Unsure? Insure!

By Ashley Baxter

After so many years helping freelancers stay in business, I’m no stranger to the kinds of problems you face. But freelancing doesn’t mean having to face these problems alone. A lot of the time there i... more

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FAQs about Unsure? Insure!:

How many episodes does Unsure? Insure! have?

The podcast currently has 52 episodes available.

Unsure? Insure! episodes:

June 29, 2020I accidentally deleted a client's website
With Jack
You don’t have to do something illegal to upset a client and have them threaten you with legal action
Backups should be a basic part of your workflow. BackBlaze, SnapShooter and Arq are good places to start for services that help you keep client data safe
Make sure your terms outline the responsibilities of both parties so that when situations like this do arise (a client moving their website to another host) you know exactly what is expected of you and how to deal with it to avoid messy situations
Professional indemnity insurance is the policy that would help you if you make a mistake in your work that leads to a legal threat. Whilst the insurance doesn’t help you recover the deleted database, it does give you access to legal experts that can help negotiate with your client and cover the costs of any compensation they're demanding as a result of your mistake
...more
8min
June 22, 2020Client isn't paying for revisions
With Jack
Avoid unlimited revisions by specifying how many revisions are included in the initial cost in your contract. Further revisions cost an additional fee
Avoid fixed fee projects unless it’s for a small job with a quick turnaround. Fixed fee projects don’t take into account any changes to the scope and the subsequent cost in doing that extra work
If you feel like your client is being unreasonable, politely communicate this in a way that shows why they're being unreasonable. For example, you can't work for free, you can't work outside the scope of the contract without revising the budget etc
Take advantage of the legal advice helpline that’s included with your legal expenses insurance. This can give you practical guidance in dealing with client or contract disputes
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8min
June 15, 2020"It's just a simple website"
With Jack
If you’re hired to fulfil a brief where you’re asked to draw inspiration from another design, be wary of copyright infringement
Set design expectations with your client prior to the project beginning. For example, if assets like original photography and unique illustrations were used to achieve a look and feel, the client should take this into account. If they don’t, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to recreate a similar style and therefore not meet client expectations
This leaves you open to claims from unhappy clients
Refunds are not covered under your professional indemnity insurance, but in this case the request for a refund was accompanied alongside a legal threat which did trigger the policy
The insurer originally suggested offering a settlement to diffuse the situation, but the freelancer wasn’t keen on that
Instead, the insurer helped the freelancer draft various letters to the client, achieving an outcome the freelancer was comfortable with
Being insured gave this freelancer confidence in dealing with the situation and negotiating with their client
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6min
June 08, 2020What to do if your client adds an insurance clause to your contract
With Jack
Some boilerplate contracts have insurance clauses that are given to all vendors, so they might seem OTT for a freelancer
Whilst you should be insured, if the level of cover seems high or the policies they’re asking you to have are unreasonable to you as a freelancer, remember that contracts are there to be negotiated
Compromise on the level of cover. If they’re asking for £10m, what about suggesting £1m or £2m? In most cases, you’ll find clients are happy to compromise
This keeps your insurance premium in the low hundreds instead of thousands
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7min
June 01, 2020Professional indemnity insurance: frequently asked questions
With Jack
Legal fees become affordable because lots of freelancers are putting a little bit of money into a pot, so that when a small percentage of freelancers face a legal issue they can take money out of the pot. You’re exchanging the possibility of expensive, upfront legal fees for the certainty of a lower cost
‘Claims made basis’ means the policy covers claims that are notified during the policy period, which isn’t necessarily when the incident occurred. This is why it's important to maintain insurance for a period of time after you stop trading or finish job. In some industries it’s common for a mistake to be discovered weeks or months after the job is completed
A retroactive date is a date in the past which your insurer has agreed to cover you from. This is usually the date you bought insurance
Are you covered for work outside of the UK? Check your policy's jurisdiction in the policy documents. Most PI policies exclude US jurisdiction by default
The excess only applies to damages—not legal fees. If your claim triggers the mitigation costs clause, your excess will be deducted from the amount paid to you by the insurer
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12min
May 25, 2020First steps to take if a client threatens to sue you
With Jack
Don't reassure threatening clients that you have insurance. They might end up making a bigger claim if they know there’s a substantial pot of cash to back that up
Send a holding email. This gives you time to take a step back and gather all of the information you need, instead of replying in an emotional and possibly defensive state
Gather documents like contracts, client communication and project scopes that give the client's claim context (bonus points if you have information that disputes their claim or helps to strengthen your defence)
Provide all of that information to your insurer along with an overview of the situation. If covered under your policy, they will appoint legal experts to help you
...more
7min
May 18, 2020My client doesn't believe she got what she paid for
With Jack
Have proper payment terms instead of invoicing for work after it’s been delivered. Invoicing after work has been delivered gives the client a chance to change their mind
Have stricter measures for dealing with clients who cause disruption to the project by ghosting you or going off the radar. One of these measures could be a pause clause in your contract
Don’t fall into the trap of absorbing costs or offering to do extra work for free. Many clients will capitalise on this and take advantage
Stick to the agreed terms in your contract so that the contract can't be abused
Plan and budget the project scope as best as possible prior to a project kicking off. Your client ca see exactly what they’re getting and make any changes to budget and scope if need be prior to the project kicking off
Specify in your contract how long you’ll retain client files or assets for before deleting them
If there is no claim as yet, phone the legal advice helpline as part of your legal expenses insurance for practical advice to guide you through the situation
If things do escalate, the helpline can initiate the legal process and pass those details through to the claims team
If covered, your insurance will provide legal assistance in the form of a solicitor to help you defend the claim
...more
13min
May 11, 2020Client red flags to watch out for
With Jack
Red flag #1: Clients who want the moon on the stick. These clients want everything and have unreasonable demands. They're never going to be satisfied and unhappy clients can lead to claims
Red flag #2: Clients who don’t respect boundaries. This can damage the relationship between the client and freelancer. A poor working relationship can lead to all kinds of problems
Red flag #3: Clients changing their mind. Bad project management can lead to clients changing their mind, making it difficult for the freelancer to know what work to deliver. Not meeting client expectations—regardless of who is at fault—can lead to claims
Red flag #4: Clients who won’t agree to terms in writing. No contract or terms agreed to by both parties means everything is negotiable and this is dangerous
Red flag #5: Clients who negotiate on pricing. Whilst it's normal to have a budget, clients who obsesses over pricing, discounts and freebies are likely to undervalue you
Red flag #6: Clients who ghost you. If a client goes off the radar it shows they aren't taking the project or you seriously. Implement a pause clause in your contract to incentivise clients to stay on track and never start work without a deposit
...more
9min
May 04, 2020Common factors that cause projects to break down
With Jack
Poor project scopes allow clients to shift the goalposts of the project meaning you try to cram work you didn’t plan for into the same budget and timescale. This can result in project milestones being missed, which can cause a claim being brought against you
Poor project scopes can lead to confusion around what work is to be expected meaning the freelancer and client are on two different pages. This can result in the relationship breaking down, which is another cause of claims
Not having a contract can make it difficult to take control of a situation that’s gone wrong (what payment terms have been agreed, who own the intellectual property. Contracts make it easier to resolve disputes). When something isn’t clear, disagreements between the client and freelancer occur and that’s when third-parties like solicitors get involved
Clients who try to get you to discount or work for free are generally bad clients
If you don’t have confidence in your pricing and try to please clients by throwing in extra work for free or discounting, some clients will take advantage of this. This is another cause of client relationships breaking down
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10min
April 27, 2020"Is it time to threaten to sue my client?"
With Jack
Take a firm stance but avoid the conflict that comes with making a legal threat by sending late payment reminders
If you have legal expenses insurance you'll have access to professionally written templates
If the late payment reminder doesn't work, send a final 'letter of claim'. This template is available with your legal expenses insurance and includes the information sheet, reply form and financial statement form that you need to give to the debtor before you can go to court
The other option is to use the debt recovery service included with your legal expenses insurance. An expert lawyer will formally chase your debt for you
Make sure you document everything—from contracts that state payment terms to what reminders you've sent the client and when
There is the option to go through small claims court, but it isn't always successful
Even if you win the case, it doesn't guarantee you'll be successful in recovering money from your client
Mitigate the risk of non-paying client as much as possible by working with a contract, preliminary payments and strict payment deadlines
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9min

FAQs about Unsure? Insure!:

How many episodes does Unsure? Insure! have?

The podcast currently has 52 episodes available.