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Paid childcare

Discuss everything related to paid childcare here, including childminders, nannies, nurseries and au pairs.

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Original poster

am i being unreasonable? pay

22 replies

amazonianadventure · 02/07/2008 09:14

hiya,

I clearly have on my contract that payment is on the 1st of the month.
Ive never had a problem until now,i really need paid as i have something to pay immediately, i get part voucher payment which was paid today so i will receive it on monday but im going to have to ask her today when ill get the rest.

Usually she gives me it whithout asking but it has been known to be the following week but i never have to ask and i know im getting it. am i being unreasonable because i have put myself in the postion that im desperate for the money??

OP posts:

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edam · 02/07/2008 09:27

No, of course YANBU. She should pay you promptly i.e. when payment is due. Otherwise she's effectively borrowing money from you.

I don't know why people think childminders are not entitled to the money they earn - they'd kick up a stink soon enough if their own employers said 'hang on, I can't afford to pay you on time this month'.

sillybillybee · 02/07/2008 09:27

I'd just 'casually' mention that you haven't been paid yet and need to pay something out of it. YANBU, you have a contract stating payment on the 1st.
I do sometimes wonder how parents would feel if their wages didn't go into the bank on time, and whether they realise that not paying a c/m is the same as that. NOTE no offence to most parents just that some regularly pay late (thought I'd best say that so I don't get hung, drawn and quartered lol).

sillybillybee · 02/07/2008 09:28

x post edam

KaySamuels · 02/07/2008 14:19

Is it the cash from the parent you are waiting for then? YANBU. Do you charge late payment fees? I have them in my contracts and tend to only have to enforce them once.

Original poster

amazonianadventure · 02/07/2008 16:00

hiya,

i recieved part of the money today a small part of it.She sys she will get the rest of it to me for monday or tuesday
this sounds bad but i dont think i have it in me to say to her again.
I politely said today that i needed it for friday but she said she hasnt been paid this month yet which i understand but i need it to repay someone.

OP posts:

Original poster

amazonianadventure · 04/07/2008 09:28

I just asked for more money off her,to be told she hasnt been paid yet, im afraid thats not my fault and ive to leave it with her!

neither of us are happy now!

OP posts:

Flamesparrow · 04/07/2008 09:29

start a late payment system from now on

BecauseImWorthIt · 04/07/2008 09:31

Whether or not she has been paid is not your problem. You are running a business and you have to make her realise that by enforcing your contract. Definitely charge for late payment otherwise this will happen all the time.

dustystar · 04/07/2008 09:36

You are definitely not being unreasonable and i agree with the others about starting a late payment charge. I used to have a Mum who was always paying me late and also bounced cheques. I wasn't assertive enough with her about it at the beginning and so it went on for the whole of the time I looked after her child.

Tas1 · 04/07/2008 09:45

In my contract I have it written that if parents are paying by Chq, it is paid 5 working days before the end of the month to allow it to clear. If paying by cash it is paid on the last working day of the month. Any money outstanding after this is encures a £5 per day late fees charge.
Its amazing after they have incured a late fee charge once they don't do it again.
Don't be afraid to charge, after all you are running a business at the end of the day, and as someone has also pointed out, they would'nt stand for it if it was their boss not paying them on time.

MindingMum · 04/07/2008 10:31

YANBU This is your business and she agreed to your terms when you took her child on. I wuld do what others have said and start a late payment system

In my contracts I ask that parents pay their fees weekly in advance but one parent pays by childcare voucher in arrears which means that by the time the voucher arrives (usually saturday) I can't bank it til Monday and it won't clear til Thursday

I've mentioned this to them so many times that I've lost count but apparently they have no control over when it is paid They have also said it was my fault it keeps coming late because I insist on weekly rather than monthly. I then reminded them that when they paid monthly it was never on time either. Think I'll start the £5 daily late fee myself

JenniPenni · 18/07/2008 00:12

All my kids use vouchers... and I sometimes only have payment through 2 weeks after it's due.

So I now send out invoices for the upcoming month a week in advance, with a gentle reminder that it takes about 5 days to clear into my account (ie: please do not only pay from your side on the 1st!).

Luckily, hubby gets his money in by month end, so we can always pay the initial big bills first. But it is a pain sometimes with childcare vouchers.

lavenderrose · 18/07/2008 07:00

what about getting her to pay by direct debit or BACS direct into your bank.I hope you sort it out , but i know from the past that sometimes you have to be the hard nosed business woman and not the just the nice lady who watches my children.
Good Luck

macdoodle · 18/07/2008 10:47

Thats appalling what other area can you just pay when you like - my CM is lovely and laid back and I am a bit forgetful so I have set up a standing order which pays direct to her bank on the 1st of every month - TBH I would rather go overdrawn than pay her late - FGS she looks after my precious baby what is more important than that ! for you

JenniPenni · 18/07/2008 11:25

'FGS she looks after my precious baby what is more important than that !'
Well said macdoodle

I think some CMs feel a but awkward mentioning late fees as the service is so personal (it's sooooo much more than just a job for most of us), and it's not in a more business-like environment like an office, but in one's own home.

TheFallenMadonna · 18/07/2008 11:27

I paid my nursery by standing order.

I think you ahould ask for this or have a late fee penalty.

imananny · 18/07/2008 11:35

YANBU!!

it is bloody rude!!

You def need to start late fee charging and tbh £10 per day for every day she is late rather than £5 imo!!

You have a signed contract and she needs to abide by it. Bet the mum would be very pissed off ih her boss was late paying her.

You have a set day to be paid, and the money should be cleared funds by that date - you are not doing CM for fun ( well maybe a little BUT it is a buisness and you have to work as you are prob like most of us who have mortgages/bills etc to pay.

If you feel you can not speak to her again about it,then write a short but firm letter, stating facts and late payment charges and give it to her!!

MrsThierryHenry · 18/07/2008 11:42

It doesn't sound terribly unreasonable, though that depends on how much of a lead time she has between receiving her invoices and payment being due. It's not an issue if the invoices are exactly the same every month, but I used to get CM invoices no more than 2 days before payment was due - the total varied from month to month and had to be done electronically. I therefore couldn't ever plan the payment before receiving the invoice.

You might therefore find that if you're giving just a couple of days' notice, it might work better for you to give the invoices earlier - bearing in mind that the standard payment lead time in business is 30 days.

Also for your peace of mind, as a separate issue, if there's any way you can do this you might consider putting a little money aside every month to make sure that if people pay you late in future you're not in schtuck.

jillyj · 18/07/2008 11:43

I hate being paid late. I now charge £15.00 per day and have done! I don;t take cheques or cash. all monies have to be in my account by d/d or s/o on or before the 1st of each month. i invoice mid month. They seem to have all got the message. Good luck

JenniPenni · 18/07/2008 12:43

MrsThierryHenry, I agree. My parents pay different amounts every month as they pay a daily rate. I send them invoices and they then set things in motion!

I have only ever had one troublesome parent who felt like handing me their paper vouchers 2 weeks late, and then it would take another week to actually clear into my account. They then got the next month's invoice a week later.

It was troubling and I only put up with it because they were short-term parents (he also happens to be a head teacher at a posh boy's school, so I felt really awkward complaining!), and I was helping them bridge a gap btwn their old childminder (who suddenly gave up minding), and new baby being born.

On a monthly basis I put 20% of my fees into an ISA account. I have had to delve into it once to cover expenses till fees came in and then promptly put the monies back in there.

It's always good to have a contingency plan in place.

aGalChangedHerName · 18/07/2008 12:47

So if you are meant to be paid on the 1st the parent is now 17 days late paying you???

My mindees parent paid me half on Tuesday as she doesn't get paid till today. If i don't get paid the rest today i will not be available for work on Monday.

It is very hard tho,and we have all had parents who pay late

JenniPenni · 18/07/2008 13:45

Yes, they were 3 weeks behind all the time. And what got to me is they were so casual about it... 'oh dear, I forgot, will get them to you next week sometime'. Or else they blamed eachother.

Was only for a few months thankfully.

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