Sheila Wilson wrote:
Ilham Ahmadov wrote:
My question to you is have you ever faced a client or a translation agency who has no knowledge and expertise in your native language and who is completely from a different field, proofread your work with a dictionary and then slander you that your work was not up to their standards.
I doubt there are many of us here who haven't had that happen. It certainly happens often with into-English translations as almost everyone can understand the target text enough to know that it doesn't contain a literal translation of each word, nor are words in the same order; but not enough - apparently - to know that there certainly should NOT be such a close correspondence.
Immediately I wrote back a heated responce
That was a shame and is probably why your client has stopped communicating with you. The cooling-off period Christine mentions is vitally important.
my second question is what can I do about this situation to punish them and get the money? I will post a negative entry on Blue Board for sure, but I doubt if they care, but what are the other avenues available to restore the justice?
I'm like you in that I really don't like to see clients getting away with non-payment for such unfounded reasons. I'm prepared to spend a certain amount of time and a even a little money to ensure that I get my rightful payment. Mind you, there have to be limits and you do have to know when to turn the page and write the debt off. Having said that, the only times I've ever lost any money in nearly 20 years of freelancing (apart from €12.50 that I once told the client to forget) is when clients have filed for bankruptcy and so can't pay. I've always managed to get payment from "won't pay" clients.
I personally would send the client a final reminder written in very formal terms (if in English, Google for "final demand"). Not by email but on paper, sent by registered post to their company's registered address, which should be the one on the invoice. That will cost you little in time or money. No need to explain anything; just refer to the invoice that is now overdue and state what action you will take if full payment has not been received by a certain date. That action will presumably be to call in a debt recovery company or to initiate a claim through the courts. The first is only likely to happen if the sum involved is big enough to interest a company - i.e. unlikely in this case. The feasibility of the second depends on where your client is and what's available. If you're both in Azerbaijan, maybe there's a small claims court that costs very little? Just providing evidence of having contacted them may prove enough to convince the client to pay. It may not be worth your while taking it any further.
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