Overview
Policies define the deposit requirements and cancellation terms applied to Marina reservations. Every policy controls how much deposit is collected at booking, what booking guarantee method is used, how many days in advance a cancellation qualifies for a refund, and whether customers can cancel online. Policies are created once and then assigned to Marina products or individual rate plans.
To access Marina Policies, go to Marina, select Settings, and then select Policies.
Creating a Policy
To create a new policy:
Go to Marina, select Settings, and then select Policies.
Click New.
Complete the required fields described below.
Click Save.
Policy Fields
Name - A descriptive label for the policy used internally. Customers do not see this name. Use names that make it easy to identify the policy's purpose, such as "Transient - 50% Deposit" or "Seasonal - No Deposit."
Booking Period - Specifies the unit of time the policy applies to. This must match the booking period of the product the policy will be assigned to. Options include Hourly, Daily, Nightly, Long Term, and Seasonal. The Booking Period also determines how the deposit calculation labels are displayed, for example "Night(s)" for Nightly bookings or "Month(s)" for Long Term bookings.
Booking Guarantee - Defines the method used to secure the reservation at booking time. Select the guarantee type that matches how your marina collects commitments from customers. For transient reservations that go through the online booking portal, Credit Card is required because it is the only guarantee type that supports online payment collection.
Deposit - Sets the deposit amount and how it is calculated. Enter the deposit value and then select the deposit type:
Percent (%) - charges a percentage of the total reservation amount.
Fixed ($) - charges a flat dollar amount regardless of the reservation total.
Per Block (Hours, Days, Nights, or Months, depending on Booking Period) - charges a fixed amount multiplied by a specified number of time periods. For example, "First 1 Night(s)" would charge the rate for the first night as the deposit.
Deposit Product - Optional. Links the deposit to a specific product in your system for accounting purposes. If left blank, the deposit is posted without a product association.
Refundable - Sets the cancellation window in days. Enter the number of days prior to the arrival date within which a cancellation is eligible for a deposit refund. For example, entering 14 means customers who cancel 14 or more days before arrival can receive a refund. Leaving this field blank means the deposit is non-refundable.
Full Payment - Optional. Enter the number of days before arrival by which the reservation's full balance must be paid. This is informational and can be used to trigger reminders or enforce payment requirements based on your marina's workflow.
Include All Fees - When enabled, any price adjustments such as service fees or surcharges are included in the deposit calculation. When disabled, the deposit is calculated based on the base rate only.
Include Promo Code - When enabled, any promo code discount applied to the reservation is factored into the deposit calculation, reducing the deposit proportionally. When disabled, promo codes do not affect the deposit amount.
Cancel Online - When enabled, customers can cancel their own reservation directly through the customer portal without contacting staff. When disabled, cancellations must be processed by staff in Sharper.
Tax Inclusion - When enabled, taxes are included in the deposit calculation. When disabled, the deposit is calculated on the pre-tax amount.
Security Deposit - When enabled, marks this policy as a security deposit rather than a booking deposit. Security deposits are held and returned to the customer rather than applied to the reservation balance.
Assigning Policies to Products
After creating a policy, assign it to a Marina product so it applies to new reservations. Policies can be assigned at two levels:
Product level - The policy applies to all reservations for that product by default. Set this in the product's settings under Marina, Settings, Products.
Rate plan level - A policy assigned to a specific rate plan overrides the product-level policy for reservations that use that rate plan. Set this in the rate plan's settings.
If a reservation's rate plan has a policy assigned, that policy takes priority. If not, the product's policy is used.
Important Notes
A deposit policy is required for a product to appear on the Marina online booking portal. Both the policy assignment and the Booking Type's Show Online toggle must be active for the product to be bookable online.
For Long Term reservations, a deposit policy is optional. Many marinas skip the deposit for long-term slips and bill directly through the first invoice.
For Transient online bookings, use a Credit Card Booking Guarantee. It is the only guarantee type that supports online payment collection at the time of booking.
The deposit amount can be overridden on a per-reservation basis at the time of booking without changing the product's assigned policy.
Cancelling a reservation in Sharper does not automatically issue a refund. Any applicable refund must be processed manually through CRM, Invoices.