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Payment Timeline Policy

Effective:
Last updated:
Jurisdiction:
United States

1. OVERVIEW

This Payment Timeline Policy explains when and how Hosts are charged for bartending services on the bartendersNow™ platform. Understanding our payment timing helps you plan accordingly and ensures a smooth booking experience.

Key Principle: You are charged when you are financially committed. For events more than 48 hours away, that's the earlier of cancellation or 48 hours before your event. For short-notice bookings (less than 48 hours away), that's at the moment you commit to a specific Bartender.

2. WHEN YOU ARE CHARGED

2.1 The Three Payment Triggers

Payment is collected at the earliest of:

  1. When you cancel your booking (at any time from booking through event), OR
  2. 48 hours before your Bartender's scheduled arrival time (the "48-hour lock"), OR
  3. At the moment you commit to a Bartender for a short-notice booking (any event less than 48 hours from scheduled arrival — see Section 5.3)

For most bookings, payment happens at the 48-hour lock. You are not charged at the time of booking for events more than 48 hours out.

2.2 Why This Timing?

  • Flexibility: Before a Bartender is booked, you can change your event details — service hours, guest count, venue, package — at no charge. Once a Bartender accepts, the core details of the job they agreed to are locked (see Section 7.2), and no charge is placed until your payment trigger.
  • Transparency: Your final charge reflects any modifications you've made up to the lock point, and any Bartender added to your event (see Section 3.3)
  • Protection: The 48-hour lock ensures Bartenders have payment security before they prepare for your event
  • Short-Notice Fairness: For events less than 48 hours out, we collect payment at commitment, so a Bartender isn't asked to prepare for a booking whose payment hasn't been secured

3. AT BOOKING

3.1 What Happens When You Book

When you complete a booking:

  1. You provide a payment method (credit/debit card)
  2. Your card is securely saved to your account for the booking
  3. No charge is placed and no hold is applied to your available credit
  4. You will be charged per Section 2.1 when your payment trigger is reached

3.2 Price Breakdown Shown at Booking

You see a full itemized breakdown before confirming your booking:

  • Bartender service fees (hourly rate × service duration)
  • Captain Service coordination fee (if applicable)
  • Platform service fee (12% charged to Host)

Example Breakdown:

  • Bartender: 5 hours × $80/hr = $400
  • Captain Service: $50
  • Host service fee: 12% × $450 = $54
  • Total: $504

This is the amount that will be charged at your payment trigger, adjusted for any modifications you make before the 48-hour lock and for any Bartender added to your event (see Section 3.3).

3.3 The Captain Service Fee Can Increase

If your event includes Captain Service, your Captain's coordination fee is a percentage of your event's total bartender costs — every Bartender booked on your event, not only your Captain — subject to that Captain's stated minimum.

Because the fee is calculated on your whole event, adding another Bartender to your event increases it. If a Bartender is added after your Captain accepts — either a Bartender you requested accepts, or you accept a Bartender's request to work your event — your Captain's coordination fee is recalculated on the larger total. The recalculated fee, plus the 12% Host service fee on it, is what is charged at your 48-hour lock.

You can work the increase out before you add anyone: it is your Captain's percentage applied to the additional Bartender's cost. For example, on a 20% Captain rate, adding a Bartender who costs $500 increases the Captain Service fee by $100, and your Host service fee by $12.

This is the only line on your booking that can increase without a change you make to your own booking details. Every other line is fixed at the amount shown when you booked, and none of them changes because of anything a Bartender does. It changes only when a Bartender is added to your event, which is a step you take.

We do not send a separate notice before the recalculated amount is charged. If you add a Bartender to an event that includes Captain Service, review your event total before your 48-hour lock. After the 48-hour lock, Bartender count is locked and this fee cannot change (see Section 7.3).

4. CARD ON FILE

4.1 Secure Storage

Your payment method is stored securely through our payment processor (Stripe) and is used to complete your booking at the scheduled payment trigger.

4.2 Card Validity Monitoring

If your stored card becomes invalid before your scheduled charge (expiration, reported lost or stolen, issuer-side changes):

  • You will receive a notification via email, SMS, and in-app
  • You have the opportunity to update your payment method before the scheduled charge
  • If not resolved before the payment trigger, our Payment Failure Policy applies

5. PAYMENT CAPTURE SCENARIOS

5.1 If You Cancel

When you initiate a cancellation:

  1. Your card on file is charged the full booking amount
  2. Your refund amount is calculated based on cancellation timing (see Cancellation Policy)
  3. Any applicable refund is issued immediately
  4. Bartender receives their compensation based on cancellation tier

Example - Canceling 10 Days Before Event:

  • Total booking: $504
  • Cancellation tier: 7-14 days (50% refund)
  • Amount charged: $504
  • Refund issued: $252
  • Net charge to you: $252

5.2 At the 48-Hour Lock (No Cancellation)

If you do not cancel, at exactly 48 hours before your Bartender's scheduled arrival:

  1. Your card on file is charged the full booking amount
  2. Your event remains locked (core details locked when your Bartender accepted; see Section 7.2)
  3. Your Bartender is notified that the event is confirmed
  4. Payout to Bartender occurs after event completion

5.3 Short-Notice Bookings (Less Than 48 Hours to Event)

For events scheduled to begin less than 48 hours from the moment of booking, the 48-hour lock has already passed. Payment is collected at the moment you commit to a specific Bartender. There are two ways this can happen:

Case A — You request a specific Bartender.

  1. You select a Bartender and submit a booking request to them
  2. Your card on file is charged the full booking amount at the moment you submit the request
  3. If the charge is successful, your request is delivered to the Bartender
  4. If the Bartender accepts, your event is confirmed and you receive a confirmation notification
  5. If the Bartender declines your request or does not respond within the request window, you receive a 100% refund automatically. You may then submit a new request to another Bartender or cancel the event.

Case B — A Bartender requests to work your public event.

  1. You post your event to the public marketplace
  2. A Bartender views your event and submits a request to work it
  3. You review the Bartender's profile and accept or decline their request
  4. If you accept, your card on file is charged the full booking amount at the moment of acceptance
  5. If the charge is successful, your event is confirmed and the Bartender receives a confirmation notification
  6. If the charge is unsuccessful, the Bartender's request does not finalize (see Payment Failure Policy)

Bartender confirmation is gated to successful payment in all short-notice cases. Your Bartender does not receive a confirmation notification, and is not asked to prepare or travel for your event, until your payment has cleared. This protects both sides: you don't get a Bartender preparing for an unpaid event, and the Bartender doesn't lose time on an unconfirmed booking.

6. PAYMENT NOTIFICATIONS

6.1 Booking Confirmation (48+ Hour Bookings)

Your booking is confirmed!

Payment Method: Card ending in XXXX
Booking Total: $504.00

Your card will be charged when:
• You cancel this booking, OR
• 48 hours before your Bartender's arrival
(whichever comes first)

6.1b Booking Confirmation (Short-Notice Bookings)

Your booking is confirmed and paid.

Payment Method: Card ending in XXXX
Amount Charged: $504.00

Your Bartender has been notified and will be in contact shortly.

6.2 Reminder Schedule

We send payment reminders to help you stay informed:

TimingReminder
30 days before"Your event is coming up. Remember our cancellation policy."
14 days before"Cancellations now receive 50% refund."
7 days before"Cancellations now receive $0 refund."
72 hours before"Your card will be charged in 24 hours."

6.3 Payment Captured Confirmation

Payment Processed: $504.00

Your event is confirmed and locked!
• Your Bartender, *Name*, is preparing for your event
• Event details cannot be modified
• Event Date/Time: *Details*

7. MODIFYING YOUR BOOKING

7.1 Before a Bartender Is Booked

Until a Bartender accepts your event, your event details remain fully editable (within platform limits):

  • Add or reduce service hours
  • Adjust guest count
  • Change your venue or address
  • Change your beverage package or consumption level
  • Change other event details

When you modify:

  1. The booking total is recalculated for the updated amount
  2. No charge is placed until your scheduled payment trigger
  3. The updated total is what will be charged at the 48-hour lock (or at cancellation if earlier)

7.2 After a Bartender Is Booked — The Core-Detail Lock

Once a Bartender accepts your event, the core details of the job they agreed to are locked. This happens at acceptance, which is usually well before the 48-hour lock.

Locked once a Bartender accepts:

  • Event date
  • Service hours, including Bartender arrival and departure times
  • Guest count
  • Venue and address
  • Beverage package and consumption level
  • Event type
  • Bar placement (number and location of bars, indoor or outdoor, relocation)
  • Certification requirements

Still editable:

  • Contact information
  • Event notes
  • Other non-material details

To change a locked detail, the existing booking must be cancelled and the event rebooked. Standard cancellation tiers apply (see the Cancellation Policy).

7.3 After the 48-Hour Lock

Once payment is captured at the 48-hour mark:

  • Allowed: Contact information changes, event notes
  • Not allowed: Material changes (time, location, duration, guest count, Bartender count)

7.4 Short-Notice Bookings

Because short-notice bookings are paid at commitment, material modifications are not generally available after confirmation. Non-material changes (contact information, event notes) remain permitted. If you need a material change, the existing booking must be cancelled (standard cancellation policy applies) and a new booking created.

8. POST-EVENT CHARGES

8.1 Labor Overage

If your Bartender works longer than scheduled:

  • You will be notified of the actual departure time
  • You can approve the additional hours, dispute the time, or decline
  • If approved, additional charges are processed to your stored payment method

8.2 Labor Overage Calculation

Example:

  • Original: 5 hours × $80/hr = $400
  • Overage: 1 hour × $80/hr = $80
  • Host service fee on overage: $9.60
  • Additional charge: $89.60

9. UPDATING YOUR PAYMENT METHOD

9.1 Before Any Issues

You can update your payment method anytime in Account Settings:

  1. Go to Account Settings > Payment Methods
  2. Add a new card
  3. Set it as your default payment method for the booking
  4. Your scheduled charge will use the updated card

9.2 If Your Card Expires

Update your payment method before your card expires. We'll send a reminder if we detect your card is expiring before your event date.

9.3 If Your Card is Lost/Stolen

Update your payment method immediately in Account Settings. Your scheduled charge will use the updated card.

10. REFUND PROCESSING

10.1 Refund Timeline

  • Refunds are processed within 5-7 business days
  • Refunds return to your original payment method
  • Timeline begins from when we initiate the refund

10.2 If Original Payment Method Unavailable

If we cannot refund to your original payment method:

  • Platform credit will be issued to your account
  • Credit can be applied to future bookings
  • You may request payout to an alternative method

11. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: Why don't you charge at booking like other services? A: For events more than 48 hours out, charging at the 48-hour lock means you are not charged and refunded repeatedly while your plans are still coming together, and your final charge reflects the booking as it stands at the lock. This is about charge timing, not editability: the core details of your booking lock earlier, when a Bartender accepts (see Section 7.2). For short-notice bookings (less than 48 hours), we charge at commitment, so your Bartender isn't asked to prepare for a booking whose payment hasn't been secured.

Q: Does saving my card at booking affect my available credit? A: No. Saving your card does not place a hold on your account or reduce your available credit. Your card is simply stored securely and charged at the scheduled payment trigger.

Q: Can I change my payment method before being charged? A: Yes. Update your payment method anytime before your scheduled charge. The updated card will be used at your payment trigger.

Q: What if my card is declined at the 48-hour mark? A: You'll receive immediate notification and have a short grace window to update your payment method. See the Payment Failure Policy for details.

Q: What happens if my event is less than 48 hours away? A: Short-notice bookings are charged at the moment you commit to a specific Bartender, not at the 48-hour mark (which has already passed). See Section 5.3 for the full flow. Your Bartender is only notified and confirmed after your payment clears.

Q: What if the Bartender I requested doesn't accept? A: If a Bartender declines your request or doesn't respond within the request window, you receive a 100% refund automatically and can request another Bartender or cancel the event. No further action is required from you.

Q: When does the Bartender get paid? A: Bartenders are paid once they complete their post-event tasks, or automatically 7 days after your event; funds then arrive on their bank's standard 2–4 business-day schedule. For cancellations within 14 days, they're paid immediately.

Q: What about tips? A: Tips are handled separately and directly between you and your Bartender. Tips are not processed through the platform.

12. RELATED POLICIES

  • Cancellation Policy: Refund amounts and cancellation tiers
  • Payment Failure Policy: What happens if your payment cannot be processed
  • Bartender Payout Policy: How and when Bartenders receive payment

13. CONTACT US

Payment Questions:

Billing Disputes:

This Payment Timeline Policy is incorporated by reference into the bartendersNow™ Terms of Service.

Last Updated: September 4, 2026 Version: 1.5