15th and 30th of every month after the first two weeks – first two weeks you will receive an invoice on Friday, payment due by Monday. PAYMENT TERMS Client will receive an invoice for services rendered and an expense report (if applies) at the time of completion of services. Client hereby agrees to pay the invoice in full at the time of delivery. HAT"S Virtual Assistant Paralegal/Secretarial Services reserve the right not to release any final projects until full payment has been received. All projects and/or assignments are due upon receipt of an invoice unless you are placed on COD for billing issues. ENTIRE AGREEMENT This agreement and HAT Virtual Assistant Paralegal/ Secretarial Services Terms and Conditions of Service contain the entire understand of all parties. The Service Terms and Conditions of Service are hereby restated and in full force and effect in this document. If someone would to see my entire welcome pak let me know. However I must tell you that I have 3 clients and 2 of which are 45 days past due I broke my own rules by giving them the work FIRST!! How stupid was that !!

Hi Teel03,
I would like to see your entire welcome pack to help me establish my policies. Thank you in advance for sharing!

Originally Posted by Tess

I'd suggest adding an actual monetary amount to your policy - otherwise, it's too arbitrary if the time comes to charge one and the client may balk... I've actually just updated my own policy to read: Invoices are due on net 14 terms and are payable via Paypal plus 3.5%. Invoices not reconciled within 15 days incur a $XX or 5% of balance, whichever is greater, late payment penalty. Invoices not reconciled within 30 days incur an additional $XX or 10% of balance, whichever is greater, per month until reconciled. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns regarding your invoice or payment. Because I realized it did NOTHING to protect me on really large invoices and didn't really cover post-30 accurately enough to be legitmately enforceable...one of those 'duh!' moments

Hi! Can I copy this information for my own TOS page? Please, its perfectly written!
Thanks! Steph

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Your Marketing, Research and SEO assistant www.buckeyeva.com

Excellent information everyone. It sure looks like PayPal is the way to go. Now getting my clients to agree with paying that way is another issue.

Kristen

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:daisy:Kristen Voss
KPV Virtual Office Solutions

I would charge a return-check fee. Find out what your bank would charge you if a check came back unpaid and then charge that amount to the customer for the returned check (if you get one).

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Shannon