When a client goes quiet mid-project
The order to work through, from the first follow-up to accepting that it is over
2 min read
A client going silent is far more common than outright fraud, and most of the time there is no bad intent — the plan changed, the budget was cut, or the person you dealt with left the company.
First three days: don't read into it
People here juggle several things at once. Two or three quiet days is normal. Send something short that is easy to answer.
"Hi — I sent the first draft on Tuesday. Have you had a chance to look? If now is a bad time, just tell me how many days to wait."
A message that can be answered in one word gets answered faster than a long one.
One week: change channel
If you have been on chat, try email. If email, try calling. Someone missing on one channel is not necessarily missing on all of them.
Two weeks: put it in writing
Send a message with three things: what has been delivered, what is outstanding, and a specific deadline.
"The work is complete through stage two. ฿12,000 is outstanding per our agreement. If I don't hear back by the 20th, I will treat the project as ended and invoice for the work delivered."
Keep that message. It is your evidence that you tried.
After that
If the amount is small, chasing usually costs more than you recover. Decide whether it is worth it and move on.
If it is large enough, a consumer claim at the district court needs no lawyer and the filing fee is modest. What you need is the exchange where scope and price were agreed.
Preventing the next one
- Always take a deposit from a new client
- Split the work into stages, and start the next stage only after the previous one is paid
- Send low-resolution previews first; release source files on full payment
None of this stops someone disappearing. It caps the damage at one stage.
Tell "gone" apart from "busy"
A busy client replies short and late, but replies. A vanished client reads and says nothing for days. LINE shows read receipts; email never will — which is one more reason to have both channels.
Don't stop work silently
If you decide to pause because you are waiting on feedback, say so. Don't just stop.
"I'm holding the remaining work until I have your feedback. Once it arrives I need about five working days." That sentence protects you when they resurface asking why it isn't finished.
When they come back after two months
It happens more than you would think, and you are not bound to the old price.
Say plainly that your schedule has changed, quote a new deadline and current rates, and credit whatever they already paid if the earlier work still stands.