Can I charge a deposit only to new clients?
Yes. With the “Charge new clients only” setting, upfront payment is only requested from people booking with you for the first time; anyone who has already been in books without paying.
How to turn it on
- Go to Payments → Settings → “Prepayment / online” and connect Stripe.
- Under “Default payment policy”, choose “Deposit” (fixed amount or percentage) or “Full prepayment”.
- Turn on “Charge new clients only”.
The policy applies to all your services at once: you can’t set a different one for each service.
Who counts as a new client
An existing client is someone with a previous appointment with you, already in the past, that is confirmed or completed. They are recognised by their client record, email or phone. A pending or cancelled booking doesn’t count: someone who booked and never showed still pays upfront.
Where it applies
On bookings the client makes themselves: your booking page, the chatbot and the voice receptionist.
How to test it
Make a test booking with a phone and email that have no previous appointments: it should ask for payment. If a regular client is asked to pay, check that their previous appointment is confirmed or completed and that their phone or email matches the one on that appointment.