Introducing Direct Debit Payments
💡 Why Use Direct Debit?
With this new option, hirers making repeat bookings can now choose between:
- Direct Debit (BACS DD)
- Card Payments
This gives them greater control and more convenient options for managing recurring payments via payment plans.
⚙️ How It Works
Online Payments for Repeat Bookings
When hirers create a new repeat booking, or pay for a repeat booking added by a staff member they’ll now be able to select Direct Debit as their preferred payment method at checkout.
All Direct Debit payments are processed through Stripe, which means:
Payment statuses update automatically in Bookteq ✅
No manual reconciliation is required ✅
🔍 Key Differences for Card vs Direct Debit is the Processing Time
💡 Please note that unlike card payments, BACS Direct Debit is not instant. Standard processing time: 4–7 working days (per Stripe’s settings) and during this period, the payment status will display as “Processing” in Bookteq. The first booking(s) in a repeat order may occur before the payment is fully processed. The payment method will be displayed as “BACS Direct Debit” in the booking system.
📌 Edge Cases
Weekly Payment Plans
To prevent debt build-up or bookings showing as unpaid if a weekly payment plan is selected, the 2nd payment will be skipped. The skipped payment will be taken together with the 3rd payment, allowing time for the first instalment of the Direct Debit to clear.
Booking Approval and Refunds
Direct Debit payments differ from card payments in their approval logic. Payments will proceed regardless of whether a booking request is approved or rejected. However, if the request is rejected, a refund is automatically issued.
Watch our tutorial video below on how this can be done via the widget calendar:
If you have further questions or need support with setting up Direct Debit in your Bookteq system:
1️⃣ Please have a look at Stripe's Help Centre here to research Direct Debit payments.
2️⃣ You can contact our support team: support@bookteq.com.