Weird Odesk Situation

by kalyn
17 replies
Hello, I have a weird situation on Odesk with the iPhone app I'm building.

The contractor I hired said he needs to work another 10 hours to finish my app. So fine, I can understand he needs to be paid for the changes and stuff I asked him to make.

I've already been charged by Odesk twice on my credit card, once for the week two weeks ago and once again for last week. So there have already been two charges to my card.

This contractor told me a story about how he needs the money for some kind of family problems or something that sounded like total BS.

He claims his account is under review by ODesk and he can't receive money from it for another couple of weeks until the review is over.

He needs the money now apparently and has asked that I hire him on Elance and pay him the full amount as soon as he finishes the app which is almost done.

He claims he can refund the two charges I've already received back onto my Visa so I can just pay him the full amount on Elance.

So in theory I'll get all the money I paid Odesk back and I'll just put that back to Elance and pay him there.

He's also offered to do the remaining 10 hours of work for free if I pay him through Elance which is kind of enticing because that's $333 which would be nice to save.

Is this guy full of crap or can he legitimately reverse the charges I've received from Odesk and will it be safe to pay through Elance.

Thanks in advance for any help, I've never had an issue like this with a contractor on Odesk before.
#odesk #situation #weird
  • Profile picture of the author Janice Stacy
    If his oDesk account is under approval and if you can wait till his account is verified. You should not pay him through anything. I do not know how much reputation that contractor have got but $333 is a big amount. I cannot say that this guy is crap but you can use the escrow service of elance to make him sure.
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  • Profile picture of the author Vanilla Gorilla
    Sounds like you're getting scammed. I've had contractors ask me for money in the past. I've never fell for it. You have to remember, he's not you're good buddy, he's an employee.
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  • Profile picture of the author salegurus
    SCAM!! You will never see that money again...
    If i were you i would let ODesk know about this...
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  • Profile picture of the author Joe Stewart
    Hi Kalyn,

    I wouldn't do it. This guy's trying to scam you.

    I'm also 99.9% certain that this would be against Odesk's TOS and could get you banned. If this guy can't get paid because his account is under review that would raise a big red flag for me. What could he have done to have them withhold his pay?

    I'd check his profile, check his work history, his reviews, any current disputes he has going on now or has been through in the past, etc. People don't just get their money withheld for no reason.

    I can't imagine Odesk approving of ending a project at their site, refunding the fees they've earned by arranging the employer/contractor meetup, and forgoing any future earnings in order for you to take the project to Elance.com. Sounds scummy to me.

    You could risk potentially being banned from Odesk. However, if you do decide to do it I'd definitely use Escrow at Elance for any payment arrangements with this guy. I think that's the only option nowadays anyway, but no matter what I'd protect my assets and not release them until the project was 100% completed.

    Personally, I'd stick with Odesk. You made an agreement in good faith. Actually, as an employer, I do believe that you would have to have signed a legal agreement that stated you couldn't hire any Odesk contractor outside of there without paying a $500.00 penalty. I know that I had to sign one and I'm pretty sure that's standard for all employers.

    HTH,

    Joe
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    • Profile picture of the author kalyn
      Thanks for the replies. Everything about this screams scam to me but since he's willing to pass on $333 to get paid right away I'm a little curious.

      His profile and work history is pretty good. He's got mostly 5 star reviews and everything looks good. There aren't any red flags or anything.

      But if there's any sort of possibility of being banned from Odesk then I definitely don't want to go that route.

      What happens if I report this guy? The app I'm making is like 90% to 95% done. What happens to the app if I report him, can I get the work he's done so far and have someone else finish it? Do I get the money I've already spent refunded?

      I've already spent like $2,500 so far to make this app and since it's almost complete I'm pretty nervous about doing anything that might mess it up.

      Thanks.
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      • Profile picture of the author Joe Stewart
        Originally Posted by kalyn View Post

        Thanks for the replies. Everything about this screams scam to me but since he's willing to pass on $333 to get paid right away I'm a little curious.

        His profile and work history is pretty good. He's got mostly 5 star reviews and everything looks good. There aren't any red flags or anything.

        But if there's any sort of possibility of being banned from Odesk then I definitely don't want to go that route.

        What happens if I report this guy? The app I'm making is like 90% to 95% done. What happens to the app if I report him, can I get the work he's done so far and have someone else finish it? Do I get the money I've already spent refunded?

        I've already spent like $2,500 so far to make this app and since it's almost complete I'm pretty nervous about doing anything that might mess it up.

        Thanks.
        Have you actually seen any of the work? You're certain that it's almost completed? If so, just tell him that you're not comfortable leaving Odesk and that it would be against their TOS. Tell him you'd like to simply finish the project as agreed.

        If any problems arise or you don't get your work in a timely manner, then I'd contact Odesk and let them know what's going on. File a dispute if you have to. If he values the work history and reputation he's established he'll get this taken care of.
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        • Profile picture of the author kalyn
          Yeah, I have a test version of the app on my iPhone right now. It's finished except for a few minor tweaks and fixes.

          I'm going to tell him it's against the terms of service and to finish my project as agreed on Odesk then.

          He did have 100+ hours on Odesk and mostly 5 star reviews saying he was honest and did great work so at the beginning I thought we were ok.

          Should I just mention all this weirdness in the review when I end my contract with him then?
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          • Profile picture of the author Joe Stewart
            Originally Posted by kalyn View Post

            Yeah, I have a test version of the app on my iPhone right now. It's finished except for a few minor tweaks and fixes.

            I'm going to tell him it's against the terms of service and to finish my project as agreed on Odesk then.

            He did have 100+ hours on Odesk and mostly 5 star reviews saying he was honest and did great work so at the beginning I thought we were ok.

            Should I just mention all this weirdness in the review when I end my contract with him then?
            If you get what you were promised when you started the project I'd leave a good review, not write a lot, but keep it short and sweet. Something like "project completed as agreed" and leave it at that. You don't want him to leave you a bad review either.

            You could contact Odesk and report him, but I'd just let it go. You never know. Although this screams SCAM, the guy may honestly be in bad shape financially. There's no way to really know for sure. If you contact Odesk he could lose an important source of income where he's established himself.

            That being said, I wouldn't hire him again. Whether he's being sincere or not about his personal situation, his integrity is now in question because he encouraged you to do something that was clearly against their TOS.

            I'd just finish up the project and move on.
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    • Profile picture of the author Fredbou
      SCAM!

      I hired a guy on ODesk and paid him outside of ODesk some money in advance 'cos he needed it for family reasons(duh, alarm bells?).

      He started the job then said he needed more money to keep going. He then couldn't do what I wanted him to do. I called the whole thing off.
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  • Profile picture of the author curly sue
    I use odesk and thats a familiar story. people asking to send them money through western union and the like. Now, they may have a genuine problem need but not my problems, we all have issues and its very unprofessional of them.

    To avoid such characters, use contractors with good feedback and more than 100 hours of work on their profile. Also, contact odesk, they may have been paid already.
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  • Profile picture of the author LeonLion
    I have no experience with Odesk, but maybe you get your money back when you report him as a fraud?
    I'd give up on the work done so far though, if it's all in his possession. I don't think he'll hand it over after getting reported.
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  • Profile picture of the author Adie
    No serious contractor would tell his customer to do such thing. I advise you to report this case to Odesk support as soon as possible but of course pay for his/her finished job. Good luck.
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  • Profile picture of the author GobBluthJD
    This is why I only hire on a flat fee basis on odesk.
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    • Profile picture of the author Joe Stewart
      Originally Posted by GobBluthJD View Post

      This is why I only hire on a flat fee basis on odesk.
      Me too. I hate paying hourly and having to monitor people.
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      • Profile picture of the author Kay King
        I'm going to tell him it's against the terms of service and to finish my project as agreed on Odesk then.
        Keep it professional and don't let him suck you into his personal or financial drama. The review you leave should be based on the work he's done.

        He claims his account is under review by ODesk and he can't receive money from it for another couple of weeks until the review is over.
        That's his problem - chances are he tried to take another client outside the ODesk area but that's between him and ODesk.
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