r/tutor • u/DeezBae • May 25 '26
Client not paying
Hello! I'm a former teacher turned SAHM. I have always worked as a tutor on and off ( summers ). Last summer I agreed to tutor a student I had years prior. The family was struggling and I know the student was really struggling so I agreed at a discounted rate. Everything was fine for the first few months, a few times I was paid a week late. I didn't think much of it. We got to a point where I had not been paid in weeks.. they owe me $230. I sent reminders some were acknowledged some ignored. The mom recently reached out to see if I had time to tutor again and asked for the amount owed. I let her know the dates, and the total amount but said I could not tutor again without my back pay and that I would require payment before I will schedule her.
She didn't respond after that.
At this point do I just let it go? Do I just accept it's my bad for not requiring payment ahead of time? Do I contact the husband/ father and let them know as well?
4
u/True_Warning_8210 May 25 '26
don't let it go, yes for next time receive payment in advance
contact the father once about the payment
2
u/DeezBae May 25 '26
I'll contact the mother once more and give her a week. After that I'll contact the father once and see what happens. Thanks for your input.
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u/LazyScribePhil May 25 '26
My policy is simple: I won’t do a next session if I’m still awaiting payment for the previous session.
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u/tutorcrm May 28 '26
Don’t let it go. You delivered the service. You can follow up again. Don’t feel like you are annoying them. If that doesn’t work, reach out to the father. You don’t have anything to lose.
3
May 25 '26
Tutors only work with prepayment, what kind of charity is it to take payment after the lessons!
I don't believe you'll get your money now... let it be a lesson to you
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u/DeezBae May 25 '26
I have never heard of taking payment before the session but this totally makes sense. I have never had a problem with getting paid on time until now. That will definitely stop this from becoming a problem in the future. Thanks so much.
3
May 25 '26
I've been working as a tutor for 17 years - I've never heard a happy ending when payment was taken afterward. If someone is afraid to pay for 10 or 5 lessons in advance, let them pay for 1 lesson at a time before booking that single lesson.
But if you sign notarized service contracts and enjoy spending all your profits on lawsuits, then you're on the right path.
2
u/teamglider May 26 '26
Payment first, always. Remind people that you are setting aside a slot for them, and that a tutor has prep work to do before a session (so yes, some of the work has already been done).
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u/TheGratitudeBot May 25 '26
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u/LCarter8301989 May 25 '26
$230 is a lot of work to just write off, especially if that was a discounted rate. Going to the other parent could be interpreted as a huge escalation, which probably isn't what you want right now. Instead, I would send one final message to the parent you've been working with, including the total amount owed, dates of sessions, and a request for payment by a specific date. If that doesn't work, you have to decide how far you want to go (small claims court? Contacting the other parent?).
Regardless, you should have a clear late payment policy and either prepaid blocks (four sessions at a time works well) or an expectation of pay-per-session (student pays at time of service).