What to do with slow customers?

Question

Work organization

Background:
I work with customers on a project basis, without a contract. I draw up a work plan and confirm it with the customer. In the plan, I take into account the time for editing and confirmation for each stage. There are such customers who do not care about the timing of the allocation for approval and delay the time as much as they want, so I spend my time waiting and my schedule for the next projects gets off. At the same time, at the end of the project, they still manage to make claims "the project was not delivered on time."
Question:
How to deal with such customers? How to avoid such situations in advance? And what to do when such a situation arises in the development process?
Share your experience.

Answer 1

I warn the customer about two unpleasant facts: Firstly, the prepayment is not refundable under any circumstances. Secondly, in the absence of a response from him within the agreed time frame, I abandon the project.

Answer 2

I work with customers on project payment, without a contract

work with the contract.
In which not only your duties and penalties for them, but also the obligations of the customer and penalties for them.
For example - to approve in three days, after that there is a penalty in the amount of the cost of your downtime.
Without a contract, you can only ask for them.
Of course, you can say that "here you dragged on so much, here so much" therefore, the project timeline has increased by at least this amount, but most likely everyone will not care.

Answer 3

https://journal.tinkoff.ru/freelance-contract/

Answer 4

Work step by step through secure transaction services. Money is reserved, for example, in one resource I send the work for verification, 3 days are given for acceptance, if the customer is missing, then after 3 days the order is automatically accepted and you receive payment.

Answer 5

Delivery-acceptance agreement, which describes the obligations and rights of the parties

Answer 6

I work with customers on project payment, without a contract

No contract, no claims. You, in fact, agreed on parole - you do the work, you get paid. You can throw a customer - and nothing will happen to you :) You can be thrown with payment - and nothing will happen to him :)
Work with the contract.