powerman2000 Commission unfulfilled

[mitatell.livejournal.com]

WHO: http://powerman2000.deviantart.com/

WHERE: Online/Interenet.

WHAT: Digital Art. 10 Page full color comic with added back ground.

WHEN: The initial conversation began through notes starting on March 2nd, 2013 details enclosed below (read from bottom to top).

http://i.imgur.com/CGyQAsn.jpg http://i.imgur.com/tfPnVdb.jpg?1 http://i.imgur.com/L4QxaDk.jpg (the details of the commission have been mostly omitted, but can be given if necessary.)

The agreed upon amount was provided in a 250$ amount and then an additional background was requested at the cost of 50$ and payment for that was also provided.


After a year with no posting of progress, I inquired about the commission.

http://i.imgur.com/pk6ACNT.jpg

Then after another year I inquired again (within the past few days).

http://i.imgur.com/xrJ9zsp.jpg

PROOF: Proof: http://i.imgur.com/5wUe4tl.jpg?1 http://i.imgur.com/tITW7mb.jpg?1 (personal information has been omitted)

EXPLAIN: I commissioned the above artist for a service, paid in full and never received the agreed upon comic. I did receive the subscription detailed in the deal to the artist's webiste, but that portion is small by comparison (and I cared little for it).

I fully recognize that in the last bit where I requested a refund that I could certainly be perceived as flippant or arrogant, however bear in mind that this was after 2 years of zero progress from the artist when the artist advised it would come in small deliveries. 2 Years is beyond a reasonable duration for the agreed upon terms and I feel as though I had been less than rude about the initial inquiries. In addition, the artist certainly had time to complete the commission as they were free to fulfill sketch commissions from myself.

As I waited patiently for the completion of my primary commission I report that I did commission the same artist several times for 5 dollar sketches .

I submit that the artist was perfectly capable of completing my initial commission and that I was not being unreasonable with my request for a refund or fulfillment of the commission. There were no extenuating circumstances that prevented the artist from doing my commission.

Please be advised of my experience and beware.

Comments

[kayla-la.livejournal.com]

Another case of no refund clauses being a big problem.

I noticed he calls your payment a 'donation'. It says a lot about his work ethic if he thinks you paid him just to be nice and he doesn't actually have to do the work or refund if he doesn't like you asking about it. Definitely someone to avoid if he thinks all-out theft of someone's money is okay.

[yuki-fox-demon.livejournal.com]

Holy crap, yes. Donation in a lump sum for a service? Not sure it works that way...

I'm also interested in the part where he says that the sketch work is already done and that alone amounts to what Mitatell paid. How on earth did they come up with *that*?

[mitatell.livejournal.com]

I don't know. If I'd had a little more experience under my belt I might not have made the mistake, but it was a very tempting offer. Something I'll just have to learn from.

[mazzy techna (from livejournal.com)]

why do so many artists think " I don't do refunds " is actully legal?

sorry you had to go threw all that

[torch-tiger.livejournal.com]

Wow, thanks for posting a beware. This is up there with the worst I have read in a beware.
Makes you wait 2 years, keeps your money, doesn't do the work, and pretty much blames you for it all.

This would definitely be a good person to sue.

[mitatell.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately I wouldn't know where to start. I have pretty much zero understanding of law and I am not even sure it would apply since I am under the impression that they do not live in the same country as me. My primary concern is advising others of what has transpired. It is not even my desire to hurt the artist, only to protect others.

[gunstar-private.livejournal.com]

Start here: https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=xpt/Help/general/TopQuestion4-outside Talk to Paypal (preferably over the phone) and explain that you bought things and the seller did not deliver. They may not be able to get your money back but they can report his account.

[dirtiran.livejournal.com]

I have never heard of the idea of being paid for a service, being seen as a "donation". That is just so...silly ;


I really hope you manage to force a refund out of this person somehow. Their attitude is terrible.

Beware is extremely well warranted.

[dragontripmon.livejournal.com]

Actually i've have seen this happen before and rather lately with one artist in particular that gives a cause for concern.

[dirtiran.livejournal.com]

Ill admit you have me curious now. But then again no matter who it is, it sounds insanely illegal and nonsensical.

[dragontripmon.livejournal.com]

Yes but i've notice this type of thing popping up recently which is really surprising not to mentioned seeing a journal of one user really upset about it venting. And seeing this beware reminded me of that.

[saniika.livejournal.com]

Two years - I am impressed you waited so long. I don't know what will make artists like these wake up. Calling your payments donations...wow. I am glad you shared this, I hope others will be warned and avoid their services.

[wuvvumsoc.livejournal.com]

It always kills me how people think this is even remotely okay to do.

[spytdragonfyre.livejournal.com]

Wow, this is pretty shocking. Payment for a commission does not a commission make. He can't retroactively decided that his work up to know is equal to what the commissioner paid unless the commissioner agrees.

His no-refunds clause is a joke, especially if he didn't actually link the commissioner to it beforehand. I have a feeling he didn't do that.

[yuki-fox-demon.livejournal.com]

I love how he flat out says it "protects him"...

[mitatell.livejournal.com]

I was under the impression that this was a commission. The later sketches that were done were all presented as donations. This was not presented as such and appeared as a type of commission with a direct exchange of money through paypal. The donations went to a different site entirely so I would say that it was definitely not a donation.

[yuki-fox-demon.livejournal.com]

If you two came to an agreement for him to produce artwork for you in exchange for payment, it is most certainly a commission. The only way at all it would have been a donation was if you had contacted him expressing interest in sending him money without the expectation of receiving anything in return. The fact that he was ADVERTISING the deal makes it completely absurd that he would try and say it was a donation.

Also, to elaborate a little on my comment earlier you responded to: if you paid for a sketch, then the sketch he made would indeed amount to what you paid for. However, you did not pay for a sketch, you paid for full color. Meaning that at the sketch stage, he has only done the amount of work for whatever his sketch prices are. While that means he does have the right to refund you all *but* the work done for thee sketching, he won't have done the work amounted to what you paid until it is fully complete to what you two agreed on and what you paid, if that makes sense.

[mitatell.livejournal.com]

I understand and I agree. Though the sketchwork that I was speaking of was a different commission entirely. I did not get anything out of the main commission at all. The sketches were something else entirely for me to do while I waited.

[celestinaketzia.livejournal.com]

His attitude is poor, his "commission terms" illegal, and he can't even bother to treat himself with enough professionalism to call his transactions what they are: commissions. I've never seen a more valid beware.

[sapphistscot.livejournal.com]

Disgusting behavior, this guy isn't a professional in the slightest. Treating commission payments as donations because he can't be bothered to do the work any more is completely illegal.

[spytdragonfyre.livejournal.com]

I'm also kinda confused about what he's talking about with dA upgrading the journal programming? I'm primarily based out of deviantart and I can't say I remember any major changes to journals that could possibly make updating his list harder. The only major change was the update of journals using their Sta.sh feature, but that doesn't require a Premium account at all. The only premium feature journals had was with different types of skins, but that was always premium locked (and I think they actually now unlocked it for non-premmie members(

[demonofdreams.livejournal.com]

No, there's been no utter change to the journals except for Sta.sh (which lets them feature thumbnails and images whether premium or not, but non-premium members still can't use skins). I'm baffled about this as well, since I'm up to date with dA.

[gunstar-private.livejournal.com]

Same. There is absolutely nothing different with editing a deviantART journal. It's the same way and no way harder.

[kattotang.livejournal.com]

What he probably meant is that he had set up the journal with a skin during a time he had a Premium membership, but then the subscription ran out, and if he alters the journal now he would lose any of the organization/layout it had. He can still alter it though, he'd just have to redo it, or just make a whole new journal.

(Just as an aside, no, journal skins are not unlocked for regular users on dA.)

[windthor.livejournal.com]

I feel like you COULD sue him for this amount of money. Granted, it's small claims and such, but still. He doesn't have legal ToS and it's over two-hundred dollars. He's performing a service for cash and after not doing that service, he's opening himself up for legal troubles.

At least, that's what I think. I could be wrong. ^_^;

[zackfig.livejournal.com]

honestly, makes me wish I was a lawyer, just so i could do pro bono paperwork for people to submit to small claims courts for cases like these.