Item Rules define the booking restrictions and conditions that apply to your inventory. Use this guide to understand each available rule and its potential impact on your booking system.
Learn more about Item Rule definitions, including the strict rule definition.
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New to Item Rules? Read the first article in this series for an introduction to the Item Rules feature. |
Accessing the features mentioned in this article
Where can I find this feature using the top menu?
- Inventory > Item Events
What more do I need to use this feature?
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Admin or restricted permissions to View events and rules and Manage events and rules.
Which Checkfront version supports this feature - Classic Items, Classic Products, or both?
- Your account must have access to classic items (Inventory > Items), which is a key feature of our Classic Items version of Checkfront.
Rule Definitions
The following is a list of the rules available to you in Checkfront, along with brief descriptions of what each rule does and how it applies to your booking system.
| Rule | Description | Additional Details |
| Cutoff | Prevents bookings X days before the start date. |
Set to at least 1 if you don't wish to allow same-day bookings. Using the hourly item allocation, a value of 24 represents 1 day (24 hours). Note that the Cutoff rule applies to past bookings if Staff members edit them. |
| Forward Booking Window | Limits how far in the future customers can book. |
This rule limits Customers from booking too far in advance. Fourteen (14) days as a value to this rule means that Customers cannot book 15 days or more ahead of the current date. |
| Maximum Booking Quantity | Limits the number of items per order. | By default, this is the quantity of your item. |
| Maximum Duration Per Item | Sets the maximum allowed booking length for each item allocation. | |
| Maximum Items Per Booking | Limits the quantity of items in a single booking. |
It's important to realize that the Default rule set is always referred to first by the system. If you have multiple Item Events with different rule requirements, then make sure you turn off the Default rules and instead create a new custom rule set for each item event. |
| Maximum Subtotal Value of Item Booked | Limits the maximum subtotal for an item to your default base currency. | This rule applies only to the Default rule set, not to custom Rule Sets. |
| Minimum Booking Quantity | Sets the minimum number of items a Staff member or Customer can book in a single order. | |
| Minimum Duration Per Item | Sets the minimum allowed booking length for each item allocation. | |
| Minimum Subtotal Value of Item Booking | Limits the minimum subtotal for an item to your default base currency. |
This rule applies only to the Default rule set, not to custom Rule Sets. This rule cannot apply to discounts. This feature prevents you from combining the two actions, which would create an endless loop and cause the system to break. The system checks this rule, and the discount applies to adjust the item's price. Since the discount adjusts the price, the item no longer meets the rule requirements, and the discount becomes invalid. Discounts that use this rule are invalid when applied to the booking to prevent the system from crashing. |
| Overbooking Allowance | Total quantity available for overbooking outside the posted availability. |
Not applicable to unlimited quantity items. Applying this rule to Staff only allows staff members to exceed posted availability when booking, while Customers remain restricted to the standard available quantity. |
| Past Booking Window | Allows bookings X days in the past. | Usually applied to Staff members and functions only in the Default rule set, not in custom Rule Sets. |
| Start Day of Week | Restricts bookings to begin on a chosen weekday. |
Defining "Strict"
You may notice a Strict option for the Maximum Duration Per Item rule in the Apply To column.
- Without Strict: The event applies to all eligible dates, even if the item exceeds the max value.
- With Strict: The event is canceled entirely if the item exceeds the max value.
Example
Suppose you have a rental at $10/day with two discounts:
- Rental = $10/day
- Discount A: 1–5 days → 25% off
- Discount B: 6–10 days → 50% off
| Booking | Strict=On | Strict=Off |
| 10 days | 50% off all 10 days | 50% off days 6–10 + 25% off days 1–5 |
The Strict feature in the Maximum Duration per Item Rule provides additional functionality beyond stacking overlapping price adjustments.
Enabling the Strict option means the event price does not apply on any dates when an item breaks the max rule. Without the Strict option, the event applies to all dates under the max value.
< Creating a new Item Rule Set