The client hires your candidate behind your back: how to handle a backdoor placement

Three months ago, you put forward a strong site manager. The client found them too expensive and pulled out after the first interview. Today you see on LinkedIn: “Excited to be starting at…”, at that same client.

Almost every experienced recruiter has been through it. The first reflex is anger, the second is to call a lawyer. Neither usually helps. What does help, you sort out before it happens.

How a backdoor placement happens

It’s rarely a grand conspiracy. Usually it goes like this:

• The client waits a few months and calls the candidate themselves, hoping you won’t notice.
• After the process, the candidate gets in touch with the client themselves, sometimes because the client asked them to.
• The candidate starts through a temp agency or another agency, which later introduces them to the same client.
• They start at a sister company of the client, or in a different role from the one you introduced them for.

In all these cases, the question is the same: did the client know the candidate through you? If so, you’re entitled to your fee, at least if your terms provide for it and you can prove it.

What you sort out upfront

Signed terms and conditions, before you pass on a name. An anonymous profile is fine, a name or a CV isn’t. Your terms state when a candidate counts as introduced (as soon as you send their details), how long that introduction stays valid and that your fee is also due for a different role, an affiliated company or a hire through a third party. Also include that the client must tell you themselves if they go ahead with a candidate you introduced.

A paper trail. Introduce every candidate by email, with their name, the date and the role, and keep that email in your CRM. Keep interview confirmations too. An introduction over the phone ends up as your word against theirs.

Your candidate’s consent. Never introduce anyone without their agreement. You have to anyway, and it strengthens your case: they knew you were the one introducing them.

Let’s not be naive about it: a clause won’t help you much if you can’t prove the introduction. And dragging a client to court costs you months, money and usually the relationship.

The method: what to do if it happens anyway

Six steps, from your file to your decision about the client.

01Check your facts

When did you introduce the candidate, for which role and to which company? When did they start, and does that fall within the period in your terms? Do they work for the client itself or for an affiliated company? Only once your file checks out do you get in touch.

02Talk to your candidate

Call your candidate, not to blame them, but to understand how it happened. Did the client call them? Through which channel? They owe you nothing, because your agreements are with the client. But their story helps you handle the conversation with the client properly.

03Call the client, calm and businesslike

Call, and don’t send an invoice straight away. Start with the facts: “I saw that Pieter has started with you. I introduced him to you on 4 July as a site manager. How did that come about?” Give the client room to explain. Sometimes there’s an honest explanation: if they can show they already knew the candidate before your introduction, it’s a different story. How to find that out is in “We already knew this candidate”: who’s entitled to the fee?

04Put it in writing and invoice

After the call, send a short email setting out the facts, refer to your terms and attach your invoice. Keep it businesslike. You don’t need to accuse anyone: your terms say what happens, and you apply them.

05If they don’t pay: pick your battles

If no payment follows, send a reminder and then a formal notice of default by registered letter. If your terms include a penalty clause, a fixed amount on top of your fee if the client breaks the agreement, don’t count on it blindly. If it’s manifestly unreasonable, a court will reduce it. A reasonable settlement, such as your normal fee without a penalty, is often worth more than a lawsuit.

06Decide on the relationship

A client who did it once will easily do it a second time. If they pay properly after your call, you can carry on. If they refuse, the question isn’t just whether you get your fee, but also whether you still want to send them candidates.

An example

Take the site manager from the beginning. Your file checks out: introduction by email on 4 July, first interview on 11 July, start on 1 October, within the twelve months in your terms. Your candidate tells you the client called them directly in September.

You call the managing director. They’re surprised at first, then say they thought the introduction “had expired anyway”. You calmly explain what the terms they signed say, and send your invoice the same day, without the penalty clause. They pay within the month. You still work with them, but you have every new introduction reconfirmed.

Checklist

• Your terms are signed before you pass on a name or CV.
• They state when a candidate counts as introduced, for how long and that a different role, an affiliated company or a third party counts too.
• Every introduction goes by email, with name, date and role, and is in your CRM.
• You don’t introduce anyone without their agreement.
• If it happens anyway: first your facts, then your candidate, then a calm conversation with the client, then your invoice.

Frequently asked questions

How long does an introduction stay valid?

You decide that in your terms. Choose a period you can defend, for example twelve months after the introduction. Too short, and a client simply waits it out. Too long, and you lose credibility.

Can I claim damages on top of my fee?

If it’s in your terms, you can. But if the amount is manifestly unreasonable, a court will reduce it. Use it mainly as leverage.

What if the candidate approached the client themselves?

If your terms say so, that changes nothing: the client knew the candidate through you and had to tell you. The candidate personally owes you nothing, because your agreements are with the client.

Should I bring in a lawyer straight away?

Usually not. A solid file, a calm conversation and a clear invoice resolve most cases. You need a lawyer if the client refuses to pay and the amount justifies legal proceedings.

This is general information, not legal advice. Have a lawyer look at your own situation and your terms.

Sources

• The penalty clause and its reduction by the court (Article 5.88 of the Civil Code, in force since 1 January 2023): Forum Advocaten via Legal News, January 2023 (in Dutch).