Have I been scammed or are these people legitimately scatterbrained?

Okie dokie. I am becoming increasingly concerned about one client in particular who throws me a lot of work.

I am going to lay out why I think I've been scammed, and why I think they might be scatterbrained... and, a question: if they are only scatterbrained and I don't burn this bridge, how can I let them know this is unacceptable nicely?

I am very new to all of this. I have been freelancing since Nov. 1, and have made enough to live on. It rocks, but I'm not rich. I barely get by and 300$ is a LOT of money that would have been awesome to have for the holidays, when I was owed it.

They posted an ad looking for writers on Craigslist (all of my work comes from CL or kijiji, zero problems so far).

Reasons I think they might be scatterbrained:

1. They asked for a sample first, and I was paid for this sample.

2. I have been paid for some work, a total of $130.00 in a one-time payment.

3. I was offered the option of picking up a cheque at their home office. (I declined this and took the e-mail money transfer option instead...they live kind of far. Not TOO far, but far.)

4. Their phone number is in their e-mail signature (cell phone) and a Canada411.com lookup finds 4 people in the city with that name and their phone number...so they could be who they say they are.

5. They seem to adore me, love what I'm doing for them and are very happy with my work. When I asked when I was getting paid the first time I said I don't want to pushy and they replied with "oh no, we want our writers to be happy blah blah".

6. While they had been posting ads for their services all through Oct. and Nov, since they've "disappeared" none have been posted.

Reasons I think I have been scammed:

1. Nothing I had done for them at the time of payment added up to $130. A series of small projects, they totaled $178. Even if they missed one, the rest don't add up to $130. I sent them an e-mail with a list of work, they apologized and said they'd look into it... nothing has come of that.

2. They kept sending assignments with the promise of payment on this date, that date, but kept asking for the completion of "one more assignment" that will be added into the payment... several times. Because of the $1.50 fee to send an e-mail money transfer, this is easier on them and their books they say. (Understandable).

3. I am still owed 300+ dollars.

4. The only recourse I have via smearing them for not paying me is to really hurt THEIR clients who bought the work. Not the company themselves. This seems unfair to me, so I would never do that.

5. They took off for the holidays. I am supposed to be paid in 3-5 business days, and after the 10th business day I e-mailed them. No reply. 15 business days I e-mailed again, got an auto message saying they would return to their office Jan 11.

6. A phone message was also not returned.

Thoughts? Should I just wait?

Thank you all for your advice! It will prove very helpful.

I am still hoping for something to happen on the 11th, and am contemplating just threatening to go after the clients but not actually doing so if it ever came to it being super obvious scamming. I agree with you fov, the $130 is pretty decent for a scam.

KT, yes I have other work lined up for now... I have some permanent blogging that goes month to month that makes up half my income, but the other half is random stuff like this which is why I'm eager to get it. We'll have to see! I'll update eventually.

I have decided to update you fine folks.

Thanks for all of your advice. It appears I was hired for the holiday rush and dumped. This has happened to me before, at a pizza joint. It really bothers me. This is my first time being screwed in the writing world and I really don't just want to let it go.

They are just ignoring me now. They've posted numerous ads on CL and Kijiji for their business services while ignoring my e-mails. I have also had friends e-mail them about the services and they were responded to immediately. I am still being ignored.

I do some blogging on the side for a lawyer and we are thinking of sending a lawyer demand letter to them. I just have to find their address, but hopefully something comes of this.

This way I don't have to hurt their clients (but I will let them know of the dangerous position they've been put in).

Thanks all

fov said:

Before you do anything too crazy - are you sure that your emails are reaching them? Have you tried emailing them with a different address or calling again?

It's possible your domain has ended up on their spam blacklist somehow, or vice versa (they're writing back to you but you're not getting the emails). I used to work in customer service and customers would get all upset and threaten us with all sorts of things because they thought we were ignoring them, when in fact we had sent prompt replies that went into their spam folder or were blocked by their ISP. If the ISP is blocking your email address or domain it may not even reach their spam folder, so it appears as if no email has been sent.

Now that they're back in the office, I'd call again, and if you get voice mail make it clear that you've sent several emails regarding the money they owe you and this issue needs to be resolved immediately. Give them a phone number where they can reach you since email seems not to be working. Then give it a few days, and if you still don't get a response, you have a better idea of the situation and can move forward.

You might be right, they might be ignoring you. But if they're not (and especially if they think they *have* been responding to your emails, and you're the one who's not responding!), bringing a lawyer in before you've covered all of your other bases could burn bridges unnecessarily.

I wouldn't talk to or even threaten to talk to their clients. That's unprofessional and could bite you later, especially if the situation isn't what you think it is. Bring the lawyer in if necessary, but otherwise, this is between you and them.

Click to expand...

Celia: no, I haven't flagged anything.

I was thinking of only posting a warning on Cl about the company and their practices.

It is an essay writing company. I know many people will think that I'm getting what I deserve. It's dishonest, dirty work and I did it while I was desperately looking for work. I do not want to do it anymore. I worked my butt off in school and it sucks that people don't have to sometimes.

Obviously with this information, you can see the leverage I have over their clients and it would be extremely unethical and a horrible thing to turn them in. After all, they paid for the service they got. However, I really feel it's important to let them know privately, because the next writer could effectively ruin their lives. The clients are not businesses and such, they're students.

I don't know what the general consensus here about writing essays is.
I am here to learn and absorb all of the information that I can with regards to freelance writing as a legitimate career, so I am honestly hoping that it's recognized that I made a mistake, and that I know I did.

We have had e-mail problems before, their e-mails were not reaching me. She would keep fwding them until they reached me. I recognized the problem, called tech support, fixed it. Their e-mails can reach me now.

I have e-mailed them from two different accounts, and they know of three separate e-mail accounts they can reach me at.

I do have a tiny nagging voice in my head saying it's not what I think it is... I might call a few more times.

fov said:

Ahh, that changes things a little. Considering they're doing something unethical to begin with, it's not much of a stretch to think they would do another unethical thing by not paying you.

Posting anonymously on Craigslist probably wouldn't hurt anything, but I don't know if it's going to get you paid, either. Just be careful about doing anything that could give the company a reason to want to sully your reputation -- even if you're in the right.

Click to expand...

Thank you for not blasting me. It's an unethical practice, but they have a legit in-home tutoring business too... there are just so many reasons on both sides that I don't know what to do, really. But, this seeming ignoring of my e-mails is bothering me. I called again and left a message for them.

And yes, informing the students doesn't seem so horrible, but you're right, I would want to make sure I'm in the clear first. I would probably only do that if the letter doesn't work... the students would hopefully go after the company, and not get hurt in the process. Blah. I don't know. I'm going to wait a *little* bit longer to see what happens before I give my lawyer contact the go ahead.