Childminder terminating contract

[hoolahoolay]

Surely I'm not being unreasonable. So my son is due to start with a childminder next week when I go back to work after maternity leave. We have settling in sessions this week

So she sent the invoice for January out early December and she said to let her know if there were any errors, the due date on the invoice was 1st January. For one reason or another we haven't paid it and instead of reminding us she has messaged this morning to say she's terminated contract as invoice is 5 days late.
Surely she could have sent a payment reminder.

WTF can I do now?

Could you try apologising (profusely) and offer to set up a DD or standing order?

You couldn’t manage to pay the first bill on time so it’s not looking good for future bills. She’s cutting her losses early so she doesn’t have to chase you. You (and her other clients) are basically her wage….if you don’t pay her then she can’t pay her bills/living costs…. Would you be happy if your work were late paying you and you couldn’t pay your bills because they forgot?

Start with ringing her

Would you expect to go shopping and then tell the supermarket you can't afford to pay so can you pay later?
What do you think they would say?
I worked in childcare for a number of years and the amount of parents who left owing thousands of pounds was ridiculous. DDs nursery closed down because parents weren't paying.
That's why now most nurseries (and I assume child minders are the same) insist on payment in advance and will take action to get the money if you don't or terminate your contract.
I can't believe you think CM is being unreasonable. I expect your one of those parents who thinks childcare is so easy and your child is so wonderful they should be happy to work for free.
I think you should pay what you owe and look for another CM (good luck with that) and then set up a DD straight away so you don't forget and don't expect people to work for free.

5 days late on first payment a death would be the only thing I'd consider giving another chance ....but it would have been paid on contract signing and before any settling .....she probably feels op was after a few free hours care.

I expect your ex childminder has bills to pay. She works for a wage. How would you feel is your pay cheque didn't come in and your mortgage / rent payment came out anyway. You are being VVV unreasonable and I would have terminated you too. Too much hassle in the past from non payers...

This is her job and you’ve basically told her already she won’t get paid on time. I’d do the same in her shoes, I presume you’d be miffed if your employer paid you late, it’s no different to her.

So you had almost a month to pay and haven’t? She’s decided people like you aren’t ones she wants to work with. Blooming good for her!

If she has to chase you for the first invoice, it doesn't bode well for the future.

I am.with the childminder on this, she dodged a bullet!!

How can it slip your mind when you are returning to work or when your bringing your child for settling in sessions and still don't remember as you hand your child over....the childminder will think the op overspent at Christmas and expects her to subsidise it and that it will happen going forward birthdays, holidays and hairdressers etc.

WTF can I do now?

Beg.

This is why I pay things immediately as I know I will forget. I can set up a future payment date on my online banking if I need to.

It takes two seconds to do - it’s not an excuse.

YABU

YABU, you had about a month to pay her and you chose not to.
The only thing you can do now is to source alternative childcare and pay them on time.

Five days late and with no communication to cm? Ah now OP, that's no surprise she's not prepared to put up with that. Talk about bad first impressions. CMs are treated dreadfully in terms of payment by some CFs. My SIL is a CM and I made a point when we had one to treat her as well as we could, especially around payment. I get my salary at a fixed and predictable time and would be stuck very much if there was a 5 day delay! You haven't even given a proper reason so it comes across as careless and disorganised. The opposite of what a CM needs.

Don't forget most of the funding which is an increasing amount of childcare business is paid at below the market rate and in arrears the small amount coming from parents is needed to buy the parents children's food, activities, heating before the CMS own bills. So unlike in your business the money missing may be 90% or more leaving nothing to live on

'For one reason or another I haven't paid..'

For one reason or another? Do you also not pay your mortgage or rent, council tax, gas & electric for 'one reason or another?'

No, I didn't think so. This is this woman's livelihood and her private business. I would terminate too at the first sight of non-payment. YABU. Very much so. And entitled.

No. Start with accepting her decision.

Also agree about "for one reason or another ..." saying so much, and little of it good

Obviously nobody's obliged to reveal their entire lives on here, but if there'd been some genuinely traumatising reason for this OP would probably have said so, and the phrase chosen amounts to a flappy hand - something the childminder's almost certainly seen before

So is 80% of your business underpaid to you by the government who have dictated to you not only what your paid....and much less than what you would charge...but the hours you can open, the things you must provide, how to do your paperwork and know your bank details and can send in the inspectors at anytime even if you're recovering from surgery, bereavement or booked holiday?

I’d ring her and have a conversation. Maybe reassure her by paying for the next couple of months up front?
People are so slap dash paying those who are self employed, it’s outrageous, even if it is ‘an oversight’.

FAAFO

5 days late on first payment a death would be the only thing I'd consider giving another chance

Many of us take the same approach, @jannier, which is probably why some appear to have an inexhaustible supply of dying grandparents
My personal record with this one is seven, which even in these days of blended families seemed a bit much, and when finally challenged on this the answer was "Well they were like a grandparent to me"

Do you have to remind your boss to pay your wages? Would you be happy to do that, and to take the blame for not getting paid on time as you didn't chase?

Give your head a wobble.

Oh shit. Why on earth didn’t you pay it?

I would call asap and do some grovelling. Say you thought your DH had taken care of it and vice versa. Tell her you’d be happy to pay 3 months upfront now. This may give her some reassurance your not going to be crap payers who leave her in the lurch.