How to write a salon deposit and cancellation policy (UK)

A deposit policy does two jobs. It protects the hour you set aside for a client, and it tells the client, before they pay anything, exactly what happens if their plans change. A policy that does the first without the second is the kind that ends in an argument at the till, or a complaint.

This guide is about writing yours: what to include, in what order, and why each part is there. When you are ready for the words themselves, they are on their own page: our salon cancellation policy template, in salon, barber, and nails and lashes versions, with a Word download.

What to include, and why

The terms you give a client are a consumer contract. Under section 62 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, an unfair term in a consumer contract is not binding on the client. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) explains what that means for deposits and cancellation charges in its unfair-terms guidance, CMA37, updated on 22 July 2026. A fair policy follows its main points:

• A small reservation fee. The CMA says a genuine deposit can be kept in full if it works as a binding reservation, but that it will not normally be more than a small percentage of the price. It gives no figure, and neither does the law, so the template leaves a bracket there for you to fill. Anyone who tells you there is a legal percentage is guessing. A larger deposit needs a reason that ties to what a late cancellation really costs you, such as stylist time you cannot rebook or product you ordered for the client.
• Told before they pay. The client should learn that a deposit is due, and the exact cases in which it is kept, at the earliest chance: on your booking page before they pay, and again in the confirmation.
• Narrow, clear cases. The CMA wants the cases in which a deposit is kept to be clear and narrow, so that you have no wide discretion to keep it. Name three: a cancellation inside the notice window, a no-show, and a late arrival that leaves no time to do the service.
• Never “non-refundable whatever happens”. The CMA treats a prepayment that is kept whatever the reason as more likely to be unfair. So return the deposit in full when the client cancels in good time.
• A full refund when you cancel. If you cancel, move the appointment without the client’s agreement, or cannot do the service because you are ill or closed, the client gets their deposit back in full. The CMA is clear on this, and a term that lets you keep sums in that situation is on the list of terms that may be unfair.
• A scale, shown as a table. The CMA accepts a sliding scale of charges if it is not punitive and is shown clearly. It also notes a court has accepted a cancellation table set out in a very clear form rather than in small print. Set out what happens to the deposit at each point as a plain table, as below.
• Nothing at your discretion. A fee you may charge “at our discretion” gives you wide freedom over the amount, which the CMA names as a problem. Say that the deposit is the most you keep.
• Easy to avoid. The charge is fairer when the client can avoid it without effort: a clear way to cancel, a sensible notice period and a reminder. For bookings made more than 24 hours ahead, Hopaby texts a reminder the day before with a link to confirm or cancel, and the confirmation email carries the same link, which helps your case; whichever software you use, make the same things happen.

The sliding scale, in a table

When the client cancels or moves it	Their deposit	Anything else to pay
More than [24] hours before	Returned in full	Nothing
Less than [24] hours before	Kept	Nothing
They do not arrive	Kept	Nothing
You cancel or cannot do the appointment	Returned in full	Nothing

If you advertise “free cancellation up to 24 hours before”, it must be true in every case inside that window, with no admin fee. Say what the window is and keep to it.

If you charge more than the deposit

Some businesses save a client’s card at booking and charge a cancellation or no-show amount that is larger than the deposit. The same rules apply as for a deposit: the amount and the trigger must be shown at booking, the amount should reflect your real net loss after you have tried to rebook the time, and it must not cover your costs and your lost profit twice. A charge equal to the full price of a long appointment needs a reason you could explain to a stranger. When in doubt, take a smaller deposit and keep the policy short. Can a salon keep a deposit or charge a no-show fee in the UK? goes through this in more detail.

Get the wording

The salon cancellation policy template puts all of the above into plain wording for salons, barbers, and nails and lashes. Choose the version that fits your trade, replace every [bracket] and edit it in your own words. To see how the amount and the cases should be shown to the client before they pay, read whether a salon can keep a deposit.