Force Option Control for Non-Refundable Services

To help customers avoid financial risk when booking non-refundable services, Softrip has introduced new controls that ensure bookings with non-refundable items are handled more securely. This enhancement is especially important for organizations that need to prevent users from confirming non-refundable bookings without first submitting payment.

Two new settings have been added into the Security → System Settings → Defaults menu to control how reservations with non-refundable services are processed:

• Default ID: ForceOptionIfNR

  • Purpose: Forces a reservation to the “Option” status if it contains any non-refundable services.

  • Value: Enabled (Y)

• Default ID: ForceOptionDepDate

  • Purpose: Forces a reservation to the “Option” status if it is booked within a specified number of days from the departure date.

  • Value: 30 days (can be customized per client)

Open

• When booking non-refundable services:
  If the ForceOptionIfNR setting is enabled and the cart contains non-refundable services, the reservation will be set to “Option” status unless payment is submitted at the time of booking.

• When booking close to departure:
  If the ForceOptionDepDate setting is configured and the booking is made within the specified number of days before departure, the reservation will also be set to “Option” status unless payment is made.

• Converting to Active/Quote:
  To convert a booking from “Option” to “Quote” or “Active” (which confirms the external service), the user must submit at least the minimum deposit as defined by their DepositAmount rules.

• The system uses a checkpoint (R030) to control which user profiles can create bookings without submitting payment. Without this checkpoint, users cannot convert bookings to “Quote” or “Active” status for non-refundable services, ensuring payment is always collected first.

• The logic checks for non-refundable services and/or proximity to departure date during the booking process.

• If payment is not made, the system automatically sets the reservation to “Option” and logs the action.

• Once payment is received, the reservation can be finalized and set to “Active,” confirming inventory and external services as normal.