Payment in Advance

Hey all....I am looking for some advice on how to deal with a situation...

I have an existing daycare family for 8 months now (when I opened). I am introducing a contract starting January 2012. I am increasing the rate and (finally) going to be charging for stats and sick days. Also, I am requesting payment in advance instead of after care is provided. I am asking for payment on every other Fridays.

Daycare mom read the contract and sent it back to me with her "comments". She said her and her husband are not comfortable paying in advance, and instead they are willing to pay weekly, and if cash if I would like.
I really dont want this because then I will have 4 families paying in advance and one paying after the fact and it just looks like a headache all round. I like all my pay on the same day.

Any ideas why this would be a problem for them? (We are on great terms and have a great relationship and I have never given them a reason for them to think I would take their money and run LOL)

How could I position this back to them and what reasons would you say that you need payment in advance?

Any input or thoughts on thsi matter would be appreciated! Thanks girls! :)

Personally I would be fine with them paying after the fact since they've been with you 8months. If they paid after the fact every other Friday they would be paying on the same day as everyone else(instead of them paying weekly as they suggested). I don't think it would be a big headache.

I have three parents who pay in advance on the first and two that pay on the 15th/30 after the fact, it works nice for me as I get some money in the middle of the month and I have no problem with the families paying me at different times.

Another thought is if they are paying after the fact already won't they have to come up with two payments at once in order for it to be switched I could see that being hard.

I make my parents pay on Monday (or on their first day of care for the week) at drop-off. None of my parents have an issue with it. I also state: No pay, no stay!

Explain to them that these are YOUR rules and have to save headaches. Like it or leave!!!

I have parents paying me at all different times. A benefit is I'm always getting paid :) It can be a little confusing, but I keep a separate calendar to make it all down.

I had one family switch from after to before care pay and I had said that I was having issues with other people not paying on time. I also had a new family start, so I had them on the new schedule.

You could ask them why they are reluctant to switch-if it because of the double payment as mentioned above you could offer to wait until one of you is on holidays to make the switch?

From a parent standpoint, they might be worried that you will collect pay in advance and not provide all the care you are supposed to???
However, if you have a good relationship I am not sure why they would think this. I would absolutely ask what the specific issue is. It may be something small and adjustable.
But it may come down to; what are you willing to do? Do you like them so much that you are going to say "This is the way it is, take it or leave it". Or are you going to make some concessions, since they have been with you for a while?

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Originally Posted by momplus6

Personally I would be fine with them paying after the fact since they've been with you 8months. If they paid after the fact every other Friday they would be paying on the same day as everyone else(instead of them paying weekly as they suggested). I don't think it would be a big headache.

I have three parents who pay in advance on the first and two that pay on the 15th/30 after the fact, it works nice for me as I get some money in the middle of the month and I have no problem with the families paying me at different times.

Another thought is if they are paying after the fact already won't they have to come up with two payments at once in order for it to be switched I could see that being hard.

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I'm with momplus6 they are your current clients and if there hasn't been any problems with payment then go with it. change is difficult for somoe of us when it comes to finances.

I made the same switch years ago but my long time parents I didn't ask to change. I started it with the new ones coming in. It's just good business. I just made sure all of my parents were paying on the same day so I could make 1 trip to the bank.

You could say to them, I want to establish payment prior to care so I can have money to pay for food, supplies, crafts. You can say you want to have all parents do this, to make it fair and to ensure that you are paid on time. Let them know that you appreciate that they pay prompty but that this is for any future clients and you just want the same method for everyone.

With that said, decide if it's really worth it to you to raise this issue with them. If they are really opposed to it, is it worth losing good parents?

For me, all my families pay upfront on the Monday except for one family that pays in cash at the end of the week. They are usually very good about it but there has been a few times, when they have forgotten and brought me the money on Saturday. Lets just say from now on, for any future clients I only accept post dated cheques, or payment at the beginning of the week. But because I've had this Friday payday arrangement with them now for 1 year, I'm not going to bother changing it.

I think I would let them continue as they have been since this was not part of the original agreement and you have not had issues with them. I am changing my hours slightly from 5:30 to 5pm pick-up, but only for new clients as I don't feel it's fair to current clients to change it as the hours were part of the reason they chose me. I also have parents paying at all different times depending on when they started and some are biweekly and some monthly, but all are in advance. This doesn't bother me as I always have money coming in. However, I can understand the parents being a bit taken aback at the sudden change since they have always paid. If it is their only experience with daycare, they probably don't know that most providers get paid in advance.

Nope, EVERYONE pays in advance. Period. If they don't like it they can leave. Seriously, if they REALLY value your care then what's the big deal? Ask them......."do you not trust me?". And then wait for the awkward silence.

Why does it always have to be US who accepts the burden of possibly not getting paid? I have knows A LOT of daycare providers in my time and honestly, only about 1% of those providers would knowingly screw over a parent. On the other hand I have read hundreds of accounts of parents not paying parents.

I just wouldn't take NO for an answer. This is YOUR business and you get to run it the way you want. And, personally, payment would be made in advance or I would let this family go.

My parents pay me on their first day of care for the week. If they are not comfortable with that then they can find care elsewhere.

Forgot to mention that I also require payment in advance. No way am I working, not to mention feeding and entertaining your child, for free. EVER.
We really have to hold that ground. If we are firm on the "No pay, no stay" we don't get burnt. If not, and we provide care and a parent takes off; what is the recourse?? It's not worth it to go to court.

If they have enough time to make the transition such as starting in January then I don't really see what their problem is. If you explain to them that you need to spend the money as in buy food and craft supplies before the week starts not after then they should be able to comprehend that you need the money first. Regardless of when they get paid, if they have a three month lead time they shouldn't have a problem starting to pay every monday. I know a lot of caregivers that are paid on Friday for the coming week of care with the idea of getting the money and shopping on the weekend and it makes sense.

I would agree with the rest. I wouldn't provide the care unless I get paid in advance. I'm the provider and you do trust me and let me take care of your child and I think you should trust me with your money too. Especially, if we already know each other and I'm providing the care for the past 8 months. It's like receiving any other service. They won't give you anything unless you pay for it. Hope it helps and good luck with the talk.