Cancellation fee scale

BEING BOOKED for a shift and then having it cancelled is a perennial problem for journalists. Your client is legally in breach of contract, but you may want to work for them again, so do you burn your bridges by demanding the whole fee?

The Freelance Fees Guide now has a page with advice on a schedule of cancellation charges you can send to clients when confirming commissions. This includes the suggested wording to put in your terms and conditions: "In the event of cancellation of shifts, the following charges apply. Should I find replacement work, there will be no charge."

The suggested rates for cancelled shifts range from 100 per cent of the shift rate for cancellation at one to seven days notice, going down to 25 per cent for a full calendar month's notice.

The rates are based on shift work for a national newspaper and should be seen as an experimental guide only. Let us know what you've tried and what happened. See www.londonfreelance.org/feesguide/whcanrat.html

Freelance Fees Guide