🚫 rest-guest

No-Show & Cancellation Log

Q: I logged a no-show but the linked reservation still shows as Confirmed/Pending.

This incident log is a fully separate record from the reservation — logging an incident here does not automatically update the original reservation's status; update that separately in Reservations if needed.

Q: The policy suggestion and my Deposit Decision don't match.

The policy text is only a live suggestion based on the Notice Given (hours) field — the actual Deposit Decision is a separate field you set yourself and is not overwritten by the suggestion.

Q: A large-party or pending-deposit alert keeps appearing even after I filtered to a different month.

Those two banners deliberately scan every incident across all months (not just the filtered one) so nothing significant is missed — resolve or update the underlying incident's Resolution/Deposit Decision to clear it from the banner.

No-Show & Cancellation Log is a dedicated, manually-created incident record for reservations that fell through — no-shows, late/early cancellations, mid-meal walkouts and partial no-shows — capturing how much notice was given, what happened to any deposit, and how many times you tried to reach the guest.

📍 Menu path: Guest Journey → No-Show & Cancellation Log

👤 Who uses it: All roles with the Billing feature enabled

Overview

Unlike Reservation Deposits and Reservation Confirmations, this screen has its own dedicated database table and API — an entry here is a standalone incident record, not a field on the original reservation, so logging one does not automatically change the linked reservation's own status.

Five incident types are available: No-Show, Late Cancellation, Early Cancellation, Table Walked Out (mid-meal), and Partial No-Show (part of the party didn't arrive).

For non-no-show types, entering "Notice Given (hours)" triggers a live policy suggestion: over 48 hours = Full Refund, 24–48 hours = 50% Refund, under 24 hours (or a true no-show) = Forfeit — this is shown as guidance only and does not auto-set the deposit decision for you.

Deposit Decision options are Forfeit / 50% Refund / Full Refund / Credit on Account / No Deposit Held / Pending — choosing one shows a plain-English summary of the money outcome (e.g. "Guest forfeits full deposit of ₹2,000").

A Contact Log tab tracks phone calls made (with a +/- counter), and SMS/Email sent checkboxes; a warning appears if you try to forfeit with zero contact attempts logged, encouraging you to document an attempt to reach the guest first.

Large-party alerts (8+ covers) and pending-deposit-decision alerts appear as banners across all months, not just the currently filtered one, so nothing significant slips through when you switch months.

Records are filterable by month (last 6 months available) and incident type, with a printable monthly report summarising total deposits forfeited that month.

Before You Start

You must have the Billing feature enabled on your plan.

Step-by-Step Guide

1 Log a no-show

Open No-Show & Cancellation Log and click "Log Incident".
On the Reservation tab, enter guest details, party size, the original reservation date/time, and set Incident Type to "No-Show".
Add notes, then switch to the Deposit & Decision tab.
Enter the deposit amount held (if any), choose a decision (typically Forfeit for a no-show), and set the Resolution status, then save.

2 Log a late cancellation with a notice-based policy decision

Click "Log Incident" and set Incident Type to "Late Cancellation".
Enter when the guest cancelled and the notice given in hours — the policy suggestion updates live based on that figure.
Switch to Deposit & Decision, apply the suggested (or your own) decision, and save.

3 Record contact attempts before forfeiting a deposit

Open the incident (new or existing) and switch to the Contact Log tab.
Use the +/- counter to log how many calls were made, and tick SMS/Email sent if applicable.
If none of these are logged, a warning reminds you this is expected before forfeiting a deposit — log at least one attempt, then return to Deposit & Decision to set the forfeit outcome.

Every Field & Button, Explained

Field / Button	What it does
`Incident Type`	No-Show, Late Cancellation, Early Cancellation, Table Walked Out, or Partial No-Show — determines whether Cancelled/Walked-At and Notice Given fields are shown.
`Notice Given (hours)`	Only shown for non-no-show types; drives the live policy suggestion (>48h Full Refund, 24–48h 50% Refund, <24h Forfeit) shown as guidance text, not an automatic decision.
`Deposit Decision`	Forfeit, 50% Refund, Full Refund, Credit on Account, No Deposit Held, or Pending — the actual outcome you record for the held deposit, independent of the policy suggestion.
`Resolution`	Pending, Resolved, Disputed or Escalated to Manager — tracks whether the incident itself (not just the deposit) has been closed out.
`Contact Log (calls/SMS/email)`	A simple counter and two checkboxes recording how many attempts were made to reach the guest; used mainly as a prompt before forfeiting a deposit.

Tips & Best Practices

Treat the policy suggestion as guidance, not gospel — always cross-check your restaurant's actual cancellation policy and any conversation with the guest before finalising the Deposit Decision.
Log at least one contact attempt (even "Cannot Reach") before forfeiting a deposit — the warning banner exists because a documented attempt to reach the guest matters if the decision is ever disputed.
Review the large-party alert banner regularly — it surfaces every pending incident with 8+ covers across all months, not just the one you're currently viewing.

Troubleshooting & FAQ

I logged a no-show but the linked reservation still shows as Confirmed/Pending.