Les Hack - a journalist writes about journalism: Halt, cheque! Who goes there?

March 06, 2006

Halt, cheque! Who goes there?

I just read a leaflet on copyright that arrived last week with the NUJ London Freelance branch newsletter.

Mostly helpful stuff. But what does it have to say about publishers who issue cheques with daft instructions to sign away all rights on the back? It calls the practice "nonsense". And says:

"The NUJ's Freelance Industrial Council advises you always to challenge such cheques."

Come again? Challenge a cheque? I think most freelances bank them. Fast. Does challenging them mean returning them with a note saying, please do this again properly. Hah! Fat chance. Can we have some more practical suggestions please?

Generally good, informed advice though, as is much else at the London freelance site. Credit to its editor Mike Holderness.

Les

Posted by leshack at March 6, 2006 08:56 AM | TrackBack

Comments

Challenging cheques with daft instructions on the reverse can be a pleasure. In the mid-'90s I used to ring up the publisher's bank and ask its customer services if it was aware that printing instructions on the reverse was illegal. They feigned ignorance, checked it out, called me back, admitted it was illegal and meekly said they did it at the publisher's request. After repeating this for three months running, the instructions stopped appearing.

Posted by: Max Glaskin at March 7, 2006 04:15 PM

Interesting, Max. Never occurred to me to try that.

I do know that Haymarket's banks differ, now you mention it. If I get a cheque from the Lloyds TSB Covent Garden branch it has the endorsement requirement. But I've worked for other mags in the group and got them from, if I remember, a bank in Hammersmith - no endorsement.

Les

Posted by: Les at March 7, 2006 06:15 PM