Take a layaway deposit and record instalments

This article shows how to sell a piece on layaway: take a deposit today, record instalments as they come in, keep the piece reserved, and hand it over when the balance reaches zero. The balance is tracked on both the sale and the customer’s ledger, so anyone at the counter can see what is owed.

Before you start

• A register is open at your location.
• The piece is in stock at your location with its serial. See Sell a serialised item.
• Your layaway terms written down: minimum deposit, number of instalments, how long you hold the piece, and what happens to deposits if the customer cancels. Print them on the invoice layout (Settings → Invoice settings → Footer text).
• Reminder templates set up in Settings → Notification templates if you want SMS or email reminders.

Step 1: Start the sale

1. Go to Sell (POS) and scan or search the piece.
2. Attach the customer. A layaway always needs a named customer with a mobile number.
3. Apply any agreed discount now. It is harder to change once payments start.

Step 2: Take the deposit

1. Click Pay.
2. In the payment row, enter only the deposit amount, for example 20% of the total, and choose the method (cash, card on your terminal, bank transfer).
3. The Balance shows what remains.
4. Set the Payment status to Partial and the Sale type to Layaway.
5. Enter the Pay term (for example 4 months). This sets the final due date.
6. Click Finalize payment.

The sale is saved as partly paid. The piece is reserved: it leaves sellable stock, so it cannot be sold to anyone else, and it no longer shows as available in your online store.

Step 3: Set the instalment schedule

1. Open Sales → All sales, find the sale and choose Instalments.
2. Choose the Number of instalments, for example 4, and the Frequency (weekly, every two weeks, monthly).
3. The schedule splits the balance into equal amounts with due dates. Edit any amount or date the customer agreed differently.
4. Click Save. The schedule prints on the deposit receipt if your invoice layout includes it.

Hand the customer the deposit receipt. It shows the piece, the total, the deposit, the balance and the schedule.

Step 4: Record a payment

When the customer comes in with an instalment:

1. Go to Customers, open the customer, and choose Pay (or open the sale in Sales → All sales and choose Add payment).
2. Enter the amount received and the method. It can be more or less than the scheduled amount; the balance updates either way.
3. Click Save and print the payment receipt. Every payment gets its own receipt.

Step 5: Chase late payments

1. Go to Reports → Layaway due (or Reports → Customer dues) to see due and overdue balances, filtered by location and date.
2. Click Send reminder on a row, or let the reminder template send automatically a set number of days before each due date.
3. Note calls on the customer record so the next associate knows what was agreed.

Step 6: Complete the layaway

When the last payment brings the balance to zero:

1. The sale’s status changes to Paid.
2. Print the final invoice from Sales → All sales → Print. It lists every payment.
3. Hand over the piece with its certificate and warranty card.

Cancelling a layaway

If the customer cancels, the piece must go back into stock and the money must be handled according to your written terms.

1. Open the sale in Sales → All sales and choose Sell return.
2. Return the item. It goes back into sellable stock at the location, with the cancellation in its history.
3. Choose how to settle the paid amount: refund in full, refund minus your cancellation fee, or keep it as Customer credit (an advance on the customer’s account they can spend later).
4. Save and print the cancellation receipt for the customer to sign.

Check local law before keeping any part of a deposit. Many US states and other markets regulate layaway refunds.

For an overview of the feature, see Layaway & instalments. For pieces being made to order, a quotation with deposits and stages fits better; see Custom orders.

Common questions

Can the customer pay instalments at a different shop? Yes, if both shops are in the same business. The payment is recorded at the shop that took it, and the sale’s balance updates everywhere.

Can I add a second piece to an existing layaway? It is cleaner to start a second layaway sale. The customer’s ledger shows both balances together.

Does the reserved piece still count in my stock report? It no longer counts as available stock, but it appears in the layaway report until it is collected, so a tray count will not show it as missing.