How can I make sure that the mindees parents pay their fees on time without hurting any feelings ???

[Summerfruit]

Another part of the business in which I'm not good at...I'm paid monthly, payment every 4 weeks, I send them detailed bills before the payment is due but still it's so late... the pretexte is that the vouchers they use are late...Should I accept this excuse or should I say something...we are talking about 1 week - 2 weeks late..Part payment then the rest coming later sometimes they forget...How shall I put it so the problem is sorted once for good ?? Thank you !!!

CHARGE THE LATE FEE. They won't be that upset about it. Think about it: Are there really SOO many childminders near enough to their house with space available on the days they need them that they will run as fast as they can to them because after months of taking the mick you are asking them to do what they agreed to in their contract: pay you by a stated day in the month for your services?!

Please in your subsequent contracts take up the advice to ask for one month up front.

Ask them to pay by direct debit too.

i would charge a late payment fee.
it's unacceptable and I don't think anyone could claim "hurt feelings" becauise they are asked to pay their bills on time!!!

if they were using a nursery or such they would HAVE to pay 1) in advance and 2.) on time or risk added fees.
as a parent who uses childcare I always pay on time and would not consider my feelings hurt if I was late and got charged for it.

they're takingf the piss because they CAN.

Standng order doesn't always work either though. Last August, I got hammered for unpaid direct debits - a parent's standing order was delayed into my bank by the bank holiday, but bank didn't delay the payments coming OUT because of the bank holiday. I got back from hols on the saturday, couldn't physically get to the bank till the Tuesday, but it was too late by then . Vouchers only work direct into the bank if parents remember to authorise the payment - 'Oops, so sorry - I forgot' has been regular in my setting. That's why I ask for cash now.

Blondes, you're right - they would be straight onto payroll if their pay wasn't in on time. OP ,when your contracts are up for renewal, write a clause into it about late payment charges and make sure they know you will enforce it - that's what I'll be doing on next review. Before or after I tell them I'm increasing my charges - I wonder what I should do first

I invoice them in advance and charge a late payment fee if they are late. I also occasionally put pointed notes in my newsletters about how inconvenient late payments are and hope the main offenders will be embarassed into paying up. I have one parent who we have worked out a monthly standing order for, because she seems completely incapable of paying an invoice on time.

Thank you all lovely ladies for your answers ! I'm going to change my system and stopped being a doormat !!

I have a month?s deposit and a month in advance, that way I always have a month in hand. It is offset against the last month?s fees of a contract when the child leaves.

I did have 2 months where one child's fees were delayed as the parents didn't realise that with Busy Bees you need to renew the mandate each year. I didn't realise that I hadn't been paid until I went overdrawn, but I did have the money in a reserve account.

I must say, I took advice from shoshe and did the same, my parents also pay me now basically as soon as i send the invoice

Summer you sound so nice but not really business like. I am afraid that if you act like a dormat then you will get trodden on.
It can be daunting to be seeming to 'ask' for money but its not you who should be ashamed its those parents.
Having said that although nearly all of my parents pay in advance, weekly, (wouldnt do monthly anyway as too much arrears could mount up), I do have one mum who is often late with paying and has even had 3 cheques bounce BUT I know I will always get payment by the end of the week and she is so uniformly ditsy that I seem to be able to live with it..