This post will not deal with low pay – sadly a staple of the music industry because we have so much fun while working, why should we be paid our worth? – nor with the “payment in exposure” or the refusal to pay owed monies; but we welcome testimonials and offer some free advice for such situations, contact us at info @ dif- ev.org or via our contact form.
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Here we will focus on late payments only, why? Because while clients often act as if it were an unfortunate admin mishap or a little nothing to get upset over, it is actually a systemic act of discrimination towards freelancers or small business owners and the working class.
Some companies practice late payment as a way to exact power and/or earn bank interests on your money. While they retain the fee they owe you, you are unwillingly loaning them your own funds, and have to chase payment while remaining courteous to people who do not respect you enough to pay as promptly as you provided them with service; and should you let them know how you feel about their abusive behavior, it is likely they will not hire you again.
It is a sick game they know they can afford because it is common practice, and therefore freelancers have to deal with it or quit; this is especially hard on those who do not have any financial cushion because of being a low-earner, chronically ill or handicapped, or otherwise marginalised.

EU law plans some penalties for late payment, but depending on the bank account your client has and the amount owed, they might still be cashing up not paying you for several weeks or months, even after settling the regulatory late payment fees.
Clients also know few freelancers can afford finance/time/stress/reputation-wise to go to court or to a recovery agency. Recovering funds becomes about appealing the humanity of your debtor or to their fear of bad PR more often than about legal proceeds.

That being said, it is important to cover your back: always get the client to agree to the tasks and fee in written before you start the job – this might even get you a status closer to being an employee, put payment terms on each signed quote or agreement – and a payment deadline plus applicable late fees on each invoice, send correct invoices in increments for bigger jobs and promptly, do not wait to claim your payment if it is late.

Until employees understand that their incompetence or slowness in not paying timely sometimes means freelancers cannot pay their rent – while they get their salary no matter what, until well-off clients stop saying “it’s just 300 bucks” (tell them to pay now and double since the amount is so low them) or act as if hiring someone’s services is doing them a favor, and until governments start supporting freelancers instead of protecting corporations, we must help each other by reporting bad payers in our community, be firmer with claiming our dues, and think of a cultural worker union as it might be the only comprehensive long-term solution.