Deposits and Pre-Payments

10 minutes

Tutorial 8.4: Deposits and Pre-Payments

Introduction

Taking deposits for appointments protects your salon from no-shows and last-minute cancellations, particularly for high-value services like bridal hair, colour corrections, or group bookings. Luminate allows you to set deposit amounts when booking appointments and track their payment status. This tutorial covers setting deposit requirements and collecting deposit payments.

Who this is for: All staff who take bookings and process payments.

What you'll learn:

When to require deposits
Setting deposit amounts on appointments
Collecting deposit payments
Tracking deposit status
Applying deposits to final bills

Time to complete: 10 minutes

Prerequisites

Before you begin:

Complete Tutorial 2.2 (Booking and Managing Appointments)
Complete Tutorial 8.1 (Understanding Transactions and Payment Status)
Familiarity with Quick POS

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Understanding Deposits in Luminate

A deposit is a partial payment taken in advance to secure a booking.

Characteristic	Details
Set on	Individual appointments
Amount	Any value you choose
Tracking	Deposit Paid (yes/no) on appointment
Collection	Via Quick POS
Applied to final bill	Deposit amount shown in payment history

Why use deposits:

Reduce no-shows
Secure high-value bookings
Cover material costs upfront
Filter out uncommitted bookings

Step 2: When to Require Deposits

Common deposit scenarios:

Scenario	Suggested Deposit	Reason
Bridal/Wedding Hair	£50 or 50%	High-value, hard to rebook
Colour Corrections	£30-£50	Expensive materials, long duration
Group Bookings	£10-£20 per person	Multiple staff blocked out
New Customers (High-Value)	30-50%	No relationship history
Previous No-Show	Full amount	Risk management

When deposits aren't necessary:

Regular, loyal customers
Quick services (cuts under £50)
Walk-ins paying immediately
Same-day bookings

Step 3: Setting a Deposit Amount When Booking

When creating or editing an appointment:

Navigate to Appointments in the sidebar
Click Add Appointment (or edit existing)
Fill in customer, staff, service, date/time as normal
Scroll down to the Notes & Deposit section
Find the Deposit Amount field
Enter the deposit amount (e.g., 50.00)
Save the appointment

The appointment now shows:

Deposit required: £50.00
Deposit status: Not Paid

Note: If a service has a default deposit configured, Luminate will auto-populate the deposit amount when you select that service. You can also set or adjust deposits when editing existing appointments.

Step 4: Taking a Deposit Payment

Once an appointment has a deposit requirement:

From the appointment page:

Open the appointment details
Look for the Take Deposit button (visible when deposit unpaid)
Click Take Deposit
You're taken to Quick POS with the deposit pre-filled in cart
The deposit item shows:
- Type: Deposit
- Amount: £50.00 (the required amount)
- Linked to the appointment
Process payment (Cash, Card, Voucher, or Other)
Transaction completes automatically when paid

What happens:

Transaction created with deposit item
Appointment deposit status changes to "Paid"
Payment recorded and linked to appointment

Step 5: Deposit Items in Quick POS

Deposits appear as a special item type in the cart:

Deposit item characteristics:

Amber/orange border and background to distinguish from regular services
Banknote icon indicator next to the item name
Cannot be saved as unpaid (must complete payment)
Quantity controls hidden (always 1)
Staff is automatically assigned from the appointment
Linked to specific appointment

Important: When deposits are in the cart, the "Save (Unpaid)" button is disabled with a message "Deposit payments must be completed". You must process payment before completing the transaction.

Step 6: Viewing Deposit Status on Appointments

On the appointment calendar:

Appointments with deposits show a small deposit indicator icon:
- Amber banknote icon - Deposit required, not yet paid
- Green banknote icon - Deposit collected

On the appointment detail page:

A Deposit card displays prominently when a deposit is set:
- Shows the deposit amount
- Amber styling with warning icon when deposit is pending
- Green styling with checkmark when deposit is paid
- Take Deposit button appears when deposit is unpaid
The Payments tab shows all transactions linked to the appointment, including deposit payments

On the appointment edit page:

Deposit Amount field shows the set amount
Deposit Status checkbox indicates whether deposit has been paid
A status indicator shows "Deposit Paid" (green) or "Deposit Pending" (amber)

Step 7: Taking Deposits from Quick POS Unbilled Appointments

When a customer is selected in Quick POS:

The Unbilled Appointments panel automatically appears showing their appointments
Each appointment card displays:
- Service name and date/time
- Staff member assigned
- Deposit badge (amber: "Deposit: £50.00" or green: "Deposit Paid")
If an appointment has an unpaid deposit, a Take Deposit button appears
Click Take Deposit to add the deposit item to your cart
Process payment as normal

For linked appointments (multi-service bookings):

When you click Take Deposit on a linked appointment, a modal appears
You can select which deposits to collect (one or all linked services)
Selected deposits are added to the cart together

This is a convenient alternative to navigating to the appointment page first.

Step 8: Applying Deposits to Final Bills

When the appointment takes place and you bill the full service:

Appointment flow:

Customer arrives, service completed
Open appointment and click Create Transaction (or add from Unbilled Appointments in Quick POS)
Service items added to cart
If a deposit was previously paid:
- The deposit credit is automatically applied
- The amount due is reduced by the deposit amount
- The payment breakdown shows "Less: Deposit" in the totals

Example in Quick POS:

Service: Bridal Hair & Makeup       £150.00
-----------------------------------------
Subtotal:                          £150.00
Less: Deposit                       -£50.00
Amount Due:                        £100.00

On the completed transaction:

The full service price is recorded (£150.00)
The payment section shows the deposit deduction
The customer only paid £100.00 on the day

The deposit transaction remains a separate record linked to the appointment, providing a complete audit trail.

Step 9: Deposit Permissions by Role

Action	Owner	Admin	Manager	Staff	Receptionist
Set deposit amount	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Collect deposit payment	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Mark deposit as paid	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Refund deposit	✓	✓	✓	✗	✗

Common Pitfalls

"I can't find the Take Deposit button"

The button only appears when:

Appointment has a deposit amount set (greater than £0)
Deposit is not already paid

Check the appointment's deposit amount field.

"Deposit not showing as paid after payment"

Ensure the transaction completed successfully. The deposit payment must be processed through Quick POS with the deposit item linked to the appointment.

"Customer paid deposit but wants to cancel"

Refer to your salon's cancellation policy. If a refund is warranted:

Owner/Admin/Manager processes refund on the deposit transaction (Tutorial 8.2)
Update appointment status to Cancelled

"Deposit is more than the service costs on the day"

If service price changed or was different than expected:

Customer has overpaid via deposit
They may receive a refund or credit
Or apply as payment toward products/additional services

Tips and Best Practices

Communicate deposit requirements upfront - Tell customers about deposits when booking.
Be consistent - Apply deposit requirements consistently across similar booking types.
Collect deposits promptly - Don't wait until the day before the appointment.
Higher deposits for repeat no-shows - If a customer has no-show history, require full pre-payment.
Record deposits immediately - When customer pays, process the deposit transaction right away.
State your policy - Consider displaying your deposit and cancellation policy at reception.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I set a default deposit for certain services?

Yes! Services can be configured with default deposit requirements. When creating an appointment, if the selected service has a deposit configured (either a fixed amount or percentage), Luminate will automatically populate the deposit amount field. You can still adjust this amount if needed for individual appointments.

What if customer pays more than the deposit amount?

The deposit amount is a guideline. If they pay more, it's recorded as a larger deposit payment. The full amount shows on their payment history.

Can deposits be transferred to a different appointment?

Deposits are linked to specific appointments. If rebooking, you may need to refund the original deposit and take a new one for the rescheduled appointment.

Do deposits affect staff commission?

Deposits are payments on account, not service commissions. Staff commission is calculated when the actual service is billed and completed.

Can I take multiple deposits for one appointment?

Each appointment tracks one deposit amount and paid/unpaid status. For instalment payments, consider using partial payments on the final transaction instead.

What happens to the deposit if customer doesn't show?

Depends on your policy. Options:

Keep deposit as cancellation fee (common)
Refund if extenuating circumstances
Convert to gift voucher for future use

Last Updated: January 2026