Booking Protection saves a Customer's card during an online Booking, with their consent. It does not charge the card when it is saved. If the Customer cancels closer to the appointment than your free cancellation period allows, or does not attend, Hub shows the applicable fee and can attempt to charge the saved card.
A charge is not guaranteed. The final outcome depends on the Booking Protection policy, any retained Deposit, your team's choice and whether Stripe can complete the charge.
When a saved card may be charged
Booking Protection can apply when all of these are true:
- Booking Protection was enabled for the Location when the Customer booked online.
- The Customer completed the card setup and consented to the policy.
- The Booking has a Service total.
- The applicable fee is configured: Late cancellation fee or No-show fee.
A saved payment method is needed only when an amount remains after any retained Deposit is applied. The fee can still apply without one. If the Deposit does not cover the fee and no saved payment method is available, the outcome is Failed.
The Cancellation notice in Organisation > Booking policy sets the free period. A cancellation made at least that many hours before the appointment is free. A cancellation closer to the start time can incur a late-cancellation fee.
A no-show fee can apply once the Booking start time has passed and a team member marks the Booking as No Show. A no-show is a staff action, not a Customer self-service action.
A late-cancellation fee can also apply when a team member cancels after the Booking start time. Use Cancel when the Customer's appointment did not go ahead for another reason, and No Show when they did not attend.
Booking Protection does not apply when:
- the Location has opted out, even if it is enabled for the Organisation;
- the Booking was created by your team in Hub, because staff-created Bookings skip public card setup;
- no applicable fee percentage was configured; or
- Booking Protection was enabled after this Booking was made. The policy is captured when the online Booking is created.
An online Booking made after the cancellation deadline is still protected. Cancelling it can count as a late cancellation immediately.
If a Customer does not finish card setup, the Booking may not be confirmed. If a confirmed protected Booking later has no usable saved payment method, the fee can be due but the outcome is Failed. Setora does not keep trying to charge it.
How the fee and Deposit work together
The fee is a percentage of the Booking's Service total, capped at that total. The defaults are 50% for a late cancellation and 100% for a no-show. You can change both percentages in Organisation > Deposits & Payments, from 1% to 100%.
A retained, successful Deposit is credited against the fee first. Only the remaining amount is attempted on the saved card. A refunded Deposit does not count as credit.
For example, on a £30 Service:
- a 50% late-cancellation fee is £15;
- if a retained £10 Deposit is credited, £5 may be attempted on the saved card; and
- a 100% no-show fee is £30, so the same retained Deposit leaves £20 to attempt.
These are fee calculations, not promises that a card will be charged. If the Deposit covers the whole fee, the outcome is Covered by the Deposit and no card charge is needed.
Deposit handling is separate from Booking Protection. Inside the free cancellation period, a Customer cancellation normally refunds a Deposit when a payment exists. A team member cancelling in Hub follows the Refund on cancellation Deposit setting. Outside the period, the Deposit is retained and can provide credit against a protection fee.
For setup and refund rules, read Set up Deposits for online Bookings.
What your team chooses in Hub
When a protected Booking is cancelled late or marked as a no-show, Hub shows the gross fee, any Deposit credit and the amount that may be charged before the action is confirmed.
A team member can choose Charge or Waive when their role allows them to waive protection fees. Other Staff can see the calculated fee but cannot override it. A waiver keeps the cancellation or no-show status accurate and means no saved-card charge is attempted.
Customer self-service late cancellation uses the charge path when a fee applies. Customers cannot waive the fee themselves. Tell Customers your free cancellation period and potential late-cancellation and no-show fees before they book, and use the same wording on the Booking Page and in your messages.
The four fee outcomes
The Booking status and fee outcome are separate. The Booking still becomes Cancelled or No Show when a fee is waived or a charge fails.
- Charged: the saved-card charge completed successfully. Stripe sends the payment receipt where applicable.
- Covered by the Deposit: a retained Deposit covered the fee, so no additional card charge was needed.
- Waived: an authorised team member chose not to charge. The Customer is not charged for that protection fee.
- Failed: a fee was due, but the saved-card charge could not be attempted or did not complete. Common reasons include a missing saved payment method, no active connected Stripe account, a declined card or a Stripe status that is not successful. The failed outcome is recorded on the Booking, but the Booking status does not change back.
Hub may show a fee preview before processing. A preview has no outcome yet. Check the Booking detail after the action to see whether it was charged, covered, waived or failed.
What the Customer sees
At online booking, the Customer sees the potential late-cancellation and no-show amounts and must consent before the card is saved. Booking Protection itself does not take money at this point. A separate Deposit, if required, is paid during booking.
If the Customer has an email address, they receive the relevant cancellation or no-show message. If a fee is charged, Stripe also sends a receipt where applicable. If a retained Deposit covers the fee, the message says that no additional payment was taken. If the fee is waived, the message says it was waived. If charging fails, the message says the fee could not be charged and directs the Customer to contact the shop.
Do not promise a Customer that a fee will definitely be collected. Explain that the policy may charge the saved card, that a retained Deposit can reduce or cover it, and that a payment can fail. Setora does not silently retry a failed protection fee.
Related guidance
- Connect Stripe to Setora before enabling a payment feature.
- Set up Deposits for online Bookings for Deposit refunds, retention and credit.
- Set up the Booking Page to test the Customer consent and card setup flow.
- Create and manage a Booking for the Hub cancellation, no-show and checkout actions.
If an outcome is not what you expected
- Open the Booking detail, not only the Calendar label, and check the fee outcome, Deposit credit, charge amount and failure reason.
- Check that the Booking was made online, the Location was not opted out and the Customer completed card setup.
- Check Stripe is Connected and charges are enabled.
- Check the Booking's saved policy and the Cancellation notice match the policy you gave Customers.
- Check whether a Deposit was retained or refunded before deciding whether it should count as credit.
If the consent, calculation or outcome still looks wrong, open the Help Centre chat and include the Booking reference, Location, Service, policy percentages, Cancellation notice, Stripe status and Booking status. Tell us whether the Customer or your team cancelled, or whether the Booking was marked as a no-show. Do not send card details, Stripe IDs or secret keys.