Table of content

• General Questions
• Eligibility and Setup
• Pricing and Fees
• Coverage and Eligibility
• Claims and Reimbursement
• Payouts and Reconciliation
• Airbnb-Specific Questions
• Troubleshooting
• Still Have Questions?

Find answers to the most common questions about Cancellation Protection, from pricing and setup to claims and payouts.

General Questions

What exactly is Cancellation Protection?

Cancellation Protection allows you to offer travelers a flexible booking option where they can cancel for a full refund (up to 1 day before check-in), while you still receive 96% of your rental revenue. Travelers pay a higher price for this flexibility.

Is this insurance? Am I selling insurance to travelers?

No, you're not selling insurance directly. You're offering a flexible booking option. You remain compliant and don't need any special licenses or authorizations. From your perspective and the traveler's perspective, it's simply an enhanced cancellation policy.

Why would I want to offer this? Won't it encourage more cancellations?

Data from major OTAs shows that flexible policies do not significantly increase cancellation rates, but they do significantly increase booking conversion. Most travelers don't book with the intention to cancel—they simply want peace of mind. By offering flexibility, you attract more bookings overall, and when cancellations do happen, you're protected financially.

Eligibility and Setup

What do I need to be eligible for Cancellation Protection?

Your account must have:

• At least one SmilyPay payment gateway

Each rental you want to protect must have:

• EUR currency assigned
• SmilyPay gateway assigned
• Location in Europe (excluding Russia, Ukraine, Belarus)

Can I use Cancellation Protection if I don't have SmilyPay?

No, this feature is exclusive to SmilyPay. You'll need to set up SmilyPay before you can access Cancellation Protection.

Does Cancellation Protection work on all my booking channels?

No, it's currently only available on:

• Airbnb
• Booking.com

It does not work on your direct website bookings or other OTAs at this time.

I just enrolled. Why isn't protection showing up on my listings yet?

After enrolling, there are a few additional steps:

1. You must enable protection for each rental individually (existing rentals aren't auto-enrolled)
2. Your payment gateway IBANs must be verified and confirmed for each channel
3. This verification is critical for proper reconciliation

Our team will work with you to complete the verification process. Protection becomes fully active once this is complete.

Can I enable Cancellation Protection for just some of my rentals?

Yes! Once your account is enrolled, you can choose which rentals to protect. You have complete control and can enable or disable protection for individual rentals at any time.

Can I turn off Cancellation Protection on Airbnb but keep it on Booking.com?

Yes, for Airbnb only. This is useful because Airbnb only displays the non-refundable discount within 60 days of check-in. If this doesn't fit your strategy for certain rentals, you can opt out of Airbnb protection while keeping it active on Booking.com.

However, if a rental is enrolled in protection, it must remain active on Booking.com—you cannot opt out for that channel individually.

Pricing and Fees

How much does Cancellation Protection cost travelers?

Travelers pay an additional cost of approximately 11-13% of the booking value (excluding city taxes). The exact percentage depends on your account setup:

• 11% net if you have Travelers' Fees enabled AND/OR the rental uses Split Payments
• 13% net otherwise

VAT is added on top of this amount (e.g., with 20% VAT, the gross fee is 13.2% or 15.6%).

Can I earn money from offering Cancellation Protection?

Yes! You can add your own markup on top of the protection fee. For example, if the base cost is 13%, you might add an additional 2% as your commission. Every time a traveler selects the flexible option, you earn this extra revenue. Over time, these incremental earnings can add up significantly.

Why do travelers see two different prices for my rental?

Travelers see two rate options:

1. Flexible/Refundable rate (higher price) - includes the protection fee
2. Non-refundable rate (lower price) - discounted to appear attractive

This gives travelers choice: pay more for flexibility or save money by committing to the booking.

Won't offering a higher "flexible" price drive travelers away?

No—offering both options actually attracts MORE bookings overall. Price-sensitive travelers can still choose the lower non-refundable rate, while travelers who value flexibility will gladly pay extra. You're capturing both segments instead of just one. Properties with flexible options typically see improved conversion rates.

Coverage and Eligibility

When is a cancellation covered?

A cancellation is covered when:

• It's made by the traveler (not you or Smily)
• It occurs between 30 days and 1 day before check-in
• At least 24 hours have passed since the booking was created
• The booking was made at the flexible rate (not non-refundable), through a channel that allows flexible rates.

What if a traveler cancels more than 30 days before check-in?

Cancellations made more than 30 days out are outside the coverage window and not eligible for reimbursement. The flexible cancellation policy applies instead.

What if a traveler cancels less than 24 hours before check-in?

Cancellations within 24 hours of check-in are also outside the coverage window. No reimbursement is available. Could you explain what the “24-hour waiting period” refers to?

If a traveler books and cancels within 24 hours of creating the reservation, the cancellation is not covered—even if it's technically within the 30-to-1-day window.

What if I have to cancel the booking myself?

If you (the property manager) initiate the cancellation, Cancellation Protection does not apply. The protection only covers traveler-initiated cancellations.

What if I don't know who cancelled the booking?

For some Booking.com reservations (~5%), we may not immediately know who initiated the cancellation. In these cases:

• Our team will investigate and contact Booking.com
• We may ask you to confirm
• Once verified, the booking will be marked as eligible or not eligible

You don't need to do anything proactively—we'll reach out if we need your help.

Claims and Reimbursement

How do I get reimbursed when a traveler cancels?

When an eligible cancellation occurs:

1. The booking in your dashboard will show "Claim Eligible"
2. Click the "Submit Claim" link to access the claim form
3. Fill out the form with the requested details (most information is pre-filled)
4. Submit the claim
5. Track the claim status directly in your Smily dashboard

How long do I have to submit a claim?

You must submit your claim between 1 and 60 days after the original checkout date.

Don't wait too long—if you miss the 60-day deadline, you won't be able to claim reimbursement.

How much will I be reimbursed?

96% of the rental revenue is recovered (the amount you normally earn after OTA commissions and fees). 100% goes to the owner and the rest for the property manager.

Refund Split

The split will be the following:

• Owner: Gets 100% of what they were expecting
• Property Manager: Gets 80% of their commission

This way you absorb the 4% difference so the Owner still receives their full payout.

What if I find another guest for the same dates?

Great! If you book another guest for the canceled dates, the reimbursement is automatically adjusted. You'll receive the difference between the original booking and the replacement booking (if the original was higher). You won't receive double payment for the same dates—the protection partner checks for this automatically.

Can I submit a claim multiple times if I made a mistake?

No, you can only submit one claim per booking. Once submitted, it cannot be resubmitted. Double-check all information before submitting.

How can I track my claim status?

Your Smily dashboard displays the current claim status. Possible statuses include:

• Pending: Under initial review
• Ready for Process: Verified and being processed
• To Pay: Approved, payment being prepared
• Closed: Finalized (paid, or closed for another reason such as fraud or out-of-coverage)
• Amendment to Pay: Payment adjustment in progress

Hover over the status in your dashboard to see more details.

When will I receive my reimbursement?

Once your claim is approved (status: "To Pay"), typical processing times vary, but you'll see the status update in your dashboard as it progresses.

Payouts and Reconciliation

How is the Cancellation Protection fee collected?

The fee is automatically deducted from your channel payout (Airbnb or Booking.com). You'll see it as a line item in your completed payouts CSV export.

What if there isn't enough money in my payout to cover the fee?

If deductions or adjustments mean the payout doesn't cover the full protection fee, the shortfall (called a "carry-over amount") is collected from Smily wallets:

• For split payment bookings: From the PM wallet
• For other bookings: From PM wallet (if you have carte G) or Owner wallet (if not)

This ensures the protection partner is paid even when payout reconciliation is complex.

Is this compatible with Split Payments?

Unfortunately, it is not yet compatible, but rest assured that it will be very soon thanks to new improvements.

Does Cancellation Protection affect Split Payments?

No, the protection fee is treated as an acquisition cost (like OTA commission). It reduces the total payout but doesn't change how funds are split between property manager and owner. Your split payment percentages remain unchanged.

How will I be invoiced for Cancellation Protection?

You'll receive aggregated invoices that summarize all Cancellation Protection fees for the billing period, similar to how SmilyPay gateway fees and Split Payment fees are invoiced.

Airbnb-Specific Questions

Why does Airbnb only show the flexible rate for bookings far in advance?

Airbnb's platform only displays the non-refundable discount option to travelers when the stay is within 60 days of booking. For stays more than 60 days away, only the flexible (protected) rate is visible to travelers.

This is an Airbnb limitation, not a Smily limitation.

Can I work around the Airbnb 60-day limitation?

You can opt out of Cancellation Protection on Airbnb for specific rentals if this limitation doesn't fit your pricing strategy. Go to the rental's Cancellation Policy settings and toggle off Airbnb protection (while keeping it active on Booking.com if desired).

Can I still edit my Airbnb and Booking.com cancellation policy manually?

No, once Cancellation Protection is active, you cannot edit the cancellation policy or non-refundable discount percentage directly in the Airbnb app. All changes must be made from your Smily dashboard. You can still view the policy, but editing is disabled to prevent conflicts.

Troubleshooting

I enrolled, but my existing rentals don't have protection. Why?

Existing rentals (created before enrollment) are not automatically protected. You must manually enable protection for each existing rental. Only new rentals created after enrollment are automatically enabled (if they meet eligibility criteria).

A booking shows "eligibility pending verification." What does this mean?

This typically happens when we don't yet know who initiated a cancellation (usually with Booking.com reservations). Our team is investigating, and the status will update once confirmed. You don't need to do anything unless we reach out to you directly.

I can't enable Cancellation Protection for a rental. Why?

Check that the rental meets all eligibility requirements:

• EUR currency
• SmilyPay gateway assigned
• Location in eligible European countries (not Russia, Ukraine, or Belarus)

If any requirement isn't met, you'll see an error message explaining what needs to be fixed.

The protection status shows "Setup pending" on a channel. What should I do?

This means the payment gateway IBAN verification hasn't been completed yet for that channel. Our team will work with you to verify the setup. Once confirmed, the status will change to "Active."

Still Have Questions?

If you can't find the answer you're looking for, contact Smily support. Our Smily team is here to help you get the most out of Cancellation Protection and ensure everything runs smoothly.