I have a very large teaching practice both in school and privately - about 80 pupils on a one to one basis at the moment. I am based mostly at one independent school. There are always several late payers, mostly the same culprits, but not always. It always comes in eventually but sometimes a term or more late.
This year I have £600 still owed from last term. They have had reminders, but nothing has been forthcoming.

The new academic year is now getting close. What do people do when pupils owe from the previous term? Do you start the lessons? I have in my T's and C's that invoices must be paid by the fourth lesson of term or the lessons will be suspended until the fee comes with the clock still running, as it were. I have only been brave enough to implement this once because often the kids keep turning up and it's not their fault and I feel bad and it is embarrassing.

On another ocassion a pupil was two terms behind and didn't pay so I had to "sack" her. I have never had the two terms money for which lessons were given. This has made me very wary of allowing too many unpaid lessons.

Any ideas?

Hello. Sorry to hear this. how about writing to / ringing the parents before the start of term to politely remind them the fees are outstanding and asking them to put a cheque in the post (for both last term's and this term's fees) immediately. Personally I would say at the time that unless you receive the cheque before the start of term you will have to consider whether you will be able to continue lessons. It really is not on for parents to behave like this.

What has the school said about it? When someone has been a few weeks behind with paying, I always get the music teacher/office staff to ring the parent up on my behalf. I have always got the money within a few days that way. For some reason, parents seem to take more notice of school staff rather than me. I don't care if it does the job though.

Don't let money be embarrassing. You give a child (the school) a service. They give you pieces of paper which you can give to other people for other things. My mortgage company (water, elec, gas, council tax, tax man, shop) would never be embarrassed to ask for money if I didn't pay on time. They would also ask for interest!

I hope you get it sorted out.

I'm with Barcarolle...

It is bad, and it is embarassing, but you need to remember that the embarassing thing really is that they haven't paid!Maybe my parent's brought me up in some special way, but I'd be mortified to keep sending my kids when I hadn't stumped up for the service. I'm assuming that you're in an area where they should be able to afford it? So they're basically stealing your time from you. I know you'll feel sympathy for the pupils, it's not their fault, but then the longer this goes on, the less value and respect they'll come to place on you, since they're being taught this behaviour is acceptable.

It's hard, but you need to come down on them. (And with any luck, the news'll get round and you won't have trouble with anyone else... )

Hi, 4tissimmo. I am in a similar teaching situation as you are - teaching mainly at one independant school - and I do get a few late payers every term. I have learnt to be quite firm, and if the fee has not been paid by half term, I phone the parent, and if no money by the end of half term, I terminate the lessons which they have been told at the time of reminder notice. At another school I used to teach at, where the Head of Music was much more interested in all the affairs of peripatetic teaching, he would telephone the parents for me. In a way, this is great, because the parents seem to take more notice of the label "from school", if you see what I mean.

New academic year is rapidly approaching, and I am in the process of writing invoice etc, hoping the fees will be paid within three weeks of the term!

hero

Money affairs are not embarrassing, neither for plumbers nor for musicians - or at least they shouldn't be. Even if you feel sorry for the kids - at some point you have to think of yourself, and it will go on like this forever if you don't set boundaries. Some people will always take advantage, others simply cannot afford it, but then they shouldn't enroll their kids and look out for scholarships or financial help instead. Sounds harsh, but it's the truth. We have to run a business after all.

Talk to the parents first and set them an ultimatum which you firmly keep. If you are member of a Union (Musicians' Union or something similiar), you can then hand the thing over to them if it still does not work. This works wonders, because they are very strict and don't have any problems to take people to the Small Claims Court. They warn them first of course, and you'll be surprised how quickly your money will arrive. You can do the same btw.

I know this sounds harsh, but it is your right, and after all: THEY don't pay and should be embarrassed for it, not you for asking for something that is legally yours ...

revolutionary idea - ask for fees in advance!
I know this will not solve present situation - but you have had good advice from others. If half a term was asked for in advance, that would not be too much money to stump at one time.
My grandchildren have music lessons in their state primary and they have to pay in advance.
Do their school fees not have to be paid in advance?
In the commercial world I often have to stump up payment a month in advance

Yes I agree with others. If it is an independent school, there will be some clause about late / non- payment of school fees, and I'm pretty sure that in most independent schools, as Hazel mentioned, fees are paid in advance, and also (unless there are special circumstances) the child would not be allowed back at school for the next term without clearance of debts.

It is certainly something the school should back you on if necessary I reckon. Good luck - I hope you get your fees !

They are supposed to be paid in advance, which makes it especially galling. School are useless. The HOD quite happily phones parents but that is as far as he is allowed to go. I have asked for help from the bursar but he says as the school don't employ the peris he can't be seen to be getting involved. Interestingly the school set our fee, but now they won't help I have said they can't have it both ways and will set my own. They only gave us a 50p pay rise in nearly 3 years!

Last term I refused to teach a girl who had not paid for the previous term. She eventually paid three weeks before the end of term and Mother wanted the other 8 lessons made up!

£600 is an awful lot to have outstanding. I'd be crying!

Maybe you could contact the parents to ask whether they are planning to return their children to lessons in the new term, as they have bills outstanding and so you're not sure whether to replace their slots with a new student or not?

I'd probably go a bit further and write to the parents, saying that if the fees are not received by such and such a date (perhaps the first lesson of term) lessons will not be continuing and their child's lesson slot will be made available to someone else.

Are you a member of the MU or ISM? When I'm writing to bad payers, even just the slightest hint that I may have to contact my professional association should fees remain unpaid, produces the money.

Hope this situation resolves itself. It's not a nice thing to have to deal with - I sympathise.

This is a very difficult situation I have been in similar ones myself but I must say I have usually had payment by the last lesson of the term (although this does annoy me). Last term someone owed me their grade 6 exam fee and had even taken the exam before they paid me. Their excuse was that I would have to wait until they got paid at the end of the month as they had just had to pay out for a holiday. And this was an adult.

What gets me is if their employers said to them that they could not pay them for another month I wonder what they would do. Probably take the employer to a tribunal I expect.

A local music school near me charges 5% on top of the fees for each week it has not recieved payment. I have never tried this but it might be a good idea to have this in a contract as it may deter some of the late payers if they thought they would have to pay more.

In your situation I would be inclined to phone the parents of the pupils concerned and tell them that you will not start back with their child/children again until you have the payment of fees from last term in full plus this terms fees upfront. Otherwise with people like this they will probably pay last terms fees and then you will still be owed the new terms fees by the end of that term ie they will always be a term behind with their payment. Don't stand for it.

Iwon't enter pupils for exams if fees aren't up to date...I find that really makes the parents pay up.Or could you send out a letter saying that you have a waiting list and if fees aren't paid you will have to fill their spaces. I also let the other peris know because often in the indep school children were having lessons in more than one instrument. I do have one...privately...who pays weekly now,which has sort of solved the problem...they even paid for a missed lesson for which I got no warning.
There's no excuse for not paying...you don't go into Sainsbury's and expect your shopping for free...if they can't afford it then it is sad but you shouldn't be losing out.

Me neither! Hadn't even thought of it - it's just "It's the closing date in x weeks, so I need the fees next week to get the form away." No fee, no exam... I've never had any trouble.

Me too!

All of the above makes worrying reading - especially those who teach in school where there are particular problems with lackadaisical unsupportive senior management or a preponderance of inconsiderate ( or economically challenged parents). I was considering going into schools-based peripatetic piano teaching when I retire from my day job - sometime within the next 8 years, but now I'm seriously re-thinking it. It's alright saying things like "Don't stand for it!" and "Don't be embarrassed!". Of course it is embarrassing and stressful. Any conflict with other adults invariably IS. The Head of Music in the school in which I teach English advised me to think carefully about such a move; the law is firmly stacked in the parents favour, it seems. At any rate, it doesn't always make it straightforward for the cash-strapped teacher to get his due fees. I think I'll stick to the few private pupils who visit my house whose circumstances and parents I know before I took them on.

I hope it all works out.

LR

It does depend on the school though - part of my instrumental teaching is in an independent school but the school pay me, rather than me having to chase parents. It's much better this way as I don't have to get involved with bad payers at school - sadly I do come across them in my home-based teaching though.

At one private school at which I taught there was a blackboard just inside the entrance where notices etc were posted. When there were late payers the head would post their names there asking for the following accounts to be settled. They would almost always pay on the day that the names appeared on the board. I would ask the school to send an official letter asking for payment by return, and then, if you get no joy send out a further letter mentioning courts and a debt recovery service.

I have a similar situation - I teach piano in a private school and I invoice termly. I started off invoicing half-termly but collecting 6 times a year was a nightmare.

In theory the invoices should be settled within a week but there are always the same few who drag on and on.

I find that sending reminder invoices rarely works - I actually have to telephone them, and speak to them personally, not just leave a message, before they pay up. I just say something practical like "I'm ringing about Johnnie's fees for his piano lessons. This was due some weeks ago and I would appreciate payment as soon as possible."

I'm never apologetic about asking for it, it's MY money, not theirs. Doesn't mean I enjoy it - I HATE having to ask for it, but it's my wages and I'm due it.

Fortunately I don't have any from last year, they all paid up eventually. The school has always said though that if I have any trouble, they will pay me and add my invoice to the parents' school fees, even though I am self-employed. So far it hasn't come to that.

This is one reason why I never would teach in schools. With kids it is money up front - no money no teachee

Question - do you want to keep the pupils that owe or could you replace them easily
Never give credit to parents they are not to be trusted

No fee, no service (in this case lessons). No embarrassment, no period of grace, no negotiation: No problem.

If you're as busy as you say it is possible you have a waiting list. At any rate, even if you don't have one you could hint that you do: "Slots occupied by pupils whose fees are not paid on time may be reallocated from the waiting list. Pupils thus displaced may rejoin the end of the waiting list if the parents choose."

Don't worry about inflexibility: They owe you money, you are entitled to be inflexible.

Finally, for £600 I would consider the small claims court.

I received a cheque through the post this morning, invoice dated in May. One verbal reminder in June, one postal reminder at the beginning of July.

The cheque came with a note "hope you're having a good summer". It's tempting to add a comment to the receipt along the lines that we'd be having a good summer if we weren't so hungry

I charge the whole term fees in advance now. I have sent letters and invoices out for the beginning of the following term and if I don't get payment before or at the first lesson I won't be teaching. Sounds harsh, but is quite simple.

EVERY other extra-curricula activity children, or adults do for that matter, you expect to pay in advance. If you don't turn up to a football, karate lesson, college course, you don't get a refund if you miss a lesson. I am fed up with funding other peoples holidays, grocery shopping etc...

Funny it is usually the most well off that are the worst payers, or they give you a post-dated cheque. I've also mentioned in my terms and conditions that they won't be accepted either. It will be interesting to see what happens this term LOL, but I am standing my ground.