Home RentalOS: Payments & Financials

RentalOS: Payments & Financials

Take payments, issue refunds, manage holds, and track rental revenue.

By Jeremy Crane

• 8 articles

Understanding Rental Stats & Revenue Charts

The Rental List includes built-in analytics showing your revenue performance over time. These stats help you track business health at a glance. How to Access 1. Go to the Rental List and scroll below the main table to the stats section Available Charts - Daily Revenue — Bar chart showing revenue earned per day - Weekly Revenue — Aggregated weekly totals - Monthly Revenue — Month-over-month revenue trends What's Counted Revenue stats are calculated from completed and active rentals based on their line item totals. Voided rentals are excluded. Stats include: - Rental charges (daily rates, fees) - Additional charges (delivery, fuel, extras) - Insurance premiums Using Stats for Business Decisions - Spot seasonal patterns — Identify your busy and slow periods to adjust pricing - Track growth — Compare month-over-month to measure business growth - Forecast capacity — High-revenue periods may indicate you need more fleet vehicles Other Analytics Views For deeper analytics beyond the rental list stats: - Reports → Payments — Detailed payment-level reporting - Reports → Sales Tax — Tax collected by period - Reports → Owner Payouts — Per-vehicle owner earnings - Reports → Commissions — Manager commission tracking Frequently Asked Questions Are the stats real-time? Stats update as rentals are created, modified, and completed. There may be a brief delay for recently changed rentals. Can I filter stats by vehicle or date range? The rental list stats reflect all visible rentals. Use the list filters to narrow by date range, then the stats update accordingly.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026

Generating a Profit & Loss PDF

Generate a detailed Profit & Loss statement for any rental as a downloadable PDF. This is useful for vehicle owners, consignment partners, and accounting. How to Generate 1. Open the rental detail view 2. Click the P&L or Generate P&L PDF button 3. The PDF is generated and downloaded to your computer What the P&L Includes - Revenue — All rental charges (daily rate, fees, extras) - Expenses — Porter costs, delivery fees, platform fees - Net profit — Revenue minus expenses - Consignment split (if applicable) — Owner's share vs. your commission - Tax breakdown — Sales tax, fixed taxes Use Cases - Vehicle owners — Send monthly P&L reports to consignment vehicle owners showing their earnings - Accounting — Individual rental P&L for bookkeeping - Tax preparation — Detailed revenue and expense breakdown per rental Frequently Asked Questions Can I generate P&L for multiple rentals at once? The P&L PDF is generated per-rental. For aggregate reporting, use the Reports → Owner Payouts section or CSV export. Does the P&L include voided rentals? Voided rentals show $0 revenue. The P&L reflects whatever charges and payments exist on the rental record.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026

Updating a Renter's Card on File

If a renter's card expires, is declined, or they want to use a different card, you can update the card on file. How to Update 1. Open the rental detail view 2. Go to the Payments tab 3. Click Update Card (or Add Card if none exists) 4. Enter the new card details 5. Click Save The new card replaces the old one as the default payment method for this rental. When to Update - Card declined — The current card failed a charge attempt - Card expired — The renter's card has passed its expiration date - Renter preference — The renter wants to pay with a different card Security Card information is handled securely through Stripe. PocketOS never stores or displays full card numbers. You'll see only the last 4 digits and expiration date. Frequently Asked Questions Does updating the card affect existing holds? No. Existing holds remain on the original card. New charges will use the updated card. Can the renter update their own card? If the renter has access to the booking portal, they may be able to update their payment method. Otherwise, your team handles it.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026

Issuing a Refund

Refund all or part of a Stripe payment back to the renter's original payment method. How to Issue a Refund 1. Open the rental detail view 2. Go to the Payments tab 3. Find the payment you want to refund 4. Click Refund 5. Enter the refund amount (full or partial) 6. Add a reason for the refund (optional) 7. Confirm Full vs. Partial Refunds - Full refund — Returns the entire payment amount to the renter - Partial refund — Returns a portion of the payment (e.g., refunding a day because of early return) You can issue multiple partial refunds on the same payment, up to the original amount. Refund Timeline - Credit/Debit Cards — Refunds appear on the renter's statement within 5-10 business days - ACH — Bank refunds can take up to 10 business days Impact on Rental - The rental balance increases by the refund amount - The refund is recorded in the payment history - Revenue reports are adjusted to reflect the refund Frequently Asked Questions Can I refund a manual payment? No. Manual payments should be removed instead of refunded (since no actual Stripe transaction occurred). Refunds only apply to Stripe-processed payments. Are Stripe processing fees refunded? Stripe does not refund their processing fee on refunded transactions. You'll absorb the original processing cost even after issuing a full refund.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026

Releasing a Payment Hold

Releasing a hold removes the reserved funds from the renter's card, making those funds available to them again. How to Release 1. Open the rental detail view 2. Go to the Payments tab 3. Find the active hold 4. Click Release 5. Confirm the release When to Release - No damage — The vehicle was returned in good condition, no deposit charge needed - Different payment arrangement — You're collecting the final amount through a different method - Rental cancelled — The booking was voided and no charges are applicable How Long Does the Release Take? PocketOS releases the hold immediately through Stripe. However, the renter's bank may take 3-10 business days to make the funds available again. This timeline is controlled by the renter's bank, not PocketOS or Stripe. Frequently Asked Questions Can I partially release a hold? Not directly. To keep part of the hold, use Capture with a reduced amount — the difference is automatically released. What happens if a hold expires before I act? Expired holds are automatically released by Stripe. The funds return to the renter's card. If you still need to charge them, take a regular payment.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026

Capturing a Payment Hold

A payment hold (also called an authorization or pre-authorization) reserves funds on the renter's card without actually charging them. Capturing the hold converts it into an actual charge. How Holds Work 1. A hold is placed on the renter's card for a specific amount (e.g., $500 security deposit) 2. The funds are reserved on the card but not charged 3. When you capture, the reserved amount is charged to the card 4. If you release instead, the hold is removed and the funds become available again How to Capture a Hold 1. Open the rental detail view 2. Go to the Payments tab 3. Find the active hold in the payment list 4. Click Capture 5. Optionally adjust the capture amount (you can capture less than the original hold) 6. Confirm Partial Capture You can capture less than the original hold amount. For example, if you held $500 for a security deposit and the renter returned the vehicle with minor damage costing $200, you can capture just $200 and the remaining $300 is released. Hold Expiration Payment holds expire after 7 days (Stripe's standard authorization window). If you don't capture within that period, the hold is automatically released. Plan your capture timing accordingly. Frequently Asked Questions Can I capture more than the hold amount? No. You can only capture up to the original hold amount. If you need more, take a separate payment for the additional amount. What's the difference between capture and taking a payment? A hold reserves funds without charging. Capture converts the reservation into an actual charge. Taking a payment charges the card immediately with no prior hold.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026

Adding & Removing Manual Payments

Manual payments record transactions that happen outside of Stripe — cash, Zelle, Venmo, wire transfer, or any other method. How to Add a Manual Payment 1. Open the rental detail view 2. Go to the Payments tab 3. Click Add Manual Payment 4. Enter the amount 5. Select the payment method (Cash, Zelle, Venmo, Wire, Check, Other) 6. Add an optional note describing the payment 7. Click Save What Manual Payments Do - Reduce the rental balance by the recorded amount - Appear in the payment history alongside Stripe payments - Are included in revenue reports and accounting exports Removing a Manual Payment If a manual payment was recorded in error: 1. Find the payment in the Payments tab 2. Click Remove on the payment entry 3. Confirm the removal The rental balance adjusts automatically. Only manual payments can be removed — Stripe payments must be refunded instead. Frequently Asked Questions Does a manual payment actually move money? No. Manual payments are for record-keeping only. They record that payment was received through an external channel. The actual money transfer happens outside PocketOS. Can I edit a manual payment amount? Remove the incorrect payment and add a new one with the correct amount.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026

Taking a Payment with Stripe

PocketOS uses Stripe to process credit card and ACH payments. Here's how to charge a renter's card directly from a rental. How to Take a Payment 1. Open the rental detail view 2. Go to the Payments tab 3. Click Take Payment 4. Enter the amount to charge 5. Select the card on file (or add a new one) 6. Click Charge Adding a Card on File Before taking payment, the renter must have a card on file. To add one: 1. On the Payments tab, click Add Card 2. Enter the card number, expiration date, and CVC 3. The card is securely stored with Stripe (PocketOS never sees the full card number) Payment Types - Credit/Debit Card — Instant processing, immediate confirmation - ACH Bank Transfer — Takes 3-7 business days to process. Status shows as "Processing" until the bank confirms What Happens After Payment - The payment appears in the rental's payment history - The rental balance is reduced by the payment amount - A receipt can be sent to the renter - The payment is recorded in your Reports → Payments Partial Payments You can take partial payments. The remaining balance stays on the rental. Take additional payments at any time until the balance is $0. Frequently Asked Questions Can I charge more than the rental balance? Yes. Charging more than the balance creates a credit on the rental. This can happen when collecting a deposit in advance of finalizing line items. What if the payment fails? The system shows the failure reason (insufficient funds, declined, expired card). Ask the renter for an alternative payment method. Are payments refundable? Yes. See the "Issuing a Refund" article for how to process refunds.

Last updated on Jul 08, 2026