had a customer hold a check for ransom? Had a truck with broken worm gear in gear box and a brake chamber leaking. Replaced gear box and leaking chamber. Customer calls a few days later and says brakes not working. This is an old ranch dump truck. Told him I would put him on the list but it would be the middle of following week before I could get back to it.Called him today to tell him I would be there tomorrow and asked if he turned invoice in. He said yes but when brakes stopped working I called and told them to hold your check. I asked if the gear box worked. He said of coarse. Told him you may get me once but not twice so find someone else.
Good for you! You made an honest effort to rectify the situation.
I don’t know what the laws in Texas are, but here if you have a business you can file a lien against him. It may take awhile (years) but you’ll get results.
I find word of mouth is better than a lean. Had a guy shaft me $300 on an engine job. He bought a used engine. About a month later it lost oil pressure he took to local shop. I saw it, stopped and told them to add $300 to bill for me. Few days later someone else called me and said he was working on truck. Told him same thing. Needless to say neither one worked on the truck.
When I was doing part time excavating work, got warned about a couple customers that weren't good on paying...one paid right away, had to wait a week for Tub's milk check (dairy farmer). Guess nobody wanted to pizz off the undertakers kid...lol. Ed
Putting a hold order on a check as you did not 'Like' the work is handled much the same as insufficient funds around here. Is considered a Bounced check where usually has to be paid up prior to further work and if enough cost will end up as a lien on a machine.
I have one customer that pays once a year. Seems like so many are in a huge hurry to get something fixed, then can’t pay. Got one of those right now. Overhauled a N14, big hurry. Finish it last Sunday. He finally texted me yesterday, could he bring half and take the truck. Had one guy beat me out of a 3406E overhaul, a few years ago. Makes me pretty nervous now.
Paid in full or keep the truck. Local farm repair shop had to go to 50% down before they'll even start a major job after being screwed one time too many. I don't blame them, I would too if I was in their position. Even after they made that policy, they're still swamped with work.
I only did that once, if they could not pay it sat on the yard, would go as far as pull batteries so an extra key would not get it away and yes that was tried. One fella tried to sue me to get his truck, that went over really well at the local courthouse as he had outstanding warrants his attorney had to answer for. If they have a Business they can get or have a financed operating capital loan, they should be able to delve into that for funds, if not they probably cannot pay.
If I ever pick up some side work I probably would tell the customer to pay for the parts up front. At least then if I got stiffed I'm only out for my time and not the parts.
Why didn't you put a mechanics lien on the truck ?
Only way I did any work for years. The customer was handed a list was sent to the parts house, if they did not like the pricing the machine was sent out to the back of the line until they decided what they wanted to do. Overhauled a NTC350 BCII for a guy wanted the minimum, upper bores were cracked to hell and back, protrusion was not going to come in as they were also off .002-.003 from one side to the other where I had him pay for Cummins to come out and sleeve the upper counterbores. He was told to buy Genuine Cummins, did not and refused to pay the price so was a No Warranty rebuild, would cover the labor for anything I had done wrong but parts failures were to be all his IN WRITING and signed by him before I started the reassembly. Engine made it six months with some minor leaks(Nothing I had touched) he accepted the aftermarket parts were scary and ran it another five months when a piston failed catastrophically. Never once asked for warranty as he knew it was not my doing. Wound up he was out of state, bought a used engine and I ended up doing repairs on that one for three years until it died. He got out of freight hauls then.
I run a lawn mowing service, along with light excavation, been pretty lucky, in my 25 years in business. 1st year in biz, got stiffed for$100 by a bankrupt customer. She was later killed by drug dealers, so it didn't matter much... 'bout 17 or so years ago, hadda mowing customer end up owing me $400 through the winter, he calls me up at the start of the season, asks me to cut his lawn again, I told him to pay up and I'll start a new tab. I come out, mow a circle around the front lawn, knock on the door, and after reminding him, he finally writes me a check. I hop on mower, cut a diagonal stripe from the front door, to the trailer, load up, and hightail it to the bank. Deposit check, and in a coupla days, I get a call from him, asking if something was the matter with my mower. I said, I ain't got a problem in this world! Left him in the same condition as I found him, lookin fer someone to cut his grass... Bout 5 years ago, hadda nother customer try that ****, I sent them a suspension of service letter, no pay, no cut... They calls me up, said I could come pick up the cash. Picked it up, and on the way out, dropped a termination of service due to payment history letter, in the mailbox, on the way out. Left them as I found them, too! I still hate chasin deadbeats! Bad enough to work once fer the money, then have to work fer it, agin, NO WAY!
I hear ya DIY, we have all had to chase the deadbeats, had checks bounce even had legal services try to slap injunctions to stop the liens on machines I had implemented that they could not get passed thru. One guy paid me with bad paper, came by 'To make that right' wrote another one on another bank that ALSO bounced, told him Cash and carry or attorney's on it. He NEVER paid, had a lien on his Dump Truck that did not stop being sold out of state, I could not recover a dime and then he forgot who he stiffed, came back into my world left a trailer on my yard to be worked, took the tires off sat on blocks and held it until the dirt bag paid up front. Cannot recover the money already gone but could stop him from getting me twice. Never saw him again.
I did put a mechanics lien on it. He ended up parting it out a couple years later. I never have found out where the cab and frame ended up.
I know of many who get a check, put it in their pocket and deposit it when they "get around to it." Never again will I do that when a check is handed to me, my next stop is the bank to deposit it. Got stiffed once (like many others,) I have also cashed a check rather than depositing it to make sure I get the money. No mercy on my part any more.
If the customers bank is close I do cash the check if it’s someone I haven’t worked for before.
ALOT.. of my work is paid for thru the mail, by check.. and.. out of State.. I "thought" I was safe by cashing the check upon receipt.. NOPE. I asked the teller, "do you folks check "sufficient funds" BEFORE giving me the cash"?? She said, "NOPE.. THATS YOUR department.. if the check comes back to US as "I.F." we take it out of YOUR account.".. So unless your cashing a check from the writers bank.. it can still come back on YOU.. If your cashing a check AT HIS bank or a "branch", they check for "funds" right then & there.. I DO hold a repaired pump until its paid for.. but if the customer sends payment WITH the broken pump & it exceeds the quoted price, I wont hold it ransom for 30.00.. BUT I DO expect payment for the 30.00.. I HAVE gotten stiffed on THAT once.. Broken throttle shaft.. done in shipping because of pizz poor packaging..
Living in a regional area, we still come across businesses ,that we’ve never dealt with before, that will trust us with amounts of several thousand dollars. I consider it a privilege and always return the favour by paying the invoice as soon as possible. The way business was done in the old days.
We started a new corp. this year. Some places we make one or two orders a year, gave us credit for the asking. Others we have been doing business for years demand up front payment like we are someone they never heard of. Well I guess they get paid by credit card. They lose 3-4% and we gain 1.25% and favorable terms, oh well....