Why approvals exist
Refunds, waivers, rate changes and voids move money or give it away. A second person on those actions protects the cashier as much as the hotel. Each hotel decides, action by action, who may act alone and who must ask: see Approval rules and the small-team defaults.
What it looks like
When an action needs approval, the screen opens This needs a manager's approval over your work:
- Pick the approver
- The approver types their PIN and a reason
- The action completes
Nobody approves their own action. If no other approver has set a PIN, the window says "Nobody else can approve this action": ask your administrator to add an approver in Hospitality configuration › Approvals.
Setting your PIN
Every approver sets their own PIN once: Hospitality configuration › Approvals › Set my approval PIN. A PIN is 6 to 8 digits, not one digit repeated and not a run like 123456. Never share it: every approval is logged with the approver's name.
Five wrong PINs in a row lock the approver for 15 minutes; each further five wrong PINs lock it twice as long, up to a day. Another approver can approve meanwhile.
Actions that can need approval
| Action | Typical case |
|---|---|
| Manual room rate | A rate below the plan |
| Discount or allowance on a folio | A goodwill discount |
| Complimentary charge | A free item or a free night |
| Waive an early check-in or late checkout fee | A loyal guest |
| Void or reverse a folio line | A wrong charge |
| Void or reverse a posted or closed-date line | A charge on an invoiced folio or a closed day |
| Check in to a room that is not ready | The guest takes a room still being cleaned |
| Overbook a room type | More bookings than rooms |
| Late charge on a closed folio | Minibar found after check-out |
| Reopen or reverse an invoiced folio | A credit note on the invoice |
| Waive a cancellation or no-show penalty | A cancellation for a good reason |
| Refund or void a payment | Money back to a guest |
| Reopen a closed business date | A correction on a closed day |
| Check out or post a folio with an open balance | An interim bill before the guest has paid |
| Accept a blacklisted guest | A guest on the blacklist |
| Housekeeping charge to a room | Minibar, laundry or damage |
| Move a payment to another folio | A deposit that belongs to the company |
| Charge above a stay's credit limit | A guest over their limit |
| Charge to a no-post stay | A stay that must not take charges |
| Pay cash out to a guest (paid-out) | A taxi fare paid for the guest |
| Open or extend a company's city-ledger account | A new company, a higher limit |
| Foreign currency at a rate away from the Accounting rate | A dollar payment at the desk |
| Match a payment to a receipt by hand | Reconciliation |
| Close the night audit with blockers waived | A day that must close |
The approval log
Hospitality configuration › Approvals › Approval log lists every approval: when, the action, who asked, who approved, the reason and the result. Actions done without approval (within a role's limit) are logged too.
Common questions
A manager's name is not in the list of approvers.
The list shows only people allowed to approve this action. Check that their role is named under Approvers on the rule (Hospitality configuration › Approvals) and that they have set their PIN with Set my approval PIN.
The window says "Nobody else can approve this action."
No other user with an approver role has set an approval PIN. Ask your administrator to add an approver role on the rule in Hospitality configuration › Approvals, and ask the approvers to set their PIN there. Nobody approves their own action.
The approver typed the PIN wrongly.
The window says "Wrong PIN" and how many attempts are left before a 15 minute lock. After five wrong PINs the approver is locked for 15 minutes, then twice as long for each further five, up to a day. Another approver can approve meanwhile.
Is an action done within my own limit recorded?
Yes. The Approval log lists approvals and also the actions done alone within a limit.