maybe you can offer a trade on this one. Had a client arrive to me and offer to pay me with 50 kilo of limes to recovery his data. He did not have money and wanted to pay me with his limes. He grows and sells them for a living. All his data was on this drive and he needed it back for his business - well short story he was telling the truth but he finally sold his limes and paid for his recovery work.
This is just like another client who was a fisherman. When the boat came in his system was always down. I would fix it but my pay was with a little money and always fresh fish, lobster, and crab. Wow that is great but you know the islands here are warm or should I say humid and working in the morning for him and having fish, lobster, and crab in my car all day long -- well you get the idea.