Rentals
Rental damage deposits and booking holds
A bent tent pole and a missing projector lens are the same kind of problem for the deposit: you keep some of the security deposit and you write why. The day rate is a different number, and checkout does not charge it.
No card to start. The 7-day trial includes open bookings, then $39 a month or $390 a year. If it ends with no card, new bookings close until a plan is active. The equipment preset is selected on the next step when rentals are enabled. Party rental is the other shelf on that screen.
Educational information, not legal advice.
The deposit is the ceiling on what you can keep
When you close a rental you enter how much of the security deposit to keep. You cannot keep more than that deposit. Keeping any of it requires a reason of at least a few words, and the reason is stored for the renter. Zero means the deposit is released or refunded. The full amount means you keep it. A number in between is a partial keep.
On a card authorization, a partial keep is a partial capture. Stripe's hold documentation, read November 9, 2026, says a partial capture releases the rest, and that most payments can be captured only once. If the authorization expires first, the funds are released and the payment status changes to canceled. On a deposit that was charged at booking, the part you do not keep is refunded.
The equipment preset starts a projector at a $100 security deposit and a $40 day rate, quantity 1, and a speaker at a $75 security deposit and a $25 day rate, quantity 4. The party preset starts a 10×10 tent at an $80 security deposit and a $35 day rate, quantity 6, and a table-and-chair set at a $40 security deposit and a $12 day rate, quantity 20. Those are starting values, not a price survey. Checkout moves the security deposit only.
A hold is only for a near return
Slotward uses an authorization only when the return date plus a one-day settlement window is under 6 days away. Otherwise the deposit is charged and refunded when you close the rental. Stripe's card-not-present table lists a 7-day customer-initiated window for Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover, and a Visa merchant-initiated window of 4 days and 18 hours. The 6-day line is not a promise that every card will still be holding funds on day 6.
Cancel before the pickup date and the deposit is released. Cancel on the pickup date or later and you can keep it, with a reason. If the shop cancels, the deposit is refunded or the hold is released, including on or after the pickup date.
The deposit checkout is created on the shop's connected Stripe account. The call does not set an application fee. The line item is the deposit. Slotward takes $0 of it. Stripe's own processing fee is between the shop and Stripe. That is separate from Slotward's $39 a month or $390 a year subscription.
Template
Security deposit: [amount] for [item]. Day rate: [amount], not charged in this checkout. Cancel before the pickup date and the deposit is released. Cancel on the pickup date or later, or return it damaged or short, and the shop may keep all or part of the security deposit and will write the reason. The shop cannot keep more than the security deposit. If the shop cancels, the deposit comes back. When the return plus one day is under 6 days away at booking, the deposit is a card authorization. Otherwise it is charged now and refunded when the rental is closed. Educational, not legal advice. State or local rules can differ. Check the rules that apply to your shop before you publish a deposit or no-show fee.
This is not the lodging fee rule
16 CFR Part 464 covers live-event tickets and short-term lodging, including a vacation rental. The Federal Register notice says that rule is effective May 12, 2025, and that misrepresenting whether a fee is refundable is prohibited for those covered goods. Equipment and party rental are not in the definition. A shop that also lists a guest suite should read the rule. This page is not a compliance opinion.
Questions
Can the damage keep be more than the security deposit?
Not in Slotward. The amount you keep has to be less than or equal to the security deposit on that booking. Anything beyond that is between you and the renter, outside this checkout.
Do I have to write a reason?
Yes, if you keep any of the deposit. The reason is stored with the booking and shown to the renter. Releasing the whole deposit does not require one.
Does the same rule cover tents and projectors?
Yes. Party inventory and equipment use the same security-deposit settlement. The presets only change the item names, quantities, day rates, and deposit amounts.
Sources
Stripe, the Code of Federal Regulations, and the Federal Register page were read on November 9, 2026. The journal articles are cited by their publication. Pages change. Recheck a live source before you rely on it.
Montgomery Appworks LLC · 9905 S Pennsylvania Ave Ste A, Oklahoma City, OK 73159