Bad day as machinery is collected due to non-payment. Can't pay? We'll take it away again!

[@stuartglenn1519]

When I took over my uncle’s business there was always one customer notorious for taking a very long time to pay. My uncle always told me don’t worry you’ll get your money eventually but when I was having to pay for materials 2 months or more before I got my money I decided the best way to deal with this person was just to stop doing work for them.

[@donalpower7152]

Greetings from South of Ireland very sad day when you have too bring machines back like that best of luck in the future with your business you come across as a genuine person 👍

[@noelhyams2156]

It really annoys me. There is no respect anymore with some people. You are one of the most genuine people I have seen. What is the country coming to? Don't let it get you down move on.I'm sure there's many more good customers

[@GCSMachinery]

Thank youb

[@darrenfarrell-bn2cb]

You Have to be payed A lot of hard work gone into that Business to get it where it is.

[@stevenwilliams8460]

Well well should of been a massey he would of paid

[@ilovescotland2024]

@@GCSMachineryyou need get paid make for a living dont let anyone slam your kindness

[@markchambers3269]

Your business is to support yourself and not other people, personally I be collecting my goods after the first failed payment

[@thomasrobinson7109]

Deffo I been to court over this and you don't win and costs you money trying trying to get your money back The law protects them not you happen coming to the day when you should get money up front and run in credit

[@simonunwin8204]

It’s a business you run not a charity you have bills to pay like every other company you nothing to be ashamed of

[@user-gq2cn5qg3h]

My neighbour would have bad reputation for paying, one day a van drove into my yard looking directions for him, turned out was company about 200 miles away delivering dairy chemicals to him . I said to the driver i could name 4 companies within a 5 mile radius who sell chemicals did it not occur to you why he's asking you to come so far with them. I said no more but i noticed when leaving me he took the opposite road which takes him back to where he came from

[@mogwaifan7094]

You did the right thing. You should be relieved not regretting the job. I hate confrontation but as a farmer I won,t be taken for a mug either. As I hit 60 next year my ability to suffer idiots is running low. Your a great business man,love your channel and best of luck from Ireland.

[@GCSMachinery]

@@mogwaifan7094 thank you for your kind words

[@stevestibbons1789]

Just remember one thing, you are running a business, not a charity, it says everything that you feel bad about it, but it’s not your fault. Some people you give an inch and they take a mile, enough is enough. You did the right thing👍🏼🍻

[@GCSMachinery]

Thank you

[@user-tq8cx7dy1q]

Well done for recovering your machines you have got a lot of money back home.

[@chrislee2221]

Trailer looked well used to me, my Mrs has always said there are two types of non payers, those that cant pay and those that won't pay. Those that cant can often be helped by setting out a plan etc, those that won't pay then it's a repo job and black list then it's through the courts.

[@seggonscontractors588]

I'm having a similar problem while running a contracting business, I'm owed a lot of money from people who seem very uninterested to pay anything or even work with me to get paid, it now seems as a contractor it's frowned upon to ask for payment, which when I'm now owing people money It's soul destroying, I really like to keep people paid up but when I've done the work and put the hours In... and I'm left penniless 🤷‍♂️ very upsetting, especially when it's "freinds"

[@GCSMachinery]

I agree

[@harvest585]

I find that instead of sending an invoice just go to the customer with a hard copy invoice, nine times out of ten they will write a cheque there and then while your talking to them and it deff helps

[@GCSMachinery]

@@harvest585 we have 130 live hire customers with machinery so sadly we don’t really have that option. Also they are nationwide. Most people pay it’s just the odd bad one but we always get our money one way or the other

[@hjohnson286]

We have one or two the same had one offer to give us £500 when we went for a payment when it was close to 75 k he owed us said this as he was leaning on his good lady's brand new BMW. We don't do his work anymore and tbf we avoid anyone now that wants to mess about we don't mind working with people but not anyone that wants to take the piss

[@GCSMachinery]

@@hjohnson286 exactly. Do a statuary demand on them

[@johncoughlan5512]

Sorry for your troubles Micheal. U were lucky maybe how ever it is now but lucky to get them back. Hopefully it’s not a trend that’s going to be going on in the future. I think u are a mighty man with a mighty service. I’d love to start your business over here in north cork but would love to meet up with you and your staff to explore how I could start up here. Again u have my sympathy.

[@philhyde2635]

Absolutely the right way forward Michael. Console yourself that you got your kit back.

[@charleshart6992]

Never a good feeling when you have to take this action, but there comes a point when you have to say enough is enough! You have a successful business to run!

[@markure8793]

You did the right thing, if you have a look at your customer base you will notice that 80% of your business comes from 20% of your customers and the other 20% comes from the 80% so look after the good 20% of your customers. I was a machinery dealer in Australia and kept telling my staff if we are not going to get paid don't send it out the door because if you send out something worth $5000 and we are not paid you have to turn over $50,000 to make up that last sale.

[@GCSMachinery]

I agree. I also work in the ten % theory

[@patmalpass7999]

I believe that you have been more than fair, bad debters are a drain on any business, I have my share of them!!!!

[@brendanhough3378]

I would name the lovely man or woman and praise them for hiring the machinery from you...will do the job !

[@danielrust8001]

Not a good day Michael! Give people a month to pay the bills as farmers seem to wait till the end of the next month all the time!! That farm can’t of been far from longtown maybe canonbie area by the scenery! Hope u get sorted out and all debts paid! Keep the chin up and keep going forward!!! Keep up the good work team GCS

[@Irk66]

I remember in a pub one time there was a sign or was it a card . I don't give credit as it causes amnesia.

[@6mhy]

My local pub has a sign it says“ we trusted many to our sorrow so pay today not tomorrow!” 😂

[@tjmfarming9584]

You did the right thing mate. I know how much it hurts, especially when it gets to the point where you're struggling to even keep food on your own table. It's not nice, both for the repossessor and the buyer who can't pay for the goods. I draw the line when they promise x amount of money for a piece of machinery and after 2 years don't send a single cent. In Australia, if someone was "dinkum" about buying a piece of kit, the least they could do would be to send money through little by little with what they can manage. But, when you get people who lie directly to your face week after week about paying up, with nothing being sent I draw the line. It's never nice to repossess items, but when it puts your own business at risk of going under, you've got to go retrieve it and not be taken for a mug! Remember you're running a business, NOT a charity.

[@GCSMachinery]

Thank you

[@MakePeace-pw1in]

At the end of the day you have to look after your bank account no one else will.... seems you were patient enough and fully support recovering your equipment

[@tony3424]

You're absolutely doing the right thing Michael you have bills and wages to pay.. most companies will do 2 months with no payment then shut the tap off.. It's the very reason I left full time agriculture. Too many late or non payers.. Hopefully you have no more hassle mate..

[@martingibbs9277]

Yes I understand, you're a business and not a charity, I'm sure you gave them plenty of time to sort it out, I think I would have given them 3 to 4 months, just to help them out, but definitely no longer than 6 months. You done the right thing.

[@thomasfrancis5747]

A customer being open in admitting to a problem is so much different to being constantly lied to. Three fibs and they're out, otherwise they are just taking advantage of you. People getting the use of equipment for free are making it difficult for honest people to compete. I would even consider leaving factual reviews online so others aren't caught out the same way.

[@krisshutler]

That must of been a fair chunk of money owed. Remember when the New Holland first arrived at GCS. The front weights was what I identified.

[@michaelgrant8727]

You are dead right. If they don’t pay there bills you are right to pick up your machines. Don’t feel bad. 😊

[@markmeadows9838]

Is the tractor back yet 🤔 or is it still plodding along the A66 🤪🚜💥💨💨👍🏻

[@andrewluff9782]

Month following, then CCJ…they will do it to someone else tomorrow…CCJ’s stay on record for a very long time…at least you could uplift, can’t do that if its fertiliser , feed, spray etc…

[@MartinReeson]

You can only help people so much but if you dont get paid you cant pay your bills and its a knock on effect it's so easy to transfer money about now adays and you're like me you will walk with people but only so much

[@paulfairbrass4424]

There's nothing harsh about it, this is how businesses fold. You've got Bill's to pay, the person you pay has bills to pay. Personally if you're paying monthly, if they haven't cleared the bill after 60 days that's it.

[@petermay2034]

Well done you did the right thing m8 great videos 🎉

[@ginggur17]

Didn’t realise you guys had a channel. Now subscribed. Last time I was at your place was de hiring a trailer we had at G&D Matthews 👍👍👍👍🇬🇧

[@GCSMachinery]

Thank for the sub.

[@eds.farm_life8772]

You have to be paid, i think you have been more than fair. I cant imagine how hard it is for you having to do that, can't be nice.

[@noelhickey1684]

That's the reality of farming they want all the shiny gear but what they're at isn't able to afford it. Just think of the good customers on days like this

[@shanemcguire3367]

Was told by a man lately who owns a feed store the man who has money won't ever pay on time but the man thst had a small few pound will pay ya

[@tinkeringtaylor3053]

You did the right thing, you have a business to run and need to have the money to do it 👍

[@grahambarton4563]

You did the right thing , I would give them 90 days , then charge interest plus collect your machinery, you seem very fair company so you should feel down about it . Was the tractor yours as well , how did you get that back ? Thanks for another great video and for keeping it real 😊

[@GCSMachinery]

Yes the tractor was mine to

[@simonknight2448]

Bless you

[@SH66667]

Going to be more bad payers and people who cannot pay because they have over stretched themselves. Never known so many parcels of land for sale because farmers are trying to gather up some funds, banks asking for debts to be reduced

[@richpbrown2]

No more than 6-8 weeks, or 2 missed rental pay,ents depend on which came first

[@georgehay5929]

Good evening, Michael. i think you have done more than you should have. You have helep this chap out, and he hadn't even helped himself in doing the proper thing, so you have done the right thing in getting your stuff back home and dont feel bad about doing what you have done you cant go into sainsburys and just take your shopping home without paying

[@rogerparrett1770]

I do know you helped them ,i remember when you took those machines up there ,sad state mike ,never thought farming people were like that ,most are respectful honest farmers ,all the best

[@GCSMachinery]

I do try and help and I’m sure I’m The bad person now

[@johnmchardy4502]

A lot of farmers do try to not pay and then they drive around in brand new pickup trucks and replace your rental equipment with a brand new one on finance the next day

[@racerroy1]

At the first fault [none payment] positive action, no messing about. You have to pay your bills as you rightly say. I did low value debit collecting and had no problem returning the goods back to the company to rent out to someone else who would pay.

[@Mugwump42]

You were extremely understanding and patient. 14 days of debt. Fetch the equipment back. Your customer is stealing off your company, taking advantage of your good nature. Always pays to have a non refundable cash advance.

[@frasermathers2287]

Michael, you have taken the correct action in collecting your equipment. Having worked for family and multi national companies, as well as having my own businesses, the one statement that was always drilled into me was " a customer is not a customer until they have paid their bill". Regardless of which business I have worked in, if the customer did not pay as per the terms and conditions of the contract, then they were placed on stop until the issues was resolved. I know that sounds hard, but in all my years of business before retiring, I lost £1250 in bad debt and had 60 employees to pay, so I could not afford bad debt/risk. The majority of customers are great, but there will always be the odd bad apple, but we limited the risk by doing credit checks, taking references etc. Never worry about losing a bad customer, because I can assure you, they don't care about you! I know you look after your customers, but customers like this one and taking you for a fool and you are no fool.

[@GCSMachinery]

Thank you

[@MarkSharp-c3r]

You had ever rite to fetch your machines back and making it public people like this feed off small businesses we had a bloke near hear do same thing with diggers top job your doing 👍

[@johnrevell6684]

These things have to be done, it’s sad but necessary sometimes and with some people

[@davidmichaelsmith71]

Once terms are agreed be it weekly or monthly then once a second payment is missed start thinking about repossession. Keep up the good work.

[@Nigel-e2b]

30 days end of month is a fair time to pay unless other terms agreed

[@mott2945]

Stop apologising mate you’re a diamond of a bloke

[@paulchambers6546]

You did the right thing !! Farmers are having a rough time but it’s not your fault. You have given them time to pay and service and hire of the machines but if they don’t pay you have take them back

[@GCSMachinery]

Thank you

[@CPCarpentry2022]

there is helping people out and there's people out there that will abuse that, you can't make someone else's problem yours mate (some people if you give them an inch they will take a mile)👍

[@GCSMachinery]

Exactly

[@richarddavey7884]

People/ businesses have all sorts of cash flow problems. Im sure if the guy said when he defaulted, "bit of a problem, need a couple of weeks" or whatever, there wouldnt necessarily be an issue but to keep saying tomorrow blah blah.....he had no intention of paying. Id have definitely took the machinery back after the 2nd lie, once could be an oversite, twice, theyre having your pants down mate. Hope all works out for you and slap them in court because they will now hire from another supplier and default.

[@diggerdave.6587]

I suppose the amount of time you are prepared to wait for payment depends on the status of your relationship with the custemer, for example if thet are a trusted friend then maybe you could allow them enought time to get their stall together? You have monthly finance bills to meet in order to continue trading so at some point the financial aspect would take the lead.The problem with non payers is that they will just move on to the next supplier and run up another big bill. If they said, look, I am in a bit of a spot and cant pay you for a couple of months the thats another chunk of food for thought.

[@GCSMachinery]

I have tried all that but when to are constantly told you will be paid later or tomorrow and it never appears and you are constantly told lies you get to a point of saying I’ve have had enough

[@diggerdave.6587]

@@GCSMachinery You were obviously at the end of your tether with it Matey. I dont blame you for cracking to be honest. I worked with a guy who was notoriously bad for paying bills....they dont like it done to them thats for sure

[@patmurphy7539]

Well done ,you did the right thing ,you had to,id say from watching you on u tube you are a fair man to deal with ,id have you in my corner any day ,

[@GCSMachinery]

Thank you

[@patmurphy7539]

👍👍

[@stevenbarlow9536]

I saw you heading back with it Volvo wag & drag with with red pallets on at 4:43

[@GCSMachinery]

I can’t go anywhere without being seen 😂

[@bobbrooks266]

Don't honestly believe you couldn't have handled it any other way. I suppose you buy something you have to pay for it. Try going to Tesco's and paying for your shopping in a months time. Tractor looked good to.. I think alot of people's trouble is the payments on somethings just keeps people like me using very old machinery but still does a job. Looking forward to seeing more. Kind regards

[@danielmcardle2428]

You have definitely made the right decision

[@callumwharton6735]

I'd do the same as the max payment terms on haulage jobs so from the day of delivery I'd say a maximum of 90 days

[@ammo4184]

Sorry to hear this Michael. Have you got many bad payers? Did you tell them you were coming? Did you get their keys back too? If no payment of first invoice I'd be threatening collection. Hope you add a good chunk on for the recovery and see them in court.

[@WilliamCooper2005]

You seem decent, people need to make an effort to pay or they shouldn’t have gone for machinery they couldn’t afford. We’ve been working all hours of the day and selling things around the yard to make the payments on a baler we’ve just got. Tractor that runs it is 35 years old and owned outright so we don’t need to worry about payments when money is tight.

[@AdamGrey-f6g]

Hello. I wonder what would be the position if this situation happened. The "customer" has made a part payment for all of the gear. They then decide to default on the balance. What would be your position then legally with regard to reclaiming the gear I wonder?

[@grasub1]

We had a guy working for us and at weekends we allowed him do outside work for himself. When someone did not pay him - he waited for Sunday and went to church where his debtor was at service - mid way through our guy would walk up church stand opposite pew and point to the Debtor_ You owe me X amount and did not pay - . After service our guy waited outside for the red faced debtor to exit - he got his money through shaming. After a few of these incidents everyone paid up. Jack is welding in the sky now Rip.

[@rodgercaldwell7804]

Payment up front for your kit would be what I would expect.

[@thomasrobinson7109]

I think its sad but getting to the time that you have to get money up front then you are running in a credit so if they dont pay u take away and and dont loose out also charge for delivery and collection up front You are looky you found the equipment to many companys spend time trying to locate stuff and coming back without it it costs but happen put trackers on equipment for this reason

[@AndrewLipscomb-dl4hr]

Hi Michael, In the words of my Father, (If you can’t afford it don’t have it) my personal thoughts on terms and conditions are: 30 Days of Hire should be payed for by the end of the following 30 days if not the vehicle/ machinery will be collect immediately,

[@djs356]

It's more the lies they tell, have had it done to myself did contract work to another farmer just got constant lies from him that was more annoying than the non payment , we had a sticky situation last year due to death of a partner and bank account frozen phone everyone that was due money and explained the situation not one had a problem , the problem with your guy is he will just use another hire company for a few months then move on again 😡

[@farmer6861]

6 months but with added interest, then if money not forthcoming winding up petition if limited or small claims court if sole trader.

[@GCSMachinery]

It depends. If the customer was honest and explained his problem then I can see your opinion but when constantly lied to 6 months is to long

[@richardcanning7351]

I would guess that you invoice monthly so if you haven’t received any payment within 60/90 days of the first invoice I would be looking the first invoice’s paid and a standing order set up or I would have no problem doing what you had to do. If the client keeps stalling by telling you lies then that would be the last time they would be getting anything. It’s different if they come to you and explain why they haven’t paid and you can agree a payment plan. I used to do these sort of collections for a hire company and it’s not a good feeling making these calls but you have to protect your business

[@jackthewisedog5171]

You are right what you did . . . . but you are also right to say that there are some people who get hit with an unexpected cash flow situation and that happens in life but you find those people will come to you and sort something as they are genuine - whereas you had to go chasing and got nothing but excuses

[@GCSMachinery]

Precisely

[@mikeclark4416]

It is a bad time for anyone ,Some Farmers pay their bills at the end of Harvest when they know what they got ,and Condition of Crop ects . But you yourself had admitted you have bills to pay . There is no right time or wrong time to cough up ,What the farmer should have said Ive not got the money to pay at this moment . Beautiful Volvo Truck

[@ThomasWharton3350]

One month up front and every week after. And have the facility to remotely turn them off.

[@whackojacko0]

30days from 1st failed payment but with letter/letters on the 1st missed payment stating needed to paid within 30days and failure to do so will result in. Repo of items

[@noelhyams2156]

2 months if they haven't paid, take it back on the 3rd month and then take them to the small claims court.

[@stephenbutters9548]

would have taken it back after three weeks Charity begins at home and you have to cover your own costs. having said that were i to struggle i would pay the small companys first genuine cases are one thing being used for free credit is quite another you have been more than generous

[@flybywire5866]

If this farmer needs the equipment to do profitable work, then taking it away could be seen as counterproductive for him being able to pay his bills. However, he had the equipment and was still unable to pay, so him having it made no difference to him, but to you it does. Multiple damages to rather new equipment also tells a story, but not one about carefully handling stuff that is not yours. You sell things, they are not giveaways. If someone makes serial false promises, he will do so everywhere, not just towards you. That means he is doomed anyways. So get your stuff out of there as long as that is still possible at all. Well you did already do so.👍 You cant prop up unsustainable businesses. You are a business, not a charity. That farmer has to own the results of his decisions. Making decisions and and having the responsibility for the consequences is inseparable.

[@MullyAKL]

It's a shame that it came to that, but as they got further and further behind, they'd have needed a miracle to catch up on payments.

[@werdna230667]

Difficult situation! But there becomes a tie when enough is enough

[@patrickosullivan4021]

Tough days for you so Michael

[@SimonPerry-cz4ke]

Nothing worse than being lied to and feeling decieved

[@nickhill3362]

I presume you have your payment terms on your statement I would pick them up straight away and not deal with them again bad payers should be named to help other genuine businesses from suffering the same problem in my experience a bad payer is generally always a bad payer Michael

[@gregj7916]

7 days over the due date then referred to debt collection agency.

[@stuarttyson786]

Only had one significant no-pay incident. A neighbour, contracted to bale and take straw after harvest for a pre agreed price, roughly 2000acres, our second year here in Canada. The deal was pay by Dec 31st, bearing in mind he started baling in August and all straw was moved by the end of October. Went to see him in December, bit tight, store cattle prices were up this year. OK, I want something by the end of the month - nothing. Tried again in January, his wife was also there in their kitchen, shame faced, gave me $2000 on what turned out to be her account. Just kept going every month and the full amount was settled in bits by June. Learned my lesson, don’t let a debt like that go unaddressed with a neighbour, especially as in this instance a neighbour I didn’t really know. If I hadn’t gone to see him would he have come to see me, or phoned? Knowing the man now several years later I suspect that debt would not have been paid….. So yes, once a month has passed beyond agreed payment date I would always ask the hard question. You were able to retrieve your trailer, by June my straw was ‘itten an’ shitten’!!

[@stevebird911]

When i was in business i found the more they owe the less chance of them paying They owe they pay on time or take it away

[@fivedotsdave9723]

Because you are such a decent person the ones who are far from being decent will take advantage of you, but the word will quickly spread and they will have a really difficult time finding machinery to hire or purchase.....

[@louthboy]

Bet there's no chance of getting reimbursed for the diesel that you've used getting there 😒

[@willbrown4888]

I have been on a low loader for over 10 years for a plant hire company and I get all the repo jobs it's not nice but enough is enough I think after 3 months you won't get paid so get it back.

[@cs-su9ko]

YOU wont be the only one he has done this to some are just bad people

[@toner8365]

At least you can draw a line under it once you loaded it up. Pain in the hole gnawing away as the weeks go by n the excuses keep coming. Gear, tyres etc gone too dear for charity cases. Onwards and upwards.

[@andrewbird1205]

I'm sorry what ever you do it's going to cost you money fetching your gear back times are hard for everyone but you can't damage your business

[@stevewilson6390]

Michael what happens to the dept now, i hope you don't write it off and not get some kind of compensation. You are owed money and this chap has taken advantage of your good nature, advice and help, i hope you pursue your claim for 'YOUR' money quickly just in case he has a list of creditors also awaiting money's owed. He will go on and hire equipment off some other hire company and he will also leave dept with them, put him on some kind of default list so he has to pay.

[@GCSMachinery]

I have issued a statuary demand and will follow with bankruptcy proceedings. I won’t give up

[@EdwardMoore-so6zp]

The service you give you should be paid every month. Don't feel bad about it.

[@MultiSamson1]

There is nothing as tight as tight arsed Scot.

[@jockmcsporran6088]

Or an arrogant & tight arsed englishman Dealt with enough of those.

[@jockmcsporran6088]

Or an arrogant & tight arises, greedy Englishman. Dealt with quite a few of those..

[@Martin-t9s4y]

You got to make a stand or people will walk all over you great channel 👌

[@harvest585]

Labour hire is different we take weekly only payments unless its a very long term customer

[@roba4297]

Give some folks an inch, and they will take a mile. Seems to be more and more the way of the world nowadays. Sad !

[@abbiejones4222]

Never feel guilty. Your running a business not a charity.

[@2626stephen]

Good for you getting your equipment back your company relying on people to pay so you can pay your bills. Quickly the kit back out making money 💰

[@edwinrusling1918]

I give them 3 months and if they haven't made a start by then take action

[@JoeTBarnes]

I’d give them a month to pay at that point they’d be paying two months and if they don’t pay after that I’d be collecting my machinery

[@GCSMachinery]

@@JoeTBarnes exactly

[@jonathanwhitbread7652]

… if they are serious about paying you, but are just finding things tough, take a specific charge over some of their assets/property to protect yourself. If someone is genuine about paying you back in due course, they’ll do it … if they have no intention to repay, they won’t … Good way to smoke things out at an earlier stage …

[@GCSMachinery]

I’m already on it. I will get my money

[@markcruttenden1518]

Is there the possibility of immobilising tractors and jcb’s via telematics? Obviously once it was parked in a sensible place? This would act as a warning without the haulage cost in first incidence. It should never have to get to this stage and isn’t practical for trailers but possibly an option?

[@GCSMachinery]

Yes it’s very possible and probably the way forward

[@markcruttenden1518]

@@GCSMachinery If it takes away the usability without incurring you any haulage cost it might be the nudge some people need to get back on track🤷🏽‍♂️