Prepayment and the fight against no-shows

When to take a deposit, how large it should be, and what happens if the client does not pay in time

Prepayment works against no-shows because it moves the "am I actually coming" decision to the moment of booking, while the client is still motivated. In the system this is a rule on online payment: mandatory payment means an appointment left unpaid past the set time is moved to Cancelled automatically and the slot is freed for someone else.

First work out what a no-show costs

Before introducing a prepayment, put the loss into a single figure: your average ticket multiplied by the number of no-shows per month. Add the cost of materials already opened, and the time of a specialist you pay by the hour.

That figure decides how strict the rule has to be. If no-shows cost less than the clients a prepayment would scare off, reminders are enough on their own.

Four tools, from mild to strict

Tool	Who it stops	What it costs you
A reminder 1 to 2 days ahead	The one who simply forgot	The price of a message
Appointment confirmation	The one who changed their mind and said nothing	Nothing beyond the setup
A prepayment or full payment	The one who booked just in case	Some clients will not finish booking
A restriction on booking again	The one who cancels systematically	Nothing

The order matters. A prepayment introduced first reads as distrust. Introduced after reminders are already running and no-shows persist, it reads as a normal rule.

How the system decides what to do with an appointment

When an appointment is created through the online booking form, the checks run in sequence:

Price and discounts. If the total after discounts is zero, no payment is required at all.
Membership or certificate. A valid one is applied automatically. A certificate for an amount that does not cover the total pays part of it, and the rest carries on down the list.
Client balance. If auto-deduction is enabled in the widget settings and the balance is sufficient, the cost is deducted automatically. Partial deduction is supported, with the difference paid another way.
Online payment. If the appointment is still unpaid and a payment rule matches it, the client is asked to pay.

That last step is where prepayment comes in.

Mandatory or optional payment

	Mandatory	Optional
What the client sees	Payment as part of booking	An offer to pay now or later
If they do not pay	The appointment moves to Cancelled, the slot is freed	The appointment stands, with a payment link in the client's account
Who it suits	Expensive and long services, new clients, peak hours	Regulars, inexpensive services

The most common working setup is not "switch it on for everyone" but a narrower rule: mandatory payment for new clients and for services longer than an hour, optional for the rest.

Every way to take payment

How much to charge

The full price is justified where you cannot resell the time: a long session, a rented hall, a call-out. For an ordinary visit a portion of the price is enough. It holds the client without looking like a blind purchase.

A practical benchmark is a prepayment that covers your direct losses: consumables plus the specialist's pay for that time. Below that, a no-show still costs you money.

What the client must be told in advance

Prepayment without clear rules produces complaints, not discipline. The minimum that belongs in your company description or terms:

how many hours before the visit an appointment can be moved without losing the prepayment
whether the prepayment is refundable and within what period
what happens if the client is late but does turn up
whether a paid appointment can be transferred to someone else

These conditions are visible in the online booking form next to the terms of service, so the client sees them before paying rather than after.