Ask for a deposit from clients who keep missing appointments

A risk deposit asks for a deposit only from the specific clients who have repeatedly not shown up at a location, without asking everyone else. You set a threshold for the location: how many no-shows, within how many months, and what share of the service total to ask for. When a client reaches it, their next booking at that location needs the deposit before it is confirmed.

It works on its own. The location-wide deposit can stay off for everyone else.

There is no separate switch or subscription band for it. It is on when you save a threshold on the location, and off when you clear it. By default no threshold is saved, so nobody is asked for a deposit because of their history. It is a company screen setting, and the screen is meant for staff only.

The deposit itself is collected exactly like any other deposit, through the location's connected payout account. Zelun does not hold the funds, and the platform fee on captured payments applies, as described in the payouts and deposits article.

1. Connect payouts for the location and read the payouts and deposits article. The threshold can be saved before you connect, but a client who meets it cannot complete a booking until the location can take card payments.
2. Decide the numbers: how many no-shows (for example, two), the lookback window in months, and the deposit percent from 1 to 100.
3. Make sure staff use Mark as no-show for clients who do not come. Only appointments recorded as no-shows count.
4. The Payments section is on the company screen under My business. If you are sent to a Forbidden page, ask the account owner.

Turn it on or change it

1. Open My business and find Payments under Billing. On the location's card, scroll to No-show risk deposit (staff only).
2. Fill in No-shows to trigger (e.g. 2), Within the last (months) and Deposit percent when triggered (1-100).
3. Press Escalate risky clients to deposit-required. The status line reads that the chosen number of no-shows within the chosen months escalates that client to deposit-required.
4. To change it later, edit the three fields and press the same button again.
5. To turn it off, press No threshold configured. The status line reads No no-show risk threshold configured for this branch.

If a field is not a positive whole number, the screen says Enter a positive whole number for both fields and saves nothing.

An older threshold saved before the deposit percent existed shows a warning that it will not charge anyone. Type a percent and save again.

How a client is counted

• Only no-shows at this location count, within the lookback window, counted from the appointment's start time.
• Cancellations do not count, whether on time, late, or made by staff for the client. Only appointments recorded as no-shows count.
• No-shows at your other locations do not count.
• A client with no history at the location is never flagged.

When the deposit location-wide is already on

Then everyone already pays the location-wide deposit, with the location-wide percent. The risk setting changes nothing for that client and they are not charged twice.

• Clients are never told that their history caused the deposit. The reason is not shown on the booking page, in messages or on receipts.
• A client who meets the threshold needs to pay the deposit before the booking is confirmed. If it is not paid, the booking is not confirmed.
• On a location where the deposit is off for everyone, the booking page does not show the payment step in advance. A flagged client may instead see that the location requires a card deposit before the booking is confirmed. You may want to contact them or book them at the desk.
• Clients who do not meet the threshold book exactly as before.

• Expecting the setting to make everyone pay. It affects only clients who reach the threshold. For everyone, use the deposit in the payouts and deposits article.
• Not connecting payouts. A flagged client cannot complete a booking until the location can take card payments, and the booking page tells them card deposits are not connected yet.
• Leaving the deposit percent empty on an older threshold. It charges nobody until you set one and save.
• Cancelling instead of marking a no-show. Only recorded no-shows count.
• Expecting a client's other locations to count. History is kept per location.
• Expecting to see a client's count. The screen only sets the rule. It does not list flagged clients.

The articles below cover payouts and deposits, the fees for late cancellations, and your booking page.