Client Red Flag BingoPayment Nightmare Edition
How many have you heard? Tap each one that sounds familiar.
Today’s board · 25 Oct
What is Client Red Flag Bingo?
Client Red Flag Bingo is a free BrieflyGo game for freelancers: a 5×5 board of the things difficult clients say — “it’ll be great for your portfolio”, “just one more small change”, “we’ll sign the contract later”. Tap the ones you’ve heard, get your score and a shareable card, and see a practical way to protect yourself from each flag. There’s a new board every day, drawn from over 50 client lines. No sign-up, nothing you tap is linked to you.
Glossary: what a “client red flag” is →Client red flags for freelancers chasing invoices, and what to do
General practices freelancers use — put them in your quote or contract before the project starts.
| Red flag | Practice | How to protect yourself |
|---|---|---|
| “Paying next week” — every week | Payment terms | Due dates, a late fee and a pause clause. |
| We pay when we get paid | Payment terms | Your payment doesn’t depend on their customers paying them. |
| Net-90 payment terms | Payment terms | Negotiate net-15 or net-30, or build the wait into the price. |
| Vanishes when the invoice arrives | Milestone billing | Milestones. Final files go out on payment. |
| Send the files, I’ll pay after | Milestone billing | Proofs first. Final files on payment. |
| Can you start before the deposit? | Deposit | Work begins when the deposit clears. |
| “We’re too big for deposits” | Deposit | Established companies can pay deposits. |
| Sends a cheque for too much | Payment terms | Never refund an “overpayment”. Wait for the funds to clear. |
| Haggles after delivery | Fixed fee | The signed quote is the price. |
| Cancels halfway, wants a refund | Kill fee | A kill fee clause covers work already done. |
| Invoice? What invoice? | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Accounts payable is on holiday | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Can you resend the invoice? Again. | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| The cheque is in the post | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Payment run is monthly. Just missed it. | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| We need a W-9 first. Again. | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Wrong PO number, start over | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Paid half, rest when we’re happy | Milestone billing | Bill in stages. Send watermarked or low-res proofs; final files go out on final payment. |
| Can we pay in instalments? | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| We’ll pay once the launch goes well | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Our bank is having issues | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Finance needs the invoice in our format | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Deducted a “late delivery” fee | Signed before you start | Penalties only apply if they’re in the signed agreement — ask where. |
| Can you refund the deposit? | Deposit | Work starts when the deposit clears — around half up front is common. |
| Sent it! Check your spam. | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Currency fees are on you | Fixed fee | Your fee stands on its own — no discounts for promised future work, no exposure instead of pay. |
| We paid the wrong account | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| PayPal “friends and family”? | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| Can you invoice our parent company? | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
| New finance system. Resubmit everything. | Payment terms | Put a due date, a late fee and “work pauses if overdue” in writing. |
Already signed with a red-flag client?
Check what your contract says about payment, revisions and rights — free, in about a minute.
Questions
What is a client red flag?
A sign early in a project that a client may cause trouble later: refusing a contract, pushing for free samples, haggling before you’ve quoted, vague briefs, or “we pay when we get paid”. One flag isn’t a verdict, but several together usually mean scope creep or late payment ahead.
How do I protect myself from difficult clients?
Most red flags are handled by a few habits put in writing: a clear scope, a set number of revision rounds, a deposit before you start, payment terms with a late fee, change orders for new requests, and rights that transfer only on full payment. Each square on the board links its own tip.
Is Client Red Flag Bingo free? Do I need an account?
Yes, it’s free and there’s no sign-up. Your board is kept in the link itself — there’s no account to tie it to. We only keep anonymous usage stats, like how often each square is tapped.
Which boards are there?
A general board for every freelancer, plus boards for designers, developers, writers and copywriters, and photographers and videographers. Each one has 24 squares and a free centre square.
Does the board change?
Yes. Every board draws its 24 squares from a larger pool of client lines, and there’s a new board every day — the same for everyone, so you can compare scores with friends. “New board” deals fresh lines from the same edition, and each edition (Agency, Cheap Client, Payment Nightmare, Worst of 2026 and the profession boards) has its own set. The classics show up on most boards.
How do I challenge a friend?
Finish a board and press “Challenge a freelancer”. Your friend gets the exact same board, sees your score, and when they finish, both scores appear side by side.
Is this legal advice?
No. The tips are general business practices freelancers use. For a contract with real money at stake, have it checked — you can run a free risk check on BrieflyGo or talk to a lawyer.
Just for fun. Tips are general business practices, not legal advice — for a contract with real money at stake, get it reviewed. Last updated .