Forums about proz.com » Poll Discussion »
Poll: Have your clients ever made a mistake with your rates?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
SITE STAFF
Oct 18, 2021

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Have your clients ever made a mistake with your rates?".

This poll was originally submitted by Natalia Pedrosa. View the poll results »
 
Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 06:13
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
All of these, plus some others Oct 18, 2021

I've been in the market for 33 years. It would be impossible not to have a few cases of errors in rates during this time. I have many.

Philippe Etienne
Christopher Schröder
Christine Andersen
 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 10:13
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Other Oct 19, 2021

As I have been working with the same client base for a long time, it hasn’t happened often. The only case I remember was a recent one: a translation agency which repeatedly sent POs with a lower editing rate than mine…
 
Christopher Schröder
Christopher Schröder
United Kingdom
Member (2011)
Swedish to English
+ ...
Yes, all of the above Oct 19, 2021

One current client’s system can’t cope with paying a higher rate for one particular job, so they now pay me the higher rate for everything.

I ain’t complaining.
 
Marjolein Snippe
Marjolein Snippe  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 11:13
Member (2012)
English to Dutch
+ ...
Both ways Oct 19, 2021

One former client consistently put a lower rate on their POs than the agreed rate, so pretty much any PO had to be corrected before I started work. It kept me on my toes, but it also annoyed me. I was not sorry when they stopped sending me work.
I have one other client who tries this fairly regularly.

A couple of clients occasionally increase my rate - usually for a small project, and by a symbolic amount, but it always makes me smile. It works wonders for goodwill!
 
Kay Denney
Kay Denney  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 11:13
French to English
. Oct 19, 2021

One dear client has forgotten a couple of times not to add VAT on to my bills (my status doesn't require it). We're all human.
 
Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 02:13
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Other Oct 20, 2021

So far, my clients have stuck with their contractual rates.

I did have the opposite experience when I hired a translator. She quoted me an hourly rate for revision and a per word rate for translation, then forgot and charged me the hourly rate for translation, moving the decimal 2 places to the left. It was more than double what she had quoted for her per word rate.

[Edited at 2021-10-20 00:47 GMT]
 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:

Moderator(s) of this forum
Jared Tabor[Call to this topic]

You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

Poll: Have your clients ever made a mistake with your rates?






TM-Town
Manage your TMs and Terms ... and boost your translation business

Are you ready for something fresh in the industry? TM-Town is a unique new site for you -- the freelance translator -- to store, manage and share translation memories (TMs) and glossaries...and potentially meet new clients on the basis of your prior work.

More info »
Trados Studio 2022 Freelance
The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.

Designed with your feedback in mind, Trados Studio 2022 delivers an unrivalled, powerful desktop and cloud solution, empowering you to work in the most efficient and cost-effective way.

More info »