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Charging a deposit |
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Charging a deposit |
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Charging a deposit
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Charging a deposit |
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Charging a deposit |
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You should require an initial payment, the deposit, at the time of booking. The deposit payment is a down-payment for the service and serves to keep the customer committed to the booking. If the customer later cancels the booking, some or all of the deposit may be refunded to the customer depending on your business rules.
If there is no deposit, the customer may not show up (often called a no-show) and you have lost revenue by keeping the service or unit reserved.
The deposit amount depends on the type of product or service, the value of the booking and the difficulty it will be for you to sell the same product or service later on if a customer decides to cancel a booking.
Below are some industry examples of typical deposit rules:
Industry |
Typical deposit Rules |
Vacation Rentals |
50% at time of booking, remaining amount due 60 days before date of arrival |
B&B |
50% at time of booking, remaining amount due 60 days before date of arrival |
Hotels |
Many hotels do not require a deposit, but keeps the credit card on file in order to guarantee the room. They will typically charge for 1 day for no-shows. |
RV’s |
25% at time of booking, remaining amount due 60 days before rental. |
Boat Rentals |
100% at time of booking |
Tours |
100% at time of booking |