Setting up checkout and the booking widget
Choose the order renters go through at checkout and how long unfinished bookings hold the dates. Then put the same checkout on any other website with the booking widget.
Overview
Checkout on your RentHive website runs in steps: the renter's details, payment, an ID check, an insurance check, and finally signing the rental agreement. You decide whether the ID and insurance checks come before or after payment. Signing is always last.
The booking widget puts the same checkout on a website you already have. You paste one script tag where you want the booking form to appear.
The server prices every step from the car's rates, discounts, fees, taxes, extras, protection plans and any coupon, so the price a renter sees always comes from your settings.
2022 Ford Mustang GT Convertible
Your total
Choose your dates to see the price.
The checkout renters go through: dates, a server-priced invoice, then details, payment, ID, insurance and signing.
How it works
- 1
Set the order
Open Settings → General → Checkout. For ID check and Insurance check, choose Before paying or After paying. The line at the top previews the order renters will see.
- 2
Set the hold time
Hold unfinished bookings for sets how many minutes a renter mid-checkout keeps the dates. The default is 30. 0 keeps them until you cancel. Press Save changes.
- 3
Switch on the checks
The ID check appears once Stripe Identity is set up in Settings → Integrations. The insurance check appears once Canopy Connect is switched on there and you have credits.
- 4
Connect payments
Connect Stripe Payment in Settings → Integrations so renters can pay by card. Until Stripe is connected, pay on arrival is the only option.
- 5
Style the widget
Go to Website → Booking widget. Under Appearance, set the button, background and text colors and the label, choose whether to show RentHive branding, and press Save Appearance. Check it in the Preview panel on mobile, tablet and desktop.
- 6
Embed it
Under Embed on Your Website, press Copy snippet and paste it into your other site's HTML where the booking form should appear.
Best practices
- Put the ID check before payment if you'd rather not take money from someone who can't pass it.
- Keep the hold long enough for a renter to finish, but short enough that abandoned checkouts don't block a car for long.
- Walk through your own checkout on the live site to see exactly what renters see.
Things to keep in mind
- Renters can postpone the ID and insurance checks during checkout. Only paying and signing block a booking. Anything left is asked for again at signing, and the booking's readiness checklist shows what's still missing.
- A hold of 0 keeps abandoned checkouts holding their dates until you cancel them.
- The widget shows inline where you paste the snippet. It isn't a pop-up.
- Regenerate key breaks every embed that uses the old key. Paste the new snippet everywhere you use the widget.
What's automated
- Unfinished checkouts release their dates when the hold runs out.
- Prices, discounts, fees and taxes are worked out by the server, never by the renter's browser.
- Bookings from your site or widget appear on your calendar, in Reservations and in the Inbox straight away.
Common questions
Do I need a RentHive website to use the widget?
No. The Booking widget tab works even before you've created a website.
Is the widget a different checkout?
No. It runs the same checkout as your RentHive website, with the same prices, checks and agreement.
Can renters skip the ID check?
They can postpone it during checkout. Before handover, check the booking's readiness checklist and don't release the car until ID shows as verified.