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Freelance Consultants - Do you charge for travel time?

4 replies

Gameboy · 14/11/2006 18:06

Having recently gone freelance I am drawing up some terms and conditions, and a fee schedule.

Most of my work would be done from home, but for some clients I might need to get early flights, or drive up to 2 hours each way for meetings.

What happens about travel time? Is it billed as part of the daily rate?
Also, what if I need to go and stay somewhere the night before an early, or long distance meeting - do people charge an overnight fee?

Would be interested in what other consultants do?

OP posts:
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Gobbledigook · 14/11/2006 18:09

I've never had to charge an overnight fee but I do include travel time in my daily rate. So even if I'm only visiting them for half a day, if I spend the other half a day travelling then I charge for a whole day.

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marymillington · 14/11/2006 18:10

in the sporadic incidences that i have actually done some work (i think one needs more motivation than i possess at the moment to be a freelancer) I include travel time within my daily rate. And expect to be paid for travel/accomodation costs to be paid in addition. But I wouldn't charge an overnight fee per se.

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yomellamoHelly · 14/11/2006 18:37

Agree with gobbledigook and marymillington. (Was self-employed for 3.5 years.)
Used to charge for travel time, but would often work while I was on the move anyway. (I would pro-rata my day rate so effectively I got paid by the hour. - If I'd done 15 hours work one day I would double my rate.) Never had to travel somewhere the night before though so never charged an overnight fee - don't think I would have though, unless I also had to pull a late-nighter. I suppose it depends on whether it could become a regular occurence.
I was never asked to fly anywhere and didn't have to stay anywhere so I didn't ever charge travel/accomodation expenses per se. That said I would play with the amount of time I spent on the job to recover a £60 train fare for example so that what I got paid reflected both.

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Starrmum · 19/11/2006 22:36

As a consultant all you are selling is your time.

(obviously your skill/experience too, but you are giving this through your time)

Therefore any time involved in dealing with a client's projects/business is to be charged to them.

Any expenses for travel, overnight expenses, subsistence etc are out of pocket expenses and should be charged to the client.

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