>>Hi,
>>
>>I need to change my standard contract slightly and I'm not sure how to word this:
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>>Client will pay a retainer fee covering 20 hours and work will be charged against that retainer, then when that 20 hours has been fully worked off another retainer will be paid.
>>
>>Anyone can help me word this clearly? I'm feeling very wordically challenged at the moment :)
>
>You can find examples by Googling [retainer agreement sample] e.g. https://www.docracy.com/7kjozeinrv/retainer-agreement#
>
>In Western countries there are a few occupations/industries where working on a retainer basis is normal practice, most often when clients are at high risk of not paying (or not being able to pay) e.g. criminal lawyers. However, outside of those, there are at least a couple of potential appearance problems with having a retainer clause in a standard contract:
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>- It makes it look like your company deals regularly or mostly with shady or less than desirable clients who won't or can't pay their bills on time
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>- It implies that a new or potential client is one of those, which quite a few business owners will view as a direct insult
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>If retainers are standard in your industry, well and good, but if not I'd be leery about adding such a clause to a standard contract.
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>What I do instead for new clients with whom I'm likely to do significant work, is to ask for at least 3 trade references. These are third parties who have billed, and been paid in (presumably) good order, by your new or potential client. Ideally they can offer up other suppliers similar to yourself, but other references such as their landlord can be good too. There's zero stigma attached to asking for trade references, it's the equivalent of a client asking you for work or product references and business people recognize it as such.
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>A few years back I had a problem client who was doing the whole gamut of dumbass tricks - very late to pay, wrong (too little, of course) cheque amount, cheque numeric amount not matching written string (e.g. $750, "Five Hundred Seventy Dollars Only"), cheque drawn on a closed account, cheque not signed etc. etc. My accountant suggested putting him on retainer, but it was so unpleasant dealing with that guy that I fired him soon after.

Thanks Al,

My Google search has turned up lots of hits, but none that stated what I need to state.

This contract includes being on call for support and maintenance and I have already agreed with the client that this is the best way to go, at least initially. I just need to find a way to word it properly.