# Cancellation and reschedule policy

> Decide whether customers can cancel or reschedule their own bookings, how late (the cutoff), and whether they get a refund or account credit.

Who can do this: admins only.

Your policy controls what customers can do to a booking after they've made it. It lives in [Settings → Policies](/go/admin/settings/policies), under "Changes and cancellations". You and your staff always bypass these rules and can change any booking from [the admin side](/docs/manage-bookings-admins).

<Screenshot
  shot="admin-cancel-policy"
  alt="The Changes and cancellations section of Settings → Policies, showing the Rescheduling, Cancelling and What they get back settings, each with a one-line summary of its current value."
  caption="Settings → Policies → Changes and cancellations"
  mat="peach"
/>

## Set your rules

Rescheduling and Cancelling are independent, each with its own lock time.

<Steps>
  <Step>Open **Rescheduling**, turn **Customers can reschedule their own bookings** on or off, and if on, set **Up to ... hours before the session**.</Step>
  <Step>Open **Cancelling**, turn **Customers can cancel their own bookings** on or off, and if on, set its **Up to ... hours before the session**. Save.</Step>
</Steps>

## How the lock time works

Each lock is in whole hours before the session starts: at 24 hours, a customer can cancel until 24 hours before, then is pointed to contact you. At 0 hours they can change or cancel right up to the start.

The reschedule lock only covers **moving a booking to another date or time**. Changing the number of spaces follows its own rules:

- **Adding spaces** is always allowed until the session starts.
- **Removing spaces** counts as a partial cancellation and follows your Cancelling switch and lock.

Both are separate from your [minimum booking notice](/docs/booking-window#when-bookings-close) for *new* bookings.

## Refund to card, or give account credit

When a customer cancels within your rules, Session refunds them automatically to their card, and restores any credits they used (see [refunds](/docs/refunds)). Instead of a card refund, you can give reusable **account credit** - a code they redeem against a future booking. Set it under **What they get back**.

<Steps>
  <Step>Choose **Account credit** instead of *Refund to original payment*.</Step>
  <Step>Set **Credit for ... % of what they paid** - 100 is the full amount; a lower number (say 80) keeps a slice.</Step>
  <Step>Optionally set **Expires after** a number of months (blank never expires), then save.</Step>
</Steps>

This is the default for every cancellation, including ones you make, though you can still choose a card refund per booking. The customer is emailed their code. The percentage only applies to the cash they paid; voucher, bundle and membership credit is still restored in full.

## What customers see

Customers reschedule and cancel from the "Manage booking" link in their [confirmation email](/docs/emails-automated) or, signed in, from your booking page - see [customer self-service](/docs/manage-bookings-customers). When an action is off or locked, the button is replaced with a prompt to contact you. Your [FAQs page](/docs/faqs-page) explains the policy in plain words, written from these settings.

## Different rules for a single price

Open a price from a session's [Prices](/docs/price-options) and use its **Changes & cancellations** section: **Use booking policy** follows your default, and **Custom** sets whether customers can cancel or reschedule, and whether cancelling gives a card refund or account credit.

[Private hire](/docs/private-sessions) is venue-managed by default: customers can't cancel or move it until you choose **Custom** on the private price and switch on the actions you want. [Group bookings](/docs/group-bookings) follow your policy, but customers can never change the number of spaces in the block online.

## Common questions

1. **Does "What they get back" apply when cancellations are switched off?** Yes - it still decides what customers get back when you or your staff cancel.

2. **A customer says they can't cancel or reschedule.** The action is switched off, they're past the lock time, or it's a private hire you haven't opened up on its price.

3. **Can I charge a cancellation fee?** Not as a flat fee - card refunds within your rules are always in full. Cancel it yourself with a lower **Refund amount**, or give **Account credit** below 100%.

4. **Can a customer move to a different session type?** No, only to other dates of the same session. You can move a booking to any session from [the admin side](/docs/manage-bookings-admins).