How long is too long?

[thecreativepen.livejournal.com]

A lot of us have seen a situation where a person orders a commission, pays with Paypal, and then has the issue of not being able to pursue a chargeback because they are past the 45-day dispute timeframe. They, then post their situation to AB.

How long is too long for a commission? How long is too long for a queue? Does it really take an artist over 45 days to finish a commission?

This is a lot of what I've been asking myself when reading these posts, and I wanted to get your opinion. I understand there are a lot of factors that go into this; some artists have an easy time pumping out work and can handle a large queue. Others make it known it takes them forever to get work done, and the commissioner is aware of that ahead of time. But when does it become wrong?

Seeing some people wait over a year for a commission, paying ahead hundreds of dollars and never seeing WIPs, or having WIPs come at a snail's pace just doesn't seem like ethical business practice. Especially with Paypal, shouldn't the commissioner be more assertive to protect themselves within that 45 day period, and make it known that a refund/partial refund should be arranged for lack of work being completed within 45 days? Is it okay for them to ask for work to be done within a month?

Just something I've been thinking of today, I'd enjoy other input on this topic.