Welcome to the forum Clayton Spencer.
You've had some good advice from above.
For me some of my commercial I have had for over 15 years. Others come and go lasting a few years at a time. But they only go due to moving away, closing down or receivership rather than losing them to someone else. (Oh there was one where head office put all window cleaning under a national contract)
I've actually dumped a couple of very small £40 industrial units for messing me around. And infamously a well known clothing chain regional office because the security wanted triplicate forms signed every time I went, wanted to check the purchase order and seemed to take sadistic delight in making me wait for them to take their time while they checked my van upon leaving for stolen goods.
They had a 60 day payment policy which stretched to 90 and I just walked away. I got a phone call asking where I was for the quarterly contract and I said I'd turn up when they paid me what I owed. It took them a further week. I went down to start again and the security rigmarole started so I wrote on their paperwork (in triplicate
) that when they treated me with more respect I would consider cleaning their windows again. Strangely they didn't chase me up!
But ... a receivership is unpleasant as it is unlikely you'll get paid and if you aren't on top of it you might have a couple of months outstanding if they pay on 45/60 days.
If payment times increase from say 30 days it might be a sign they are going down the tubes so whatever you do don't clean again until you've been paid for the last one.
By the way, can you tell us who the hell Pearly Spencer was? A relative?
