Card on file is the gentler cousin of a deposit. Your customer books without paying anything, a card is saved securely as they book, and a fee can be charged only if they don't show up or cancel too late. For most bookings nothing is ever charged; the card is simply the commitment.
Turning it on
- In Settings → Payments, set up card payments if you haven't, then choose Card on file as your Booking payment mode.
- In Settings → Policies, the Fees section sets what can be charged. See your cancellation policy for the rest of that page.
The fee schedule
Choose the unit first: Percent of booking or Fixed amount. Then set:
- Late cancellation. The fee for a cancellation made outside your free cancellation window. You can add up to two deeper tiers for shorter notice, for example 25% with less than 24 hours' notice, 50% with less than 12 hours, 100% with less than 6 hours (or $15, $25 and $40 as fixed amounts).
- No-show. Its own fee, for a customer who doesn't turn up.
The largest fee is the most a customer agrees to. A fixed amount is never more than the booking total. Customers see the whole schedule, in dollars for their booking, before they confirm, and again in their confirmation email.
A service can opt out of the card, carry its own fee amounts, or take a deposit instead: open it in Services and set Deposit and fees to None or Custom. A booking with several services adds their fees up; one that mixes a deposit with card on file takes the deposit and keeps the same card. See your cancellation policy.
What's locked at booking
When a customer books, the fee schedule and the maximum amount are saved with the booking. If you change your fees later, existing bookings keep the terms their customers agreed to.
A booking you add yourself
A booking you add from a phone call or in person starts without a card. When you add it, Request a card on file is on, under Tell the customer. The customer gets a link by email and SMS, whichever they have. They save the card on their booking page, and nothing is charged.
- The fees lock when you ask. Changing your fees later doesn't change a request already sent.
- Two reminders at most while the card isn't saved: a day after you ask, and the day before the visit. Turn them off in Settings → Messages, under When a requested card isn't saved.
- Ask later from the booking. Open it and choose Request card. Until the card is saved, the booking shows Card requested and a Resend card request button. Once it's saved, the booking shows Card on file with the card and the most it can be charged.
- The BeNotely app does the same: Request a card on file on New booking, and Request card on the booking.
- You're told when it's saved, in the bell and the BeNotely app. To hear by email or SMS as well, tick it in your notifications.
- A repeating booking needs one card. The card saved from the first visit's link covers every visit after it.
- A booking that also takes a deposit sends the deposit link instead. The card that pays the deposit is kept on file.
The switch shows only when the booking's services carry a late cancellation or no-show fee. An ask by SMS uses SMS credits.
Charging the fee
Nothing is ever charged automatically. Two situations allow a charge:
- A no-show, recorded after the appointment's start time has passed.
- A late cancellation, where the customer cancelled outside the free window, or cancelled after moving the booking outside that window, or cancelled at any time if your policy has no free cancellation.
When you mark a no-show or record a late cancellation, the dialog suggests the amount your policy calls for, worked out from the notice actually given: a cancellation with 9 hours' notice lands in the "less than 12 hours" tier, not the "less than 6 hours" one. You can charge that, charge less, or not charge at all. You can never charge more than the amount the customer agreed to when they booked. There's also a button on the booking itself that names the amount, like Charge $40 fee, so you can decide later.
This is deliberate. A regular of five years who had a car accident is not the same as a first-time booking that never arrived, and that judgement is yours.
When you do charge, the customer gets an email straight away naming the amount, the card, and the reason.
If the card is declined
You'll see it immediately, nothing is charged, and the charge button stays on the booking so you can try again later.
Changed your mind after charging?
A charged fee can be refunded in full, from the booking or from your Payments screen, with the customer emailed automatically. See refunding a payment.
FAQs
Does the customer know about the fee when they book?
Yes, plainly. The booking page shows there's no charge today and lists the fee schedule in dollars for their booking before they confirm. The same lines appear in their confirmation email and on your booking terms page.
Can I get a card for a booking made over the phone?
Yes. Keep Request a card on file on when you add the booking, or open the booking later and choose Request card. The customer gets a link and saves the card on their own phone, and the same fees apply as for a card saved when booking online.
Can I charge a different amount for one particular booking?
You can charge less than the suggested amount, down to nothing, or more, up to the maximum the customer agreed to when they booked. You can't charge more than that maximum.
A customer moved their booking at the last minute and then cancelled the new time. Do they get the fee?
Yes, if the move was made outside your free cancellation window. A late move keeps the late status, so the later cancellation counts as late and the fee suggested is based on the notice they gave when they moved it. That holds whether they moved it themselves or phoned you: when you move a booking outside the window, the dialog asks who asked. A booking moved in good time is treated normally.
Should I use card on file or a deposit?
A deposit collects money up front and suits busy books and long appointments. Card on file keeps booking friction at zero, which suits higher-priced work where asking for payment up front feels wrong, but you still want the visit taken seriously. Your booking page runs one mode at a time, a service set to Custom can use the other, and switching only affects new bookings.