Cancellation and guarantee policies
Outlined below are the features of cancellation and guarantee policies:
Cancellation and guarantee policies are complementary components that define your booking terms.
Cancellation policies establish when and how guests can modify or cancel reservations along with applicable penalties, while guarantee policies specify what payment security is required to confirm bookings.
The CRS enables you to set guarantee and cancellation policies that apply to rates and offers you're selling.
Keep in mind any OTA or extranet channels in use that will need policies built on those platforms as well.
Policies as configured in the CRS will transfer on confirmed reservations to your PMS when supported.
📌Note: The default policy will apply unless another policy is set at one of the following levels:
Property level.
Rate level.
Specific channels.
⚠️Important: Policy dates and day of week settings can be based on arrival date or stay date - this property-level setting applies to all policies and can be changed by the support team.
Create a cancellation policy
Cancellation policies define when guests can cancel without penalty and what charges apply for late cancellations.
Outlined are the steps to set up a cancellation policy:
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Cancellation Policies submenu.
Click the Create New tab.
Enter the Policy Name.
64 characters or fewer.
Check the Hotel Default if this policy should apply to all reservations unless another policy is applied to the property, rate or channel. One policy must be assigned as the default.
Check the Allow Anytime Cancel to permit booking cancellation after the deadline and still apply the penalty. This may not be available for payment gateways. The property will need a process to monitor late cancellations and apply the cancellation charge.
Choose one of the two types of cancellation deadlines:
Check the first option when cancellation is allowed without penalty up to the day of arrival.
Choose the time cancellation must be received from the dropdown menu.
Check the second option when cancellation must be made prior to the day of arrival to avoid penalty.
Enter the relative timeframe by entering the days or hours prior to the day of arrival.
Choose the arrival date time of the day from the dropdown menu for the system to calculate the deadline.
Cancel penalty define the fee applied for cancellations after the deadline or no-shows.
Configure one of the three options:
Enter the number of nights the guest will be charged.
Enter the percentage of the booking total the guest will be charged.
Enter the flat amount the guest will be charged.
Enter the description of the policy by clicking Auto Load to pre-populate baseline policy descriptions and add in a guest facing description to display in the booking path and in confirmation emails.
Enter GDS-specific descriptions in the designated field within 64 characters.
Set the priority (if enabled) to apply if more than one policy applies to a reservation. Priority for policies is required for blended rates and stay date policies.
Click Save.
Add language translations for cancellation policies
Follow the steps below to add translations for cancellation policies:
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Cancellation Policies submenu.
Click on the Policy Name from the list that you want.
Go to the Multi-language tab.
Select the language from the dropdown menu.
Enter the translated cancellation policy name.
Enter the translated cancellation policy description.
Click Save.
Assign a cancellation policy to property
Follow the steps below to assign a cancellation policy to a rate:
Set a specific cancellation policy for a rate code or codes to replace the default over a range of dates or as an ongoing rule.
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Cancellation Policies submenu.
Go to the Assign to Rate Code tab.
Click Activate New Policy.
Select the Policy to assign from the dropdown.
Choose the Rate Category from the dropdown to refine the rate results or leave set to All to select rate codes from multiple categories.
Select the Rate Code or Codes individually by clicking in the field and entering the rate name or code to locate. Alternatively check the Select All box to select all the rates or all the rates in a category.
Enter the begin date.
Enter the end date or leave blank if this is an ongoing policy for a rate code.
Check the days to apply this policy from the weekday pattern.
Click Create New to save.
Assign a cancellation policy to a channel
Follow the steps below to assign a cancellation policy to a channel.
Set a specific cancellation policy for supported channels to have different settings based on your selling strategy.
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Click on the Policy Name from the list that you want to assign to a channel.
Go to the Channel Control tab.
Check the box for each channel to apply this policy and any property or rate assignments.
Click to Save.
Set up new guarantee policy
Guarantee policies define what payment security is required to confirm bookings and when it is due to be collected.
Follow the steps below to set up a new guarantee policy:
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Guarantee Policies submenu.
Click the Create New tab.
Enter the Policy Name.
32 characters or fewer.
Check Hotel Default if this will be your default guarantee policy.
Every hotel must have one.
Select from the four Policy Option as appropriate for the guarantee.
Each option has different requirements to complete:
No guarantee required:
Choose the time from the dropdown to indicate the reservation is held until on the day of arrival, local hotel time.
After this time, if the guest has not arrived to pay, the room is released.
Guarantee required:
Select one of the three options when the guarantee is required by:
Guarantee required at the time of booking.
Guarantee required a set number of days or hours prior to arrival. Enter the number of days or hours.
Guarantee required a set number of days or hours after the booking is made. Enter the number of days or hours.
Define accepted payment methods check all applicable:
Credit Card.
Travel Agent IATA which is in reference to GDS.
Company address.
Customer address.
Frequent traveler number.
CorporateID.
Travel agent address.
Deposit required:
Select one of the three options when the deposit is required to be given:
Deposit required at the time of booking.
Deposit required to be received a set number of days or hours prior to arrival.
Enter the number of days or hours.
Deposit required to be received a set number of days or hours after the booking is made.
Enter the number of days or hours.
Enter the deposit amount:
Enter the number of nights the guest will be charged.
Enter the percentage of the booking total the guest will be charged.
Enter the flat amount the guest will be charged.
Check if the deposit is Refundable in the event of cancellation.
Define accepted payment methods check all applicable:
Credit card.
Travel agent IATA which is in reference to GDS.
Company address.
Customer address.
Frequent traveler number.
CorporateID.
Travel agent address.
Prepayment required by credit card at the time of booking.
Check if the deposit is refundable in the event of cancellation.
Enter the policy description by clicking Auto Load to pre-populate baseline policy descriptions and add in guest facing description to display in the booking path and in confirmation emails.
Enter GDS-specific descriptions in the designated field within 64 characters.
Set the priority (if enabled) to apply if more than one policy applies to a reservation.
Priority for policies is required for blended rates and stay date policies.
Click Create New.
Add language translations for guarantee policies
Follow the steps below to add language translations for guarantee policies.
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Guarantee Policies submenu.
Click on the Policy Name from the list that you want.
Go to the Multi-language tab.
Select the language from the dropdown menu.
Enter the translated guarantee policy name.
Enter the translated guarantee policy description.
Click Save.
Assign a guarantee policy to property
Set a specific guarantee policy for the property to replace the default over a range of dates. Follow the steps below to assign a guarantee policy to a property.
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Guarantee Policies submenu.
Go to Assign to Property.
Click Activate New Policy.
Select the Policy to assign from the dropdown.
Enter the begin date.
Enter the end date or leave blank if this is an ongoing policy for a rate code.
Check the days to apply this policy from the weekday pattern.
Assign a guarantee policy to rate codes
Set a specific guarantee policy for a rate code or codes to replace the default over a range of dates or as an ongoing rule.
Follow the steps below to assign a guarantee policy to a rate code.
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Guarantee Policies submenu.
Go to Assign to Rate Code.
Click Activate New Policy.
Select the policy to assign from the dropdown.
Choose the rate category from the dropdown to refine the rate results or leave set to all to select rate codes from multiple categories.
Select the rate code or codes individually by clicking in the field and entering the rate name or code to locate.
Alternatively check the Select All box to select all the rates or all the rates in a category.
Enter the begin date.
Enter the end date or leave blank if this is an ongoing policy for a rate code.
Check the days to apply this policy from the weekday pattern.
Click Create New to save.
Assign a cancellation policy to a channel
Set a specific cancellation policy for supported channels to have different settings based on your selling strategy.
Follow the steps below to assign a cancellation policy to a channel.
Go to Property Description.
Go to the Policies menu.
Go to the Cancellation Policies submenu.
Click on the Policy Name from the list that you want to assign to a channel.
Go to the Channel Control tab.
Check the box for each channel to apply this policy and any property or rate assignments.
Click to Save.
Payment gateway requirements
Properties with payment gateways may have specific requirements or rules for deposits, modifications, and refunds. Consult your payment gateway documentation for details on the integration.