A client is considered refusing to pay when he is in active contact with the freelancer, the freelancer has completed work, and the client is still choosing not to pay because he objects to something about the work.
(This is not the same scenario as when the client has become unresponsive. In that case, the client hasn't responded to a freelancer within two weeks of a milestone's posting.)
When Can a Client Refuse to Pay?
There's one primary reason that a client has the right to refuse to pay for a service on ZehMizeh - when he can demonstrate that the product he was given was not the product he asked for.
The definition of "product he asked for" does not consider subjective assessments of quality, the professionalism of the freelancer's behavior, or even whether the products were delivered on the due date the users agreed upon. The question is only whether or not the client received the product he asked for as outlined in the users' communication on the website.
When the client did not receive what he asked for - like if he asked for a speech to be written and he got a logo - he will not have to pay. But if he did receive what he asked for, he will probably have to pay. (Individual situations may involve other policy considerations, but this is the basic outine.)
What to Do When a Client Refuses to Pay
As always, the users are encouraged to resolve any disagreements they have between themselves. After all, filing a dispute and getting ZMZ staff involved may resolve an argument over a particular milestone, but it may leave a freelancer with a very poor rating from the client, making it harder to get hired for new projects in the future. So, if possible, it's best to find a solution without bringing staff in.
If a disagreement cannot be resolved, a freelancer should find the link to the "Help" page at the top of the page and submit a dispute about the milestone in question. ZMZ staff will reach out for more information to both the client and freelancer. If they decide that the freelancer's work could be reasonably said to fulfill the client's request, the client will be charged the value of the milestone and the freelancer will be paid.