D’you want garnishee with that?

DO YOU have trouble getting paid? Persistence pays. Here's a "small but particularly satisfying tale" from one member with a particular penchant for do-it-yourself legal moves. Remember, you can always seek advice and assistance from the Freelance Office.

PRIDE magazine, a style mag aimed at black women, downloaded 18 photographs of mine last year. As thumbnails are free and downloads £10 each, clients don't usually download more than they want to use, so I was surprised and called them. They said that they had not known there was a charge - even though you can't download anything until you click an "I agree to the charges" box. Always obliging, "never mind" I say. Drop me a line saying that the images were deleted unused and I'll cancel all the charges. They did and I did.

Always suspicious, a couple of months later I bought a copy of the magazine - you've guessed - seven repros, uncredited! So I reinstate the download charges and add in generous repro fees plus another 50% for missing credits.

No payment arrives - gosh! There's a surprise! A few letters back and forth, everything except payment. Next stop County Court summons (dead easy). Pride's imaginative defence that most of the images were not mine but their picture editor's and that I'd agreed unlimited repro for about £200 for the rest was somewhat undermined when they failed to turn up. Judgement for £1,338 (all I asked for) in my favour.

Pride still don't pay. I phone their advertising department. "Can I pay for an ad direct into your bank account?" "Certainly Sir, I'll fax you our bank details." Garnishee order from court (also dead easy) attaches their bank account. That means their bank removes the dosh from Pride's fat advertising revenue account and pays me in full, plus costs, plus interest.

Sweet.

© David Hoffman