verbal contract, and then the first invoice, which they paid, included a list of items that were to be completed with the website project. no terms as far as payment due date tho. i think maybe payment of the first invoice with the items listed could count as acceptance of a contract in some places... you're probably right as far as moving on. it is fairly easy to turn off the website though - not sure if that is a ethical thing to do. of course not paying for work is also not that ethical.

Collecting on bad debt is difficult and time consuming. For the amounts you've mentioned, you can move on and make it up quickly enough as gp stated. If they don't want the work you've done, offer them a 30 day transition period so you both can move on. I would suggest you attach some form of payment to that, but it might just be better to give them control of their domains w/o your work product and call it a day. Next time, get proper contracts in place. Recognize that even with a proper contract, it would still be difficult to collect. Time & Effort vs. Reward.