Help center › Checkout
Deposits, cards on file and no-show fees
Protect your time from no-shows. When clients book online, Rowan can ask for a deposit or a card on file. They pay on a secure page on your DropTheFee account, and then the appointment is booked.
Turn it on
- Online payments need to be connected first: install the DropTheFee app in your account and enter your online keys (see Online payments in your CRM). Until then, bookings go through without a deposit.
- Open POS settings › Deposits & no-shows and choose:
- Card on file: clients add a card to hold the time. Nothing is charged.
- Deposit: clients pay a set amount or a percent of the price. Their card is also kept on file.
- Optional: only ask for services priced at or above an amount, or only for new clients.
- Set your cancellation policy: how many hours ahead clients must cancel, plus any late-cancel fee and no-show fee. Rowan writes the policy clients see, and they agree to it when they book.
When a client books
The booking page shows the deposit and your policy before they continue. The time is held for them while they pay (15 minutes by default), so no one else can take it. If they pay, they're booked right away. If the card is declined, nothing is booked and they can try again. If the time was taken anyway, the deposit is refunded automatically.
At checkout
The appointment shows a 💳 deposit tag. When you check it out, the deposit comes off the ticket automatically ("Deposit paid online"), and the client pays the rest by card or cash. With dual pricing, the deposit counts at its cash price, and the client already paid the card price for it online.
Cancellations and no-shows
Tap the deposit tag on the appointment, or open the client's profile under Cards & deposits:
- Refund deposit: on the same day it's a void, so nothing shows on the client's statement. After that it's a refund.
- Keep deposit: for a no-show or a late cancel.
- Charge a fee to this card: a no-show or late-cancel fee (your amounts are filled in), or something else with a note.
Fees are never charged automatically. Each charge is logged with who made it. Who can charge a saved card or keep a deposit is set in Staff › Roles (by default staff need a manager PIN). Clients can ask you to remove a saved card from their profile at any time.