The document attached to this post includes a template contract that is designed to make it clear what the freelancer is expected to create for a client (customer), in an hourly payment format. It also gives the freelancer and client written protection, to help avoid scams. It also has a maximum hours worked cap so that the client won’t pay too high of a payment.
(Note: Do be aware that this contract has not been checked by a lawyer)
Click here to view contract template (Google doc)
Features of this template are:
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Personal information of name and address of both the customer and client. The reason for personal information is so that if the contract is breached, you could use the personal information to contest a breach of contract in court.
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Clear expectations of what the freelancer is expected to deliver
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The hourly rate the freelancer will be paid at.
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The maximum cap the freelancer can work. This is to protect the client from paying too much than what they can afford.
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It is made clear that the freelancer must provide a way for the client to view the completed work. In the context of Roblox, this can be an image (with “preview” overlayed), a video or a playable Roblox game link. This is to provide proof to the client that the work has been completed, while also restricting the client from receiving the asset files without payment. For freelancer protection, DO NOT give the completed deliverable files directly to the client until you get the payment.
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Freelancer is expected to give the deliverables to the client upon payment.
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Freelancer is expected to own or have the rights to use all the assets in the deliverables.
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The client will own the deliverables and the freelancer waives their rights to the ownership of deliverables upon completion and payment (In simpler terms, the client owns the assets when payment is sent, not the freelancer).
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The client can terminate the contract at any time with written notice.
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The freelancer can terminate the contract most time with written notice. However, they can NOT terminate the contract between the time the client has sent payment to the time they send the completed deliverables. This is to stop a loophole of a freelancer not sending the deliverables despite the client paying for them.
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The client is expected to test deliverables and has 10 working days (Monday - Friday) to report any issues such as bugs. The freelancer should attempt to solve the issue. If the issue cannot be solved, the freelancer is expected to return some of the money at an appropriate rate, based on what deliverable has the issue.
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If the freelancer is unable to complete the deliverables within the allocated time limit, then the client (customer) will have 3 options. They can either pay for whatever work is completed, or terminate the contract which would include the client not receiving any deliverables, or the option to increase the maximum hour cap.
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Made clear that the contract can not be modified unless both parties (client and freelancer) agree to the changes.
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Legal jargon that says the agreement follows country laws. Feel free to change the country that is stated.
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An area where the customer (client) and freelancer can state their name, signature and date when they signed the contract.
You are more than welcome to modify the contract, or even post an improved version within the comment section of this post. I hope this contract can be used to avoid scams, as unfortunately, I’ve heard of many people getting scammed, including the client not receiving the deliverables and the freelancer not receiving payment.
Let me know if you do end up using this template in the comment section - Thanks!
Bonus section: How to avoid getting scammed
From personal experience, I’ve found that providing a way for the client to view the completed work without sending them the files, and then only sending the files once the client has paid for the work is the best way to avoid scams. The client gets to see that the work has been completed, while the freelancer knows that the client won’t be able to steal the work they have done without first getting payment.
However, in rare cases, it is possible for a freelancer to show the work and get payment from the client, but not give the completed work to the client. Without a secure middleman (Like Fiverr), I do not know a way to guarantee that the client will not get scammed. But this is unlikely to occur as the freelancer has already spent time completing the work, and not giving the deliverables would likely stop the client from choosing them as a freelancer again. Therefore it usually makes more sense for a freelancer to give the completed deliverables upon completion and payment.