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Overview

Deposit/Payment is available from the Options list on the left of the screen or from the Reservations | Options sub-menu. The Reservation Header displays basic information for the selected reservation. All folios are available in the form of a tab. The folio balances are shown both after the tab label and in the totals and rate area. The selected tab, with or without an amount due, is displayed with the label in blue as shown in the first example below. Any other folio tabs not selected display with the label in red.

Deposits 1 and 2

RDPWin supports two separate deposits and the ability to automatically calculate the deposit dates and amounts based on rules defined by the property. Once rules are configured, the rules are checked and the deposit dates and amounts are automatically be calculated when a new reservation is made. Any deposits due when a reservation is accessed display with the due date(s) in blue. When the first deposit payment is made, RDPWin checks to see if the payment is equal to the amount expected for the requested deposit. If not, the difference of the two amounts is added to the second requested deposit amount, if one has been requested, and the requested deposit becomes the "Paid Deposit" field. The example below shows a reservation with a paid deposit of $295 and a pending deposit due 03/16/98. The Amount field on the Folio I tab is automatically calculated based on the 2nd Deposit amount shown on the right of the screen.

Any additional deposits are added to the Paid Deposit and deducted from the 2nd Deposit amount until it reaches zero which then clears the due date. Upon check-in, if the Deposit 2 has not been paid in full, it is reset to zero, the due date is cleared, and the Paid Deposit field then becomes the Payment field. The deposit fields are available on future reservations only. Once checked in, they are no longer available. See Change Deposits 1 and 2 for additional information.

For example, if rules allow for two deposits and a new reservation is made, the Payment screen (as shown below) displays two fields: Request Deposit and Request Deposit 2. If due, each also displays a date based on the configured rules. When a payment is made, the Request Deposit field is relabeled Paid Deposit. If the full first deposit was made, the Request Deposit does not change. If only a partial first deposit is made, the remaining amount of Deposit 1 is added to Request Deposit 2 and displayed with the due date. The Request Deposit 2 field remains labeled as so until the full deposit amount for both 1 and 2 are received. Once completely paid or once checked in, the Request Deposit field is completely removed from view.

Arrival Date: 8/1/2007
Departure Date 8/8/2007
Room Number A106
Room Charge $700.00
Cleaning Fee $50.00
Service Fee $25.00
Travel Insurance $40.00
Security Deposit $200.00
Tax $80.00
Reservation Total $1095.00
First Deposit Due 3/1/2007 $500.00
Final Payment Due 7/1/2007 $695.00

Folio Payments

Each folio must receive payments separately. Using the example below to take a payment, click on the Folio A Balance $379.08 tab. Choose the form of payment, enter any additional information needed, and click the Process Payment button. For information on reservations checking out with a balance due, click Check-Out. The Deposit/Payment Amount must be greater than 0.00. Folios with a credit balance (a negative number) can be refunded using Refund from Options.

Authorize Credit Card

Credit cards can only be authorized while the reservation is checked in. The card information is entered at the check-in screen. The card is authorized when the "Check-In" button is clicked. RDPWin does not allow a card to be authorized if the reservation is not checked in. The authorization number is automatically populated by SDC. If swiping is not available, enter the number and expiration date and click the Process button (making sure that Manual is NOT checked). If SDC interface is not installed, Authorization must be completed manually.

Future Reservations: When "Allow Credit Card Authorizations Prior to Check-in (Switch C1AUTH<5)" is checked on System | SDC Configuration, authorizations can be taken on future reservations and the system can automatically designate an amount to be added to the pre-authorization amount (default amount equals the balance due when authorizing a credit card) using Reservations | Configuration | Check-In tab | Add to the Pre-Authorized Amount. For example, if "Add to the pre-authorized amount" is equal to $50 and a reservation has a balance due of $100, select Authorize Credit Card and the amount field defaults to $150. If set to a percentage such as 10% and the reservation has a balance due of $100, the amount field defaults to $110 when Authorize Credit Card is selected.

When Authorize Credit Card is selected, the Amount, Number, Expiration, CID, and Manual (No SDC) fields are enabled. If there is a balance due, that amount, please any additional configured amount, is displayed in the Amount field. If a credit card number is already on file, that card's information is displayed in the credit card number and expiration date. The CID, and the Auth# if manually performing the authorization, must be entered by hand. If the property is using SDC for credit card transactions, it completes the Auth# field automatically. Any of these fields can be manually overwritten.
Checked In/Out Reservations: When Authorize Credit Card is selected, the Amount, Number, Expiration, CID, and Manual (No SDC) fields are enabled. If there is a balance due, that amount, please any additional configured amount, is displayed in the Amount field. If a credit card number is already on file, that card's information is displayed in the credit card number and expiration date. The CID, and the Auth# if manually performing the authorization, must be entered by hand. If the property is using SDC for credit card transactions, it completes the Auth# field automatically. Any of these fields can be manually overwritten.

Release Authorizations

The Payment screen displays any existing authorization information below the folio/payment information and a Release Auth (Authorization) option in the payment type area. Releasing the Authorization using RDPWin is only available to customers using SDC to process credit cards. Credit card charges and authorizations can be processed manually, but the authorization release must be processed through SDC from RDPWin.

The Release Auth. option is shown in Payments and Check-out only when the authorization amount on the reservation is greater than zero (0). When taking a payment and an authorization exists, RDPWin only prompts when a different credit card is entered from that authorized. Only one credit card is stored per reservation. When a cash or check payment is taken NOT during the check-out or cancellation process, the system does not prompt to release the authorization. The prompt only displays at checkout or cancellation for cash and check payments. Use the Deposit/Payment option to release authorizations after check-out if necessary.

Rules for Releasing Authorizations

The following examples assume an authorization exists on a credit card:

When using Deposit/Payment to take a payment using a different credit card than originally authorized, the system prompts to release the existing authorization. When No is selected, a payment cannot be taken. Select Yes to release the authorization so the new card can be charged.
When using Deposit/Payment to take a payment using Cash, Check, Wire, or Misc, the system does not prompt to release authorization and the payment goes through.
When checking out a reservation and taking a payment using a different credit card than originally authorized, the system prompts to release authorization. When No is selected, a payment cannot be taken. Select Yes to release the authorization so the new payment can be taken.
When checking out a reservation taking a payment using Cash, Check, Wire, or Misc, the system prompts to release authorization. Select No to skip releasing the authorization and process the payment. Select Yes to release the authorization and process the payment.

Close

To abandon any entries made in the Deposit/Payment screen, click the Close button. The user is returned to the previously displayed screen.

Deposit/Payment Methods

There are several methods of accepting deposits or payments. The total amount processed can be by a single method or a combination of several. For example, a guest may wish to pay a total balance due of $500 by paying $100 in cash and the remaining $400 on a credit card.

Cash

Check the Cash box and enter the Amount. The Amount text box must be changed to a number greater than zero. Click the Process Payment button. A "Payment Processed Successfully" notice is displayed when the transaction is complete. Once the OK button is selected, the user is returned to the previously displayed screen.

Check

Check the (bank) Check box, enter the Amount and the Check# into the textboxes. The Amount and Check# text boxes must be changed to a number greater than zero and any alphanumeric character is entered into Check#. Click the Process Payment button. A "Payment Processed Successfully" notice is displayed when the transaction is complete. Once the OK button is selected, the user is returned to the previously displayed screen.

Credit Card

Select the Credit Card radio button to display the Amount, Number, Expiration, Card, CID, Manual (No SDC) and Authorization# fields. If the reservation information has been entered properly, the method of payment and any credit card numbers should already be in the system. If The Total Charge field has an amount greater than zero, the Amount field is automatically populated with that amount. If the Total Charge field is zero, enter the Amount to be charged to the card. Enter the credit card Number (or with the cursor in the Number field, swipe the card using an available reader), and Expiration Date (in MMYY format). The Card (Type) is completed by RDPWin automatically, based on the number entered. Enter the CID (Card Identification) number from the front or back of the card, depending on the card type. For examples of card type and location and length of CID, see below.

No-Show Payment: The "No-Show Payment" checkbox is available when taking a credit card payment ONLY IF SDC is installed. When checked, a flag is sent to SDC to indicate that the payment is for a No-Show charge. This should help eliminate lost battles with credit card companies when customers dispute the charge for not showing up and not canceling.
Manual: If the SDC Credit Card module is NOT installed, check the Manual checkbox. If SDC processing is attempted when not installed, the system displays the Credit Card Retry Options form. Options available are "Retry current credit card", "Enter new credit card", and "Continue with no payment". Select "Enter new credit card", click Continue, check the Manual checkbox and process the card manually.

If the SDC Credit Card module is installed, do not check the Manual processing box. Click the Process Payment button to open the "Process Credit Card" form and displays the guest name, reservation number; room number; payment amount, payment type; and credit card type, number, and expiration date. A message "Click the 'Process' Button to Process Credit Card with SDC Bridge" is displayed and waits for the click. Once clicked, the system processes the amount or displays "Retry Options". If there is an error processing the charge, the system displays an error, "No SDC ********." Otherwise, a "Payment Processed Successfully" notice is displayed when the transaction is complete. The Authorization Number is completed automatically if using SDC. Once the OK button is selected, the user is returned to the reservation screen (Arrivals, In-House, or Departures).

Miscellaneous

This is a user definable field for accepting other types of payment such as gift certificates. Check the Misc box and enter the Amount and Description into the text boxes. Click the "Process Payment" button. A "Payment Processed Successfully" notice is displayed when the transaction is complete. Once the OK button is selected, the user is returned to the previously displayed screen.

Points (Only available when Customer Relationship Management (RX) module is installed.)

When the Customer Relationship Management (RX) module is installed, paying with points is available when configured. Select Points as a payment method for a reservation (uses the (DY) transaction code for points payments). Prior to use, customers must add a G/L Account 50900, Type = Expense, and Description = "Expense – Frequent Guest Points" (or something like this) on each data server. When points are selected as the method of payment, the system checks the guests points balance first. If the balance is greater than zero (0), the dollar value of the points (based on the configured rules) is displayed. Enter up to that amount as a points payment which shows up on the folio as a DY transaction. The points are subtracted from the guests CRM account immediately after the payment (which shows up as a ~DY under CRM). When totals are generated, the points payment amount is found in the 50900 "Expense – Frequent Guest Points" G/L account. The RDPWin Update adds the DY transactions, but the customer must add the G/L account manually.

In this example, the guest does not have enough points to pay the entire amount. A partial payment can be taken using the full amount in the Points Remaining field and and another form of payment can be processed for any remaining amount due.

Amount: This field displays either the folio balance due or the maximum points available to the selected guest, whichever is smaller. When Points is the selected method of payment, the Amount field must be greater than "1" to allow processing.
CRM# and Name: The CRM # and primary contact name from the CRM record displays to allow for review and confirmation that the correct CRM# is being accessed for this payment.
Max Redeemable: The total number of Points Remaining multiplied by the Exchange Rate is displayed as currency available for redemption in read-only format. For example, if the Exchange Rate = $2 and Points Remaining = 66, then the maximum redeemable dollar amount is 132 points. If the total in this field is less than the amount due, process the payment as planned, and select Deposit from the Continue With screen to process an additional payment using a different method.
Points Remaining: The total number of points according to the CRM record for the selected guest is displayed in read-only format.
Exchange Rate: This field displays the number configured on the CRM | Configuration | Rules Tab | Exchange Rate in read-only format. If the Exchange Rate = $2 and Points Remaining = 66, then 132 points are available for redemption. Changes must be made to configuration is a different rate is desired.

Transfer

If a deposit was placed on the wrong reservation, use the Transfer option to correct the error. Check the Transfer box, enter the amount and the Reservation Number where the deposit is to be transferred, and click the Process Payment button.

Wire

Check the Wire box and enter the Amount into the text box. Click the Process Payment button. A "Payment Processed Successfully" notice is displayed when the transaction is complete. Once the OK button is selected, the user is returned to the previously displayed screen.

Transfer to Owner

When Deposit/Payment is accessed for an owner or guest of owner reservation, Transfer To Owner is available. If any amount is due on the reservation, that amount can be transferred to the Owner Master. If a guest of owner reservation, property policy needs to be considered before completing this transaction. If an owner reservation, the owner is simply transferring the amount due to be paid at a later time (once Owner Statements are processed and distributed.

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Last Updated 08/12/2008

Reservations - Taking a Deposit or Payment