Smart Payment Policy SevenRooms: Payment Rules by Demand

On a Tuesday at 7:30 pm in February, you have empty tables. On a Saturday at 8:30 pm, you turn guests away. Yet most restaurants apply the same payment policy to both: a card guarantee everywhere, or nothing anywhere. In the first case, you add friction when you need bookings. In the second, you absorb no-shows when every table counts.

The Smart Payment Policy SevenRooms feature (called Smart Payment & Policy in the Help Center) addresses this: the system automatically applies a different payment policy depending on the expected demand for each time slot. Flexible when it is quiet, strict when it is full.

The feature is a limited beta. In this guide, we explain exactly what it does, how to set it up step by step, how to combine it with your Access Rules and Shifts, and how to measure its effect.

Heads-up: limited beta. SevenRooms describes it as a limited beta, available during the beta period to eligible Growth and Premium venues using a supported payment processor. If it does not appear in your account, ask your SevenRooms representative about access.

Smart Payment Policy SevenRooms: how it works

Instead of one rule, you define three policies, one per demand state:

• Cold (low demand): your most flexible policy. Example: no guarantee. It reduces booking friction when you have room.
• Neutral (average demand): your standard policy. Example: a card on file.
• Hot (high demand): your strictest policy. Example: card guarantee with a cancellation fee, or a deposit.

The system labels every 15-minute slot as one of these states, up to 30 days ahead, and applies the matching policy. You configure it once; SevenRooms adjusts as demand changes.

The classification rules are set by SevenRooms: the busiest 20% of slots are Hot, the quietest 20% are Cold, and the rest are Neutral. Keep this in mind: you do not set thresholds. You choose what happens in each state, not the occupancy level at which a slot enters it.

How SevenRooms forecasts demand

The forecast relies on a machine learning model that analyses 30+ signals: real-time booking pace, seasonality, your venue's own history. It does not simply assume that "this Tuesday will look like last Tuesday." SevenRooms says the model is tested weekly and improves with real booking performance.

Two practical consequences:

• A new venue has little history. The model draws on your venue's data, so watch the first weeks closely.
• You cannot force a slot. Hot, Neutral or Cold status is entirely model-driven. You cannot declare your Valentine's Day dinner Hot by hand. For a special evening, use a dedicated Access Rule instead (see below).

Step 1: start from the "Dynamic by Demand" mode

You do not have to build anything from scratch. SevenRooms automatically creates a Smart Mode named Dynamic by Demand. In the web portal:

1. Open Settings > Availability Settings > Modes > Payment & Policy.
2. Find the Dynamic by Demand mode.
3. Click the three dots to edit it.

Step 2: define the policy for each state

Inside the Smart Mode, choose the Payment & Policy for each state. For each one you have two options: pick an existing Payment & Policy Mode from the dropdown, or choose + Custom Settings to build the policy directly inside the Smart Mode. Custom Settings cover the payment requirement, cancellation and refund rules, guest modify/cancel permissions, and the Booking Policy. Click Apply Settings when you are done.

Here are three realistic profiles for a French restaurant. Amounts are examples to adapt to your average spend, in € tax-inclusive.

Neighbourhood bistro, 40 seats, average spend €35

• Cold: no guarantee.
• Neutral: card on file, no charge.
• Hot: card on file with a €20 per person fee for cancellation less than 24 hours ahead or a no-show.

Fine dining, average spend €120

• Cold: card on file, no charge.
• Neutral: card on file, with a €40 per person charge for a no-show.
• Hot: €50 per person deposit or partial prepayment, refundable up to 72 hours ahead.

High-traffic brasserie, average spend €45

• Cold: no guarantee, free cancellation.
• Neutral: card on file, no charge.
• Hot: card on file with a €25 per person fee, free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead.

These examples rely on the options offered by Custom Settings: payment requirement, cancellation and refund rules, modification rights. The amounts and deadlines are māhie examples, not SevenRooms values. One principle for setting them: the Hot fee should cover a realistic share of the cost of an empty table without feeling punitive.

To choose between deposit, card guarantee and prepayment, read our guide on the right payment policy for your restaurant.

Step 3: apply the Smart Mode to your Shifts

A Smart Mode only takes effect once it is assigned to a Shift. Two methods.

Modes Matrix (recommended), for several Shifts at once:

1. Go to Settings > Payment & Policy > Modes.
2. Click the pencil icon to the right of the Shifts section.
3. Drag and drop each Shift from the right column into the column of the mode you want.
4. Save. The mode applies immediately to those Shifts.

From a Shift, one at a time:

1. Go to Availability Settings > Shifts.
2. Open the Shift, then Edit All Days.
3. In the Shift Slideout, create, edit or select the Payment & Policy mode.

SevenRooms recommends enabling the feature across all your Shifts. The system adapts using historical data and booking pace, so the more services it covers, the more consistent it is. Lunch and dinner: apply a Smart Mode to each, with different amounts if the stakes differ.

Combining it with Access Rules

By default, an Access Rule follows the Payment & Policy settings of its Shift. This is the recommended setup: put a Smart Mode on your Shifts and your Access Rules follow.

Change this only for a specific experience: a chef's tasting menu, an event evening, a New Year's Eve dinner. To do so:

1. Settings > Availability > Access Rules, open the Access Rule and click Edit.
2. Expand Payment and Policy, then Edit.
3. Untick Follow Shift Settings for Payment & Policy.
4. Select Smart Mode: Demand-based payment requirement.
5. Choose the mode in the Smart Mode dropdown: a preview shows the Cold, Neutral and Hot settings.
6. Click Done, then Review Changes.

For an event where you want the same prepayment whatever the demand, do not use a Smart Mode: keep a fixed policy on the Access Rule, as with a prepaid New Year's Eve menu.

What happens when a guest modifies a booking

According to the sources, a new payment requirement applies only if the edit changes availability: date, time or party size. The system then looks at the demand state of the new slot and applies its policy. A guest who moves a Saturday dinner from 7 pm to 8:30 pm can therefore switch from Neutral to Hot and be asked for a guarantee. An edit that does not affect availability triggers nothing.

On the team side, if your account has the right permissions, you can skip the required payment on an internal booking by ticking "Override: do not enforce required payment" in the add reservation flow. Useful for a regular or a VIP; keep it for staff who know the rule.

Risks and precautions

Varying the policy by time of day can cause confusion if you do not frame it.

• Frustrated guests. Two friends book, one at 7 pm with no guarantee, the other at 8:30 pm with a card. They will wonder why. Say it simply: "Depending on demand, a card guarantee may be requested at booking."
• Incomplete displayed policy. Guests must see, at booking time, what may be charged and under what condition. A poorly explained charge is the first cause of bank disputes. Write your texts in Settings > Guest-Facing Language > Policies and check that they cover all three states.
• Inconsistency across channels. If you also sell through third-party platforms, check what the guest actually sees there before launching.
• Unbriefed team. Front of house and phone staff must be able to explain why a guarantee is requested one evening and not another.
• Beta. Test before rolling out, and keep a fixed fallback policy.

A good habit: make a test booking on a slot you know is busy, then on a quiet one, and compare what the guest sees in each case.

Measuring the effect on no-shows and occupancy

The sources do not describe a dedicated report for this feature. So measure it yourself, with a simple method:

1. Record the baseline: no-show rate, late-cancellation rate and covers per service over the previous 6 to 8 weeks, by weekday and by Shift.
2. Enable the Smart Mode on all Shifts (SevenRooms' recommendation) and note the date.
3. Compare like with like: same weekdays, excluding holidays and exceptional events.
4. Track three indicators: the no-show rate at peak times, the occupancy rate at quiet times, and the number of guests who drop off at the guarantee step, if your web tracking allows it.
5. Adjust amounts and texts, not thresholds, which you do not control.

Worked example, not a promised result: a 60-seat restaurant that goes from 8% to 4% no-shows on its Hot evenings recovers about 2 to 3 covers per service. At an average spend of €45 tax-inclusive, that is €90 to €135 per evening.

For Cold slots, the right question is whether dropping the guarantee really wins bookings. If your quiet periods stay empty despite a flexible policy, the problem lies elsewhere: visibility, pricing or offer. See how to fill your quiet services.

Smart Payment Policy SevenRooms: frequently asked questions

Need help setting up Smart Payment Policy on SevenRooms?

Well set up, a demand-based payment policy protects your busy evenings without penalising quiet services. Poorly set up, it confuses guests and complicates the host's job. Between Smart Modes, Shifts, Access Rules and policy texts, the settings overlap quickly.

māhie is an agency specialised in restaurants and hospitality, and a SevenRooms expert. On this topic, we can:

• configure your Smart Mode: Cold, Neutral and Hot policies, amounts matched to your average spend, application to Shifts;
• audit what you have: Access Rules, Shifts, policy texts and consistency across channels;
• write your cancellation policies so they are clear and accepted at booking;
• set up tracking: no-shows, occupancy and widget conversions, before and after activation;
• train your teams to explain the rule to guests and handle exceptions.

Want to know whether your account is eligible and how to start? Discover our SevenRooms expertise or contact māhie.