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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to want to be paid for childminding!!

129 replies

Mum2Luke · 13/02/2012 12:19

mother has not been paid (or so she says) by Tax credits, rang them this morning to have some snotty git tell me its nothing to do with me yet I am the one who is out of pocket because I have not been paid!!

It is time childcare providers were paid directly by tax credits, she could be telling me anything but I cannot prove that. She owes me £78 for last week too.

Its not fair this, am doing a job and getting nothing for it, how do they expect us to entertain and feed the kids full-time in the holidays without any money?

Has anyone else had this problem?

OP posts:

SaraBellumHertz · 13/02/2012 13:44

OP can you not see that ringing tax credits is grossly unprofessional?!

I would run a mile from any service provider who behaved like that.

For your own protection and the sake of professionalism, sort your policies out.

NickNacks · 13/02/2012 13:44

I never ask parents how they intend to pay me, nor will I be drawn into conversations about not being able to pay due to tax credit cock ups.

I am of course flexible and sympathetic and am happy to arrange payment plans for those in genuine financial difficulty but that is as far as I stretch. For instance one mum pays on a tues instead of a Monday as this is when she gets her TCs but it is still in advance ANC I still do not accept her being late.

FunnysInTheGarden · 13/02/2012 13:49

Speechless, really. You may not be an amateur CM, but you don't really seem to know how business works OP. ie who your contract is with etc

nailak · 13/02/2012 13:51

I am with op, if childminders.were so inflexible where I live then they would be constantly terminating contracts and would find it very hard to get clients in the first place.

When housing benefit were late my Dh went with landlord to office, so maybe if you phone together, as twx credits is open until 8.

AThingInYourLife · 13/02/2012 13:57

Do most people really pay for childcare in advance?

I pay monthly, for the month that has just passed.

Not sure I would be too happy to pay for a service I hadn't yet received.

MrsHeffley · 13/02/2012 13:58

I'm with op too.When i was a childminder I had somebody who I constantly had to chase,gave them their notice and got called heartless.You can't win.

I live in an area where this rarely happens but I know from friends who work in areas that this is a major prob in fact I can rem county giving advice on the subject it was that bad.

Sorry don't get the nasty posts towards the op.

Kayano · 13/02/2012 13:58

ATHing

But if you didn't pay do you think it's up to your childminder to ring the tax credit people or your boss to ask where our pay was....

Or would it be between the two of you?

TheParanoidAndroid · 13/02/2012 13:59

Of course they do. Ask any nursery, they'll want a deposit and a month up front as well. I'm sure there are plenty of services you pay upfront for.

Dustinthewind · 13/02/2012 13:59

She hasn't paid the £78 for services already received, so she's already behind.

TheParanoidAndroid · 13/02/2012 13:59

And there are no nasty posts, they are factual.

MrsHeffley · 13/02/2012 14:02

Also paying in advance can make things v complicated if hours vary.I never asked for money in advance and was "Outstanding",my business was tickety boo.

Op had every right to ring,said parent broke her contract and has built up a debt,op has every right to try and get her money back from wherever she needs to it's called life.

sunshineandbooks · 13/02/2012 14:02

I pay my CM monthly in advance. I would definitely advise that you do this from now on. Saves a lot of unpleasantness.

That said, I have a lot of sympathy with the OP's client. It's quite likely that tax credits have messed up her payments. Anyone who is reliant on them knows the fear of having payments stopped or altered, with no notice and without an explanation often until several weeks later. Quite often, it's not because of a change in circumstances but because of the way their system operates - if you total up payments you realise they've paid you the same amount as originally planned but simply changed the instalment amounts and dates to suit their mid-term accounting plans.

TheParanoidAndroid · 13/02/2012 14:04

Op had every right to ring,said parent broke her contract and has built up a debt,op has every right to try and get her money back from wherever she needs to it's called life.

No, its called the Data Protection Act, which means you cannot get infor on other peoples tax credits. You should know simple things like that if you are in business.

mojitomania · 13/02/2012 14:04

Not sure what you can do OP but as stated your contract is with the mum.

All you can do is refuse to look after the child again until she's paid up I suppose.

Unfortunately these things happen when you deal direct with people.

RitaMorgan · 13/02/2012 14:07

You definitely should be paid OP.

However, it's no business of yours where the mother gets her money from. I haven't told my CM how much tax credits I get - it's none of her business.

Get your clients to pay in advance. No pay = no care.

Flisspaps · 13/02/2012 14:10

AThingInYourLife You wouldn't go swimming, or to the gym without paying before you used their service. If you get on a bus or a train, you pay when you get on, not off. If you go to a play centre or a theme park, you pay up front.

There are lots of services you pay for in advance.

NCMA recommend that Childminders are paid in advance to prevent this sort of situation occuring.

OP From one CM to another - it's not your problem as to where the mother gets her money from, as long as it gets to you. This is where you need to separate your business from your emotions. Yes, it's crap that this mum is trying to work and has had her payments buggered up by HMRC, but you cannot let that cloud your decisions re payment nor should it mean that you are going unpaid. She'd not turn up at Tesco and say 'well, I've not had my tax credits paid, so do you mind if I pay for my shopping next week', would she? Nor would they phone HMRC to try and find out where her money was! I think phoning HMRC to find out what is going on is massively unprofessional but it's something you can't undo.

If you live in an area where 'people don't pay up front or on time' then it's up to you to make sure you have policies in place to make sure that people do, otherwise you risk being taken for a mug, working for nothing and being unable to pay your own bills.

MrsHeffley · 13/02/2012 14:11

Hmmm re data protection I've had phonecalls from the tax credit office asking for hours,details etc,we all did in our area.

Also once a debt occurs people are at liberty to seek info towards getting their money however they wish.If the tax office refuses to give info thats a different matter it's their call but approaching them sorry totally reasonable.

AThingInYourLife · 13/02/2012 14:25

I wouldn't be prepared to pay for childcare in advance, and I've never been asked to.

I don't get paid in advance, and I expect my biggest employment-related expense to fit in with that.

I have 2 children in full-time childcare. I think my business is valuable enough that the CM I use will not want to lose it.

The childminders' association has some pretty stupid ideas. Thankfully the childminders I have dealt with have better business sense.

Kayano - of course I would not expect a CM to be ringing up the tax credits people looking for my money. I would CRINGE at the idea of someone doing something so ridiculous.

RealitySickOfSick · 13/02/2012 14:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

fiorentina · 13/02/2012 14:47

If you were my childminder and I found out you were this naive about business and seemed so angry I'm afraid I would look elsewhere. It would make me wonder about your attitude towards other issues. I can see you are upset but your reaction is not akin to someone running their own business and paperwork efficiently and professionally.

AThingInYourLife · 13/02/2012 15:19

I dunno, if I hadn't paid my CM for 2 weeks I would be so embarrassed I wouldn't make a fuss even if she rang my mother.

If you owe somebody money, you pay them.

Although, if it's for a service they haven't yet provided that changes things slightly...

Kayano · 13/02/2012 15:22

If they didn't get tax credits but said their work hadn't paid them op would it be acceptable to call their HR department or boss?

porcamiseria · 13/02/2012 15:40

Dont accept her kids for childcare until you get paid, really its as simpkle as that

and advertise for some new mindees

her issue, NOT yours

TheParanoidAndroid · 13/02/2012 15:40

Oh really? So fine to call your debtees parents, spouse at work, employer.....only if you are also a total amateur and crass with it.

Kayano · 13/02/2012 15:43

Also what if that person was being financially abused? Could cause
A whole load of shit all down to amateur behaviour

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