Contractors charge interest.

james ds

Member
Location
leinster
Tell you what, send me 40 calves tomorrow and I'll pay for them in 18 months time.
I had a man who I always had to drag the money out off , one day looking for money from him he said , you know you will always get it , this when he was also asking me to put more slurry out , I asked him when did the mart pay him when he sold stock , he said the next day , well then how would you feel if the mart manager told you to come back in six months and I'll pay you . He laughed and said it wouldn't work , well now you know how I feel , I don't work for him anymore .
 

marco

Member
I don't mind waiting a few months, this month is where I get settled up with all my customers and my suppliers are all paid. Come the 31st of December I want to be owed nothing and owe nothing.
 

kill

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
South West
What use is a customer that pays late? Don't over value their work as there is no loyalty in this day and age
Very true. I had a fairly heated conversation with a customer a month ago who had another contractor in for a job I have done for all but 30 year's so I politely reminded him of how I'd done 2 full year's of contract work for him at one point without any payments what so ever as he was going threw a divorce and was sorting things out and I never pushed him once for money unlike everyone else. Very funny how his expression change quickly!!!!!! Also told him I didn't deserve to be treated in that manor!!!!
 

Wellytrack

Member
Tell you what, send me 40 calves tomorrow and I'll pay for them in 18 months time.

18 months is ripping it a bit chief, but give me a cheque for a few months time and that'll be grand....


You may well laugh but farmers CAN be a shameless bunch of mother hubbards - same as any industry or anyone else.

I know of a lad who had taken excessive and considerable loans out against his parents farm, were in very deep do-do.
A neighbour whom they had known forever sold him 10 freshly calves heifers - nothing flashy, but decent commercial stock partly out of sympathy for his parents, on the understanding of bumping up the milk cheque and payment within a few months.

That was a number of years ago, still no pay, there has been many other creditors too, yet he is still able to face out and complain to all who will listen how wronged HE has been.

Shameless twit.
 

Speedstar

Member
Location
Scottish Borders
Recently farm advisors are advising farmers under financial pressure to pay off bills in order of who is charging the highest interest , first pay the tax man , then merchants , then bank overdraft , and at this stage there is not much left to pay off the contractor bill , farmers are being advised to leave the contractor to last as he is cheap money , do any contractors charge interest on overdue accounts , we are considering charging interest here as there is no point being considered the soft touch.
Not so long ago you told us all getting money in was no problem, what's the story now ?
 

james ds

Member
Location
leinster
Not so long ago you told us all getting money in was no problem, what's the story now ?
I never said I personally had a problem but I'm part of the FCI committee and there are contractors in other parts of the country in major trouble , I knew you would turn up to cause trouble , if you have nothing constructive to add to this topic then please f..k off . You are suppose to be a professional contractor. If you want to add something useful then you are more than welcome otherwise good bye.
 

Speedstar

Member
Location
Scottish Borders
I never said I personally had a problem but I'm part of the FCI committee and there are contractors in other parts of the country in major trouble , I knew you would turn up to cause trouble , if you have nothing constructive to add to this topic then please f..k off . You are suppose to be a professional contractor. If you want to add something useful then you are more than welcome otherwise good bye.
We are professional contractors , our secretary sends out the invoice every week , so all work is invoiced with in a few days of taking place, and all of the invoice are paid with in our trading terms, it works very well and this is were a lot of business are let down , by there paper work, we have no need to charge interest on invoices . As for interest rates in the UK they are at a all time low, you do not have to bank with your banks in your part of the world , shop about for deal that works for you
 
Location
cumbria
Sparky i use has an intrest adding term for late payments on his invoice. Makes me smile as he is one of my worst for being tardy with invoicing.
If someone gets behind with the contractor i use he tends to put them on a DD to clear arrears.

Interestingly, the chap who does my hedge trimming has altered how he goes about it and has put his rate up by 50p/hr as a result. He has lost 3 customers over it:(.
 

Superted820

Member
Location
Cornwall.
It's all a bit beyond a joke I think.
I had a customer ring to ask if we could do his fourth cut silage with my forage wagon. I replied that yes that wouldn't be be a problem, but I would want first cut (18th may) invoice paid before we came and 2nd cut (29th June) paid at the end of this month - October.
His reply was that ah well you know how things are at the moment with the milk price being down and also, well you know the handler has been dying well we've had to change that one and well, we'll try and do something as soon as we can.
I pointed out that since first cut he has now had four milk cheques and I haven't had a penny from him. This is sizeable amounts too as first cut was 275acres. Cut, ted, rake, two wagons and a buckrake.
Nothing as yet. How do some farmers think that contractors survive? I have every sympathy with things being right etc, but do diesel firms wait months for their money? Finance companies? Staff, insurance, dealerships, engineers etc etc?? No!
Invoices from contractors are not unexpected. You have silage made, slurry spread etc etc every year so you have some idea of what's coming at you, but it's assumed that it's fine to ignore reminders, keep telling the same tale, oh hang on - I can't get hold of you now for two weeks as you're in Canada skiing !!
Me is not a happy bunny. This year has certainly made me think!
 

Jim75

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Easter ross
Sparky i use has an intrest adding term for late payments on his invoice. Makes me smile as he is one of my worst for being tardy with invoicing.
If someone gets behind with the contractor i use he tends to put them on a DD to clear arrears.

Interestingly, the chap who does my hedge trimming has altered how he goes about it and has put his rate up by 50p/hr as a result. He has lost 3 customers over it:(.

Maybe he's done himself a favour. The ones aguing over 50p/hr aren't worth the hassle. One door shuts another opens and all that.
 

DRC

Member
I would also add if my contractor wanted all his money today I simply couldn't pay it. Times are hard out there and we all need to work together if we can. But agree with others. There is slow and justified and there is slow and a twit
Why can't you get an overdraft or bank loan . Your basically expecting your contractor to fund part of your business. Most likely he will have his own overdraft or finance to pay.
I just don't understand it. If I want to purchase someone's services, I pay for it next month. Simples.!
 

james ds

Member
Location
leinster
It's all a bit beyond a joke I think.
I had a customer ring to ask if we could do his fourth cut silage with my forage wagon. I replied that yes that wouldn't be be a problem, but I would want first cut (18th may) invoice paid before we came and 2nd cut (29th June) paid at the end of this month - October.
His reply was that ah well you know how things are at the moment with the milk price being down and also, well you know the handler has been dying well we've had to change that one and well, we'll try and do something as soon as we can.
I pointed out that since first cut he has now had four milk cheques and I haven't had a penny from him. This is sizeable amounts too as first cut was 275acres. Cut, ted, rake, two wagons and a buckrake.
Nothing as yet. How do some farmers think that contractors survive? I have every sympathy with things being right etc, but do diesel firms wait months for their money? Finance companies? Staff, insurance, dealerships, engineers etc etc?? No!
Invoices from contractors are not unexpected. You have silage made, slurry spread etc etc every year so you have some idea of what's coming at you, but it's assumed that it's fine to ignore reminders, keep telling the same tale, oh hang on - I can't get hold of you now for two weeks as you're in Canada skiing !!
Me is not a happy bunny. This year has certainly made me think!
This is exactly where interest needs to be applied , that guy got 4 milk cheques and paid other bills where interest is being charged , and left you until last , if you add a good bit of interest to his bill he will have more respect for you.
 

Tomtrac

Member
Location
Penrith cumbria
Silage contractor used to charge everyone for work done but the wrap used was invoiced straight from the machinery dealer/supplier. Presume that helped cut some of the money due to him.

I did the same with crop chemicals when spraying
Soon realised the little i made on chemicals to the money i had out wasnt worth it so i got chem company to deliver and bill chem to customers then i just turned up and applied it on fields pluss i didnt end up with big pile of drums in yard (full or empty)
 

ste

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Derbyshire
Why don't more contractors come to some sort of direct debit system with their customers? Can only seeing it being a win for all concerned, the farmer pays an amount each month when the milk cheque comes in and the contractor has a regular income and the bill gets paid.

On guy near me has set it up based on previous years bills, then a equalling out payment at the end of the year, he does this for 8/9 main customers.
 

marco

Member
I never said I personally had a problem but I'm part of the FCI committee and there are contractors in other parts of the country in major trouble , I knew you would turn up to cause trouble , if you have nothing constructive to add to this topic then please f..k off . You are suppose to be a professional contractor. If you want to add something useful then you are more than welcome otherwise good bye.
Now that doesn't make you sound very professional does it james?
 
Location
West Wales
Why can't you get an overdraft or bank loan . Your basically expecting your contractor to fund part of your business. Most likely he will have his own overdraft or finance to pay.
I just don't understand it. If I want to purchase someone's services, I pay for it next month. Simples.!

Currently stuck in probate which means we can't do anything basically but also due to how he does his bills. It's a job to know when you may get them!
But I agree totally it's not how it should be done
 

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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