When you're issuing refunds to customers, Xola uses your account balance to fund those transactions. If your available balance isn’t sufficient to cover the refund amount, the refund attempt will be rejected, leading to a delay and potential frustration for both you and your guest.
To prevent this, Xola offers the Refund Reserve feature — a built-in financial safeguard designed to ensure you always have enough funds on hand to process refunds smoothly. This feature automatically sets aside a small portion of your earnings as a reserve, helping to maintain a healthy balance specifically for refund scenarios.
By enabling Refund Reserve, you reduce the risk of failed refunds, improve the guest experience, and maintain a seamless payment operations flow. It’s a simple but powerful way to maintain financial stability and customer trust, even during high-volume or high-return periods.
User Access: Admin roles have access to set up the Refund Reserve in Xola.
Accountant roles can view how much is in the Refund Reserve in Xola.
To grant access to users, click here.
What is covered in this article:
- How the Refund Reserve Works
- How to Set or Adjust Your Refund Reserve
- Understanding Reserved Transactions
- Refund Reserve Confirmation Email
- Refund Reserve FAQs
How the Refund Reserve Works
The Refund Reserve sets a minimum balance that you want to keep in your Xola account. This ensures you can issue refunds - even if new revenue is low or delayed.
Why it matters
- Every time you process a credit card refund, Xola deducts that amount from your balance.
- If your balance isn’t high enough, the refund fails.
- By reserving funds ahead of time, you reduce the risk of rejected refunds during high-cancellation periods.
Example: If your current balance is $100 and you try to refund $120, the refund will fail. But if you’ve set a Refund Reserve of $200, Xola will hold enough funds back from payouts to ensure you always have at least $200 available in your account.
How to Set Up or Adjust Your Refund Reserve
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Go to Reports > Payouts.
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Locate the Refund Reserve amount at the top of the page (defaults to $0 if never set).
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Click Adjust Refund Reserves.
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Enter your desired minimum balance.
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Click Save to confirm.
The Amount available to payout will reflect your current balance minus the refund reserve.
Understanding Reserved Transactions
Xola decides which transactions to reserve just before a payout cycle begins.
Here’s how it works
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If a payout would drop your balance below your desired reserve, Xola holds enough transactions to meet the required amount.
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Xola prioritizes the oldest transactions first.
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Only credit card transactions are eligible to be held in reserve.
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Transactions are reserved in full, never partially.
- For example, if the reserve is $200 and a $500 transaction is the oldest transaction, Xola will hold the entire $500 in the Refund Reserve. No partial payouts will be done.
Example
Let's say the desired balance is $200, your current balance is $400, and you have 3 transactions to be paid out ($100, $120, and $50).
This brings the expected payout amount to $270 and the balance after payout would be $400-$270 = $130.
Since $130 is less than the desired balance, Xola determines that at least $70 ($200-$130) needs to be held in reserve.
The first transaction of $100 will be held. This will make the new payout amount $120 + $50 = $170.
Refund Reserve Confirmation Email
Any time you adjust your Refund Reserve, Xola sends a confirmation email to the primary account owner.
What triggers an email
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When you edit the Refund Reserve amount
What does not trigger an email
- When refunds are processed
- When Xola adjusts which transactions are held, based on your existing reserve
Refund Reserve FAQs
Is the Refund Reserve stored in a separate account?
No. It's not a separate account. It's a setting that tells Xola always to keep a minimum balance in your account when calculating payouts.
How does Xola choose which transactions to hold?
Before each payout, Xola calculates whether the payout would drop your balance below your set reserve. If so, it holds enough transactions—starting with the oldest—to maintain your desired balance.
What happens if my Xola Balance is $0?
Initially, nothing is held. But when new revenue comes in, Xola will begin reserving funds instead of paying them out until your balance reaches the amount you set as your Refund Reserve.
Will my reports look different?
No changes will appear in your existing Earnings or Payout reports.
Can part of a transaction be held?
No. Transactions are either held in full or not at all. If the oldest transaction is $500 and you only need to reserve $200, the full $500 will be held.
Can I release funds from the Refund Reserve?
Yes. To temporarily release funds:
Set your Desired Balance to $0.
Wait for the next scheduled payout (overnight).
Reset your Refund Reserve the next day.
This allows older held transactions to be paid out.