Difficult client

Difficult client

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Hi guys,

I have a client who often proves quite difficult to work with. I know that's sometimes par for the course but some examples of the situations I come up against are:

1.    Several occasions of haggling on price and terms/conditions within engagement letter

2.    Agreeing to pay by SO, then contacting me in March to ask if he has now paid his fixed price in full, being told there are three payments left, I don't receive the SO in April (as he obviously cancelled it), demanding a statement of account, then demanding copies of all invoices, being supplied with all of these to prove three payments are still due, then telling me that he will pay the balance when year end figures are done (he wants to make sure I have an incentive to do these quickly)

3.   He won't go on to Xero as he doesn't like the fact that I would rather he subscribes through my practice to Xero

4.   Today he told me he wants all HMRC correspondence to go to him only rather than through me (which I now have to explain probably means I remove my agent authority)

With this client it is a case of ultra paranoia. He wants to cover his bases all the time in case he ever wants to leave and this makes the changeover easier for him. I will now have to tell him that he either trusts me enough to always do the right thing by him or he doesn't. If he trusts me, agent authority is left in place, SO payments are reinstated and we move on.

Is it time to say enough is enough?????

Replies (17)

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By sheilb
09th Jun 2011 21:32

Yes!
YES!!! The perk of working for yourself is you can pick your clients - this one sounds like a hard way to earn a living!

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By User deleted
09th Jun 2011 22:47

If he's paid you everything he owes you....

then yes, kick him into touch so you have the satisfaction of making the decision rather than him making it for you :)

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By glenbogle
09th Jun 2011 23:27

I hate dealing with these control freaks

You should point out that if he got a plumber in and acted like this the skilled person would very quickly withdraw his services. He has shown you disrespect and changed the ground rules, without consulting you. In the circumstances you are too professional not to complete the work in hand  but you will have the pleasure of waving him goodbye as you really have not got time for silly games.

Draw the line and stay sane.

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Locutus of Borg
By Locutus
10th Jun 2011 00:35

Job for Friday

 You don't have to put up with this nonsense.  Call him up and tell him you think it's no longer working out and that he needs to find another accountant.  You'll have a happier weekend.

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By ShirleyM
10th Jun 2011 07:12

Another vote for sacking him

I would be OK about the Xero issue, but trying to change your terms/conditions of engagement is not OK. The HMRC correspondence I would probably be OK with, it makes his life more difficult as he has to keep forwarding copies to you. If you can no longer act as his agent then he carries the load himself, and deals with HMRC himself, and if he suffers any consequences that may arise as a result then you will not accept responsibility.

He has gone back on the agreement for monthly payments. Once you have completed the work make sure you don't hand anything over until you have received full payment. The warning signs that you may not get paid are all there!

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Kieran Phelan
By KPEM online
10th Jun 2011 07:55

Thanks for the replies

Thanks for the responses guys. The good thing is I am 100% confident that he will pay once the figures are finalised, he simply seems to have control and trust issues, and not just with me! He tends to have similar issues with his customers within his industry and he expects to be able to replicate this behaviour with all his suppliers (I know someone else who provides services to him and he gets the same grief!)

I get on reasonably well with him when he is not having "one of those days". But "those days" are starting to grind on me, especially when he decides he will dictate payments terms. He firmly believes that he was doing me a favour by paying for services in advance by SO given this is my first year in business. What he fails to grasp is that the value of my services have exceeded the price charged...........

My apporach is to get the accounts done, get paid, produce new engagement letter showing new (higher) monthly SO payments due and see how it flies. If it doesn't, he can move on with my best regards.

This guy has severe mood swing tendancies.............I prefer to deal with positive, appreciative and pro-active clients.

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By David2e
10th Jun 2011 08:29

Re-evaluate original quote

I certainly don't disagree with what the others have said. I just feel that you aren't really wanting to let this client go so quickly.

If he wants to change these things, it makes your work more difficult needing to get information passed through from him, additional meetings, less time to do the work, more work required without agent authority, more risk.  I'd explain this to him and tell him that if he does want to change those things it all means you have to requote on that basis.

Personally I don't like dealing with difficult people, and only try to maintain an appreciation for different views. If he is truly difficult and you reach the end of your tether, look after yourself and make sure you don't lose out (just as he's doing) and feel comfortable letting him go.

David Toohey
The Accountants Circle

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By refs8
10th Jun 2011 12:32

Refs8

 Been hear many times before. I tend to make there life difficult and they then see what service they are getting and they then normally relent.

Those things that for other clients I would help them with, for this client I insist they play the by our rules and sometimes make them up as I go along. Alternatively you resign if they become too much hassle.

 

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By The Minion
17th Jun 2011 12:16

If

It looks like a duck

walks like a duck

and

quacks like a duck.

It is probably a duck - get rid.

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By pawncob
17th Jun 2011 12:57

Why ask?
If you want sympathy, you've come to the wrong place. We've all had ones like these. Whether you get rid or keep depends upon what sort of person you are. Make your mind up now.

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By ChrisBurr
17th Jun 2011 13:49

Queue the accountancy marketing experts......

Queue the accountancy marketing experts to tell us that you've all got this wrong and should see it from the client's perspective. lol, come on guys where are you today ?

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By ShirleyM
17th Jun 2011 14:13

Pawncob

You hit the nail on the head. We have all had clients like this.

I made a real effort the first time it happened, as I wanted to know why he was unhappy with something he had previously agreed to. I made the big mistake of trying to explain our reasons for those terms, and reason with him. It ended up with long emails being passed backwards and forwards and our relationship deteriorated with every email.

I don't enter into any dialogue now. I tell them our terms. They can choose to accept, or go elsewhere. If they accept and then change their mind and start dictating, they get sacked.

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By chrisballard
17th Jun 2011 14:23

Say Goodbye and learn from it!

  As others have said, we've all had clients like this and either whipped them into shape or got rid.

  Strikes me that you are enabling this client to dictate YOUR terms.  Stick to your guns with him, tell him you won't be doing any more work for him until he brings his payments up to date and don't return any documents to him.  Any arguments from him, just refer him back to your letter of engagement.

  You could also add a footnote to your invoices saying that prepared documents will not be submitted to HMRC etc until all fees are paid in full.

  Finally, when all is said and done, you'll lose him whatever you do, people like this don't like walk-overs but they also don't like being made to conform.  Good luck!

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By richardterhorst
17th Jun 2011 15:26

Leave

How desperate are you for clients? That should answer it.

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By SimonLever
17th Jun 2011 16:11

Why not wait...

... until you have finished the current year's work and have been paid. Then tell him that due to the changes he has imposed on you the fee will double. Not only that but you want it up front. It can be paid into your client's account and drawn down monthly so he can still get his money back if he wants to leave.

If he queries the increase tell him that not receiving the correspondence from HMRC increases the risk fo him getting an investigation and also that you will have no responsibility for any tax matters. If he wants the correspondence he can do the compliance work. Additionally the fee has gone up due to the difficulty you have in dealing with him and you feel that you should be paid for putting up with his attitude. Point out that he will now be responsible for his own tax return.

That way if he pays you will be doing less of a job (no tax compliance) and getting paid more. If he leaves then you have less stress - win/win situation.

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By Jason Dormer
17th Jun 2011 17:28

Get rid

ChrisBurr - I don't consider myself an expert but I do advise accountants on marketing, and sorry to dissapoint but I agree with the general view to get rid!

No point putting yourself in the shoes of an idiot, and there is always enough work around to replace this client with ones that don't give you this type of grief, combined with a complete lack of trust.

 

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By lme
23rd Jun 2011 14:43

Frank discussion

I agree this client sounds like more hassle than he's worth. However, it might just be worth a frank discussion along the lines of "I'm finding some of your requests a bit tough, and its important that we trust each other, do you think there's anything we could do to try and improve things" and see if this opens the floodgates and moves you on.

I once had a client I found absolutely IMPOSSIBLE to deal with. We were going nowhere and so I had nothing to lose. I tried this tactic - explaiing that I was findng him hard to deal with and asking if he had any suggestions - and it worked a treat. He basically said "I know what you mean, perhaps its better if you deal with Mr X instead of me". He then handed me over to Mr X who was a positive delight and we were all happy at the end of the day. Even if there's no Mr X it might buck his ideas up and realise you're only human and deserve a bit more trust and respect.

-- Lydia

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