Reserve & Pay lets a customer reserve a booking and spread the customer-paid amount over a short schedule that finishes before their rental date. RentalTide fronts the amount being financed, then collects the customer's scheduled payments itself. You get the same operational result as a normal paid or deposit booking, the customer gets flexibility, and it costs your business nothing.
This is not a loan, consumer credit, or "buy now, pay later." The customer pays the scheduled amount before they ever use the rental, so no credit is extended. RentalTide is simply fronting the customer-paid booking amount on your behalf and collecting the scheduled payments.
Why it's free to you
RentalTide owns and operates the checkout (the same way Shopify operates checkout for its merchants), so we can offer this option and front the cost ourselves.
- You receive the customer-paid amount upfront. The moment the booking is placed, RentalTide advances the financed amount to your Stripe account. If the booking normally collects a deposit, the advance is that deposit amount. If the booking collects the full total, the advance is the full total.
- No deduction, no cost. There is no extra fee or charge to you for Reserve & Pay. RentalTide funds the advance from its own balance; you are never billed for it. Your standard platform and processing fees apply to the booking as they always would, and Reserve & Pay adds nothing.
- Nothing extra appears on your books. Any service fee charged to the customer for paying over time is collected by RentalTide directly from the customer. It never shows up on your reports, payouts, General Ledger, or financial statements.
The customer pays before the rental
Reserve & Pay is not credit. The payment schedule is built so that all scheduled Reserve & Pay charges complete before the rental date (before the booking's payment cutoff). The customer never receives the rental and pays for it afterward, which is the line that separates this from "buy now, pay later" financing.
If the customer does not finish paying before the rental, the rental simply is not provided until the booking is paid (see Non-completion below).
What your customer sees
At checkout, eligible customers can choose Reserve & Pay instead of paying the full amount now. They:
- Make a small payment today.
- Save a card on file.
- Pay the rest on a schedule that finishes before their rental, charged automatically by RentalTide.
Any service fee for the option is shown to the customer before they confirm. The arrangement is strictly between RentalTide and the customer.
What you see
Your booking reads like the payment configuration you already use:
| Your checkout setup | What Reserve & Pay fronts | What the booking shows |
|---|---|---|
| Full payment due at checkout | Full booking total | Paid booking |
| Deposit due at checkout | Deposit amount | Deposit paid, remaining balance outstanding |
Because RentalTide fronts the financed amount, there is no outstanding "financing" balance on your side and no special Reserve & Pay handling required.
From your dashboard, a Reserve & Pay booking is indistinguishable from a normal paid or deposit booking with the same payment settings. You fulfill the rental exactly as normal once any outstanding balance is paid.
How this works with deposit payment plans
Reserve & Pay and Deposit Payment Plans are separate systems that can work together.
- Reserve & Pay finances the amount the customer would normally pay at checkout, usually the configured deposit. RentalTide fronts that amount and collects it from the customer on the Reserve & Pay schedule.
- Deposit Payment Plans collect the booking's remaining balance later. If your location auto-charges deposit balances, the remaining balance still follows that deposit-plan schedule after Reserve & Pay fronts the deposit.
Example: a $500 booking has a $100 deposit due today and a $400 balance due later. Reserve & Pay can front the $100 deposit while the $400 balance remains outstanding or auto-charges later through your normal Deposit Payment Plan settings.
How it works behind the scenes
- First payment is collected from the customer at checkout, on RentalTide's platform. The first payment includes the customer's down payment plus any Reserve & Pay service fee shown at checkout.
- Front to you - RentalTide transfers the financed amount to your connected Stripe account.
- Scheduled collection - RentalTide charges the customer's saved card on the agreed schedule, all dated before the rental, under the
RentalTide PayPlanbilling descriptor. - Completion - the customer finishes the Reserve & Pay schedule before the rental date. You were already advanced the financed amount; nothing changes for you.
Scheduled Reserve & Pay installments collect principal only. The customer-facing service fee is collected with the first payment and belongs to RentalTide, so it never appears on your General Ledger.
If a customer doesn't finish paying
RentalTide handles this, not you.
- RentalTide retries the charge on a schedule and reaches out to the customer.
- If the customer does not complete the schedule after retries, RentalTide reverses the unpaid portion of the advance when possible and reinstates that amount as an outstanding balance on the booking, collected through your normal balance-collection flow. The rental need not be provided until the booking is paid.
- RentalTide never charges you a fee in connection with a non-completion.
Reserve & Pay retries failed scheduled charges three times, using 24-hour, 48-hour, and 72-hour retry windows. Customer communications can be sent for successful and failed payment-plan charges.
Availability
Reserve & Pay is offered subject to customer eligibility, your location's Allow Installment Plans setting, RentalTide's working-capital availability, and platform limits. RentalTide may pause or withdraw the option at any time without affecting bookings that have already settled.
If RentalTide cannot immediately fund the front after checkout because platform balance is temporarily unavailable, the booking is not cancelled. It is held as front pending: the booking may temporarily show as fully outstanding until RentalTide retries the front and completes the normal deposit or paid-booking settlement.
Frequently asked questions
Does Reserve & Pay cost me anything?
No. You receive the same paid amount you would receive from the booking's normal checkout setup, with no Reserve & Pay deduction. Your usual platform and processing fees on the booking are unchanged, and Reserve & Pay adds nothing.
Is this a loan or consumer credit?
No. The customer pays the Reserve & Pay schedule before the rental is provided, so no credit is extended. It is not a loan and not "buy now, pay later." RentalTide is fronting the customer-paid booking amount on your behalf.
Am I lending money to my customer?
No. Neither you nor RentalTide is acting as a lender. RentalTide fronts the financed booking amount and collects the customer's scheduled payments.
Will any fees show up in my reports?
No. Any service fee for the option is between RentalTide and the customer and never appears on your ledgers, payouts, or statements.
What happens if the customer stops paying?
RentalTide manages retries and customer outreach. If the customer does not finish, the unpaid portion is reinstated as a normal outstanding balance on the booking and collected through your standard flow, with no Reserve & Pay fee to you. The rental need not be provided until the booking is paid.
How is this different from Capital?
Capital advances working capital to your business against your processing history, which you repay. Reserve & Pay fronts your customer's checkout amount - you have nothing to repay.