Slot hold during payment — nobody beats you to it while you pay
The slot is held throughout the payment, then released automatically if the client gives up.
The problem
Between the moment a client clicks “pay” and the moment the payment goes through, a minute or two passes. They get their card out, receive a confirmation code, type it in. Throughout that time the slot is in a grey area: neither free nor genuinely taken.
Leave it open and somebody else can take it while the first is paying. You then bank a payment for a slot that no longer exists, and have to refund with an explanation. Block it permanently and the opposite happens: every abandoned payment condemns a slot nobody can book again.
What is needed, then, is a temporary hold that expires by itself.
Without Kagenda
A client pays. In the minute it takes, someone else books the same slot — you charge for an appointment that no longer exists.
With Kagenda
The slot is held during payment, then released automatically if the client abandons it.
How it works in Kagenda
Where a service requires online payment, the booking passes through an in-between state during which the slot is held back.
- The slot is put on holdWhen the payment starts, an expiry is placed on the booking. The slot disappears from availability for that time.
- The payment goes throughThe booking is confirmed, the hold becomes permanent and the confirmation email goes out.
- Or the client gives upIf they close the page, a background task spots the expired holds and returns the slot to availability. Nothing for you to do.
During payment
- Slot held for a few minutes
- Payment successful — final hold
- Payment abandoned — slot released
In practice
- 1
No one else can take it
While the card is entered and the code confirmed, the slot is held.
During entryNo one else can take the slot - 2
Abandoning costs nothing
If the client closes the page, a background task detects the expired hold and releases the slot.
Client abandonsSlot released automatically - 3
No action needed from you
The temporary hold expires on its own; you have nothing to monitor.
No action neededThe hold expires on its own
Frequently asked questions
How long is the slot held for?
The length of a payment session, designed to cover a bank authorisation without tying the slot up longer than necessary.
Is the slot freed if the client closes their browser?
Yes. The hold is dated; once the deadline passes, the automatic clean-up releases it, whether the client came back or not.
Does this apply to deposits too?
Yes, as soon as an online payment is asked for, whatever the amount.
