Pay a deposit, protect the rest: a new way to book on Sowo
Booking a service has always asked someone to go first. The provider blocks out a day, buys materials and turns down other work, trusting that the person will show up. Or the user pays the full amount before anyone has done anything, trusting that they will.
Neither is comfortable. So a provider on Sowo can now split a quote in two: a deposit paid when you accept, and the rest left alone until the work is done.
Why split the payment?
A booking costs a provider something the moment you agree it. A stylist turns down two other clients for that Saturday. A caterer orders food. A photographer travels across a city. When someone cancels the night before, none of that comes back.
A deposit is how a provider knows a date is real. It is the difference between a booking and an intention.
But handing over the full amount to someone you have not met, for work that has not started, is a lot to ask. If the job goes wrong, you are the one chasing your money back.
What actually happens to your money?
This is the part worth reading closely, because it is the part most platforms leave vague.
- The provider sends a quote and chooses the deposit. It has to be more than zero and less than the total, and you see both figures before you accept.
- You accept and pay the deposit. This one is a real payment: you pay it, and it reaches the provider straight away. That is what makes it a commitment.
- Nothing else leaves your account yet. Between accepting the quote and the job starting, the balance has not moved at all.
- When the job starts, Sowo authorises the balance. The provider marks the job as starting, you confirm it, and Sowo authorises your card for the remaining amount. Authorised, not charged: the money stays in your account.
- When the work is done, you release it. The provider marks the job complete, you confirm, and only then does the balance leave your account and reach the provider.
So for the whole time the work is in progress, the balance is a hold on your card and nothing more. If it is never released, it is never charged.
Sowo uses Stripe to process the payments and authorise the balance. It isn't insurance, and we don't describe it as one. What Sowo does is hold the balance uncharged until you confirm the work is done, record every step of the booking, and review the evidence when the two of you disagree. It does not guarantee the work itself.
What happens if something goes wrong?
If the booking ends before you release the balance, nobody ever charges it. There is nothing to chase, because the money never left you.
The deposit is different. It has already reached the provider, so it does not come back automatically. What happens to it follows the cancellation terms agreed on that quote. If you cannot reach an agreement, report the booking and our team will look at what happened.
This is why the deposit amount is worth a conversation before you accept, rather than after.
What does it cost?
Sowo currently does not take commission on bookings. A small card processing charge applies to each payment, which means a split booking carries two rather than one. The provider sees the exact figures on the quote before sending it, so there are no surprises on either side.
How do I use it?
If you are a provider, choose "Deposit + balance" when you build a quote and set the deposit amount. Everything after that is the normal booking flow.
If you are booking someone, you will see the split on the quote itself: what you pay now, and what stays with you until you confirm the job is done. If a quote asks for the full amount up front and you would rather split it, ask. Providers can send a revised quote.
It is a small change to how a quote works, and a large one in what it asks of the person receiving it.
