There has been a lot of discussion lately on the various forums regarding scoping and proofing invoices not being paid timely or at all. I want to bring the subject to life here and get feedback from all sides. Hopefully by hashing it all out, we can start down the path to ending this phenomenon.
I’ve seen this issue from both sides over the years. As a scopist, in the early years of my career, I was taken advantage of a few times. Live and learn. Over the years, I’ve learned that this is a business I’m running; and as such, I’ve got to implement some business practices to help ensure that I get paid timely. Years ago, I implemented the following practices:
- A rate sheet is submitted to each new client, clearly setting out the terms of payment that I require.
- I scope 10 pages of a sample job so that the reporter can see the quality of my work. This one step can save a lot of grief for both parties.
- Once the relationship begins and the reporter agrees to my rate, I follow up via e-mail to make sure they understand my payment policies and agree to my terms.
- At that point, a contract is sent to the reporter. They are to sign it and fax or e-mail it back to me before any work begins. The original must be sent via mail to me before the second job begins.
- My normal billing practice is to invoice on the 15th and 31st of each month. Payment is due in my hands 10 days after the date of the invoice, or a late fee is instituted. We are charged late fees on every bill we pay late. A scopist’s invoice is no different.
- I’m always willing to work with a reporter if they experience a tragedy and cannot pay their bill timely. Having said that, I require that the reporter notify me immediately of the situation and that we work out some sort of payment arrangement. Nothing irks me more than when someone owes me money and just avoids me. Totally unprofessional.
- I have started requiring the reporter to submit to me their Social Security number or Tax ID number. In effect, I am providing financing by allowing the reporter to wait to submit payment. Therefore, some personal identification is in order. You have to give that information to a bank or credit card company when asking them to provide financing; the same applies with my company. I haven’t had to yet, but I will, if forced to, use that information for collection purposes, such as placing a collection entry on a credit file, filing a small claims suit, etc.
- I always make sure I have current address, home and cell phone numbers for reporters. It’s also helpful to know which agency or agencies they work for. This seems like a given, but I’ve been told more than a few times about a scopist or proofer only having an e-mail address for a reporter. To me, that’s just insane.
The new trend seems to be reporters claiming the quality of the work was inferior, so they shouldn’t have to pay. That’s where the sample scoping works like a charm. If someone is truly inept, it will show in that 10 pages. Then all you’ve wasted is a few minutes of your time to review it. Still, I see reporters sending a large transcript to a scopist they’ve never worked with, and then being surprised that they weren’t satisfied. I strongly feel it is the reporter’s duty to perform some due diligence in the same way you would check out someone you were contemplating hiring as a nanny or contractor. You don’t just hire anyone who says they can do the job. The same applies to contracting with a scopist and/or proofreader. Check references. Ask about their training. Call them on the phone and have a conversation so that you can get a feel for their knowledge level. A reporter’s failure to do this does not, in my opinion, allow them the opportunity to cry foul when the invoice arrives. Take the time to ensure that the person you’re contemplating working with is truly qualified to handle your transcripts.
This brings up another issue I’ve heard of, and that is reporters thinking they don’t have to pay if there are “errors” in the transcript. No one is perfect. There are going to be some errors. We’re human. I’ve proofed transcripts that reporters have scoped, and there are errors. I’ve never proofed one transcript in over 12 years that was perfect. It’s not possible, so don’t expect that. When a transcript is returned to the reporter, it should be in a condition such that it needs a quick proofing. The reporter definitely should not have to rescope it. I’ve seen some pretty horrible scoping over the years that I’ve been asked to rescope. Once again, if the reporter had done some due diligence, this could have been avoided.
I’ve seen reference on some forums to reporters thinking they have the right to adjust an invoice or dock the page rate a certain percentage based on the number of errors. Well, here’s what I think about that. First off, you contracted with someone to do a job. You didn’t check them out to make sure they were qualified for the job. Expensive mistake on your part. You contracted; you owe the money. Now, you can negotiate the fee downward, but you are only legally allowed to adjust an invoice if both parties agree. The reporter, I’m sure, would feel the same way about an attorney arbitrarily adjusting their invoice.
There seems to be a big misconception about what consitutes an error. I’ve seen some reporters complaining because a scopist put a comma instead of a semicolon before “is that right” or “is that correct,” when, in fact, that’s not an error. Either is correct. Now, the reporter may have a preference for the semicolon, and in that case, the preference needs to be communicated to the scopist. We can’t read minds. I personally have a hard time getting preferences from reporters. I know you’re busy, but this is really important. It can save us both a tremendous amount of time. You can’t complain about the manner in which a job was completed if you didn’t communicate how you wanted it done in the first place. And sending dozens of e-mails about preferences isn’t the most efficient way of handling this. Every scopist I know sends a preference sheet. Please take the time to fill it out for your scopist.
I’ve heard of one reporter who thinks that the word “state” is always capitalized. What???? See, what one reporter thinks is an error may not actually be an error, so why should the pay of the scopist in that instance be docked because the reporter is ignorant of grammar rules?
The economy is bad. All of us are hurting financially. Reporters need to make sure they are spending their scoping dollars wisely by working with competent scopists. It may take a little time to weed through, but it’s so worth it in the end. On the other side of the coin, scopists and proofreaders need to make sure they’re working with reporters worthy of their time. In other words, don’t work for free! Take the time to provide a sample scoping, get the approval from the reporter of your workmanship, get a signed contract and get all the personal ID and contact information you need should something go wrong. Should you have to go the route of collections, follow through.
So here’s where the feedback from others can help. If you’ve got anything to add, any tips for getting paid, any tips for vetting scopists and proofreaders, let’s hear it!
Scopist's Weblog 