Checking in a repair

STEP 1: Enter the check-in details#

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Customer name and phone number (required)

The phone number works as the customer's record number. For returning customers, entering the phone number shows suggestions, and pressing one fills in the name (with a single item, the type and model from last time are filled in too). For customers with an email address on file, the address is filled in automatically as well

Email address (optional, Standard and above)

If you enter it, estimates and completion notices are sent by email. Enter it for every customer you want to notify

+ Add phone number

Add contact numbers that aren't used day to day, such as a home or family number. Records are grouped under the main phone number

Type of item (required), model, details

Just choose the type. Fill in the model and details as far as you know them

Photos (optional, Pro plan)

Take photos of the item, or of a paper note you've already written, and attach them (up to 6 per item). Tap a photo to open it full-screen and draw arrows or measurements with your finger. "Undo" removes one stroke at a time, and "Save" replaces the photo with the drawn version. With a photo attached, "Repair details" can stay empty. These are your shop's records and are never shown to customers

Serial number (optional, only for shops that turn it on in Settings)

Enter 3 or more characters and items that came in before with the same number appear as suggestions. Choose one to fill in only the empty fields (customer name, phone number, email address, type, model). See "Group repairs of the same item by serial number"

Customer fields

Fields you've added in Settings appear below the phone number (above the email address). When you enter the phone number of a returning customer, the previous values are filled in (nothing appears if you haven't added any)

Item fields

Fields you've added in Settings appear under "Model / details" once you choose the item type (nothing appears if you haven't added any)

Repair details (required unless there's a photo)

Press a template button to fill in preset text, then add any specific symptoms after it. Things that are easier to show than to write, like "take in 2 cm here", can be drawn on a photo instead

Estimate (tab in Repair details)

Use this when you set the price on the spot and the customer agrees to it. Enter a price for each service (the template buttons work here too), and write anything without a price in "Note". The service names and the note become the repair details. When you check in, the final estimate is confirmed and approved, and the repair starts as "In repair" (no estimate message is sent to the customer). The price appears at the top of the STEP 2 screen, and the customer's signature is their agreement to it. The next check-in opens on the tab you chose last. Not available for mail-in or business-client check-ins.

Requested due date and urgent (optional)

If you enter a due date, the row in the list is highlighted in color as it gets close

Rough estimate and estimate settings (optional)

Record a rough estimate here if you gave one on the spot. You can also choose "Cancellation fee applies" and "No estimate approval needed (leave it to us)" here. If you choose leave it to us, the repair moves to In repair as soon as you confirm the final estimate amount, without waiting for the customer's approval, and no estimate notification is sent

+ Add item

If the same customer brings in several items, you can check them all in together, however many there are (they're linked to each other as "Checked in together")

When you've finished entering the details, press "Continue to terms & signature →".

STEP 2: Terms and signature#

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Turn the screen toward the customer and have them read the "Drop-off terms" and tick "I agree to the above". You can change the wording in the "Check-in & jobs" settings.

Press "Tap here to sign" to open a full-screen signature pad. The customer signs with a finger (or mouse), then presses "Done". On an iPad, just hand them the screen. If you collect signatures on a paper ticket instead, tick "Sign on the paper ticket instead (don't sign here)" to skip this step.

Press "Save check-in" to finish. A ticket is created and a ticket number is issued. The signature is saved with the check-in data, and you can view it on the ticket at any time. Saving the check-in itself doesn't send the customer anything.

The completion screen shows "Details / Edit", "Print check-in ticket", "Check in another" and "Go to repair list". When you check in several items, "Print all tickets" also appears.

Printing the check-in ticket (copies)#

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Press "Print check-in ticket" right after check-in or on the ticket, and you get the customer copy and the shop copy. What each copy includes depends on the format (see the list below; the QR code is on Standard and up).

You can choose from four formats. The default is "Receipt + work order" (two A4 pages: page 1 is the receipt you hand to the customer, page 2 is the shop's work order). The others are "Repair intake form" (one A4 page: shop copy on top, customer copy below), "Two-part slip" (A4 split into two A5 halves: customer copy on top, shop copy below) and "Tag (landscape)" (customer copy and shop copy side by side on one sheet). Choose the format your shop normally uses under Settings → "Check-in & jobs" → "Check-in ticket format", where you can see a sample of each. You can also switch to another format for a single print with the buttons at the top of the print window.

Receipt + work order

Page 1, the "Repair receipt" (customer copy), has the check-in details, the full terms, the customer's signature, the QR code, pickup information and a "Note from the shop" box to fill in by hand. Page 2, the "Work order" (shop copy), has the check-in details and storage location, boxes for inspection and work notes, parts used, and work and pickup, and the bottom strip cuts off as a tag for the item

Repair intake form

The shop copy on top has the check-in details, the item's condition at check-in, boxes for work and pickup, the full terms and the customer's signature. Below the cut line is the customer copy (with the QR code)

Two-part slip

The customer copy on top has the check-in details, your shop's contact details and the QR code; the shop copy below has the check-in details and storage location, a work notes box and the customer's signature. The full terms aren't printed

Tag (landscape)

The customer copy has the check-in details, your shop's information and the full terms; the shop copy (a tag you attach to the item) has the check-in details (with every check-in field) and the signature

Regular printer (A4)

Press "Print (A4)" and the print dialog opens right away (on iPad, a PDF opens in a new tab; use Share → Print). Two-page formats come out together in a single print. The paper is A4 (Letter for shops in the US and Canada). With "Print all tickets" for several items, each item is printed on its own page. In the "Tag (landscape)" format, the button is "Print (A4, all on one sheet)" ("Print on a regular printer (A4, all on one sheet)" for shops that use an mPOP): the customer copy and shop copy are printed side by side on one sheet, and when printing several items together only the customer copies are combined onto one sheet

Receipt printer (mPOP)

Only for shops that chose Star mPOP under "Receipt printer (thermal)" in Settings and turned it on. Choose "mPOP" at the top of the print window, then print one slip at a time: "Print customer copy" → "Continue to print shop copy". The iPad needs the free "Star PassPRNT" app and must be connected to the mPOP

Receipt printer (80mm, computer)

Only for shops that chose an 80mm model under "Receipt printer (thermal)" in Settings and turned it on. Choose "80mm" at the top of the print window and print: the customer copy and the shop copy each come out on their own 80mm slip (the length fits the content). Works with a receipt printer (such as MUNBYN) connected to a computer with the printer's driver installed. In the print dialog, set the paper to 80mm and the scale to 100%

The customer copy has a QR code (Standard and above). When the customer scans it, the status page opens; they enter their email address, open the link in the confirmation email and press "Sign up", and from then on the estimate and completion notices are emailed to them automatically (the link is valid for 7 days). You don't need to ask for and type in their address. Hand it over with a quick "Scan this if you'd like email updates." Customers who don't scan it can still check progress by entering their phone number on your shop's status page (the same number they gave at check-in).

Taking a deposit#

When you take part of the repair fee up front (a deposit), record it and "Deposit" and "Balance due at pickup" appear on the ticket, the customer page, the customer copy and the completion slip.

1. 1On the check-in screen, open "+ Took a deposit" and enter the amount and how it was paid (cash, card, e-money and other, or bank transfer). If there are two or more items, it goes on the first one
2. 2If you receive more later, open "Charges & payments" on the karte and add it with "Record payment" (any number of times; change the date for a payment received on an earlier day)

Balance

Once the final estimate sets the price, it shows "total − deposit". Card payment on the customer page also charges only the balance

Sales ledger

Deposits aren't counted as sales. As before, the full sale is recorded on the day you mark the repair as picked up

If the repair is called off

Use "Refund" in "Fees & payments" to record that you gave the deposit back (you can do this before pickup too; owner only)

If you made a mistake

Use "Remove" on the deposit line to delete the record (owner only)

Mail-in and partners

Pressing "Mark as paid" on a mail-in ticket records that amount as a payment. Mail-in and partner tickets with a balance left after handover (shipping) appear under "Unpaid" (open it from the top right of POS, Outsourcing (partners) or Mail-in requests). Enter the amount received with "Record payment" in the list to clear them (Chapters 14 and 15)

Combined billing for partners

Open a partner in Unpaid to print a "Combined statement" (A4). When the payment arrives, enter the amount in "Record payment" and the balances clear from the oldest karte first (you see right away how much each karte clears)

Payment

At POS checkout, deposits, payments and card payments received earlier are listed as minus lines under the total, and you only check out the rest

Check in as a redo#

When an item you've handed back comes back again, for example with the same problem, check it in from the original repair's ticket. The check-in screen opens with the customer and item already filled in, and the new ticket is linked to the original repair.

1. 1Open the original repair's ticket and press "Check in as a redo" (it appears only on repairs that have been picked up). The check-in screen opens with the customer, the item, and the original repair's check-in field values and email address already filled in
2. 2Choose "Under warranty" or "Not under warranty" and enter the reason
3. 3Enter the repair details and check it in the same way as usual

Under warranty

When the shop covers the cost. "No estimate approval needed" is ticked from the start, so you can go ahead without asking the customer to approve an estimate (you can untick it)

Not under warranty

When the customer pays. Estimates work the same as a normal check-in

Link to the original repair

The new ticket shows "Redo · Under warranty" (or Not under warranty) with a link to the original repair and the reason. The original ticket shows "Redos:" with a link. Both progress timelines get one line each

Checking in from a drop-off booking#

Customers can book a time to bring in an item before they come. They send their name, phone number, the item, what's wrong and when they'll come, and you check in from a screen already filled in with the booking. Less time on the phone arranging visits and less asking questions at the counter.

1. 1In Settings > Bookings, mail-in & on-site, open "Appointments", tick "Accept drop-off bookings for new repairs" and press "Save"
2. 2"Copy" the link that appears under the checkbox and share it with customers by LINE, Instagram DM, email or on your website ("Open" shows you what customers see). It's the same link as mail-in repair; if you also take mail-in repairs, customers choose "Bring it to the shop" or "Ship it"
3. 3New bookings appear in Notifications and are listed by day under "Appointments" in the side menu, together with pickup bookings (marked with a green "Drop-off")
4. 4On the visit day, the row shows "Check in". Press it to open the new check-in screen with the booking filled in; check the item, fill in anything missing, get the customer's agreement and signature, and save

Dates and times

Uses the same settings as pickup bookings. Closed days, the closed-dates calendar, how times are chosen and the per-slot limit are shared, and the limit counts pickups and drop-offs together. The calendar shows the number of drop-offs (D) and pickups (P) each day

The customer's copy

After booking, customers see the date and time, the booking number and your address. Customers who entered an email get the same details by email. They can cancel from this screen (you'll get a notification). To change the time, they cancel and book again

If the customer doesn't come

Bookings past their date appear in red at the top of the appointments screen. If the customer didn't come, use "⋯" > "Remove from list (didn't come)" (nothing is sent to the customer). "⋯" also shows the full description and contact details, and lets you call

Closing a day

If you close a day on the booking calendar that has bookings, drop-off bookings are cancelled too and customers are told by LINE or email

Bookings taken by phone

The shop can add them with "+ Add booking" at the top right of the Appointments screen. Enter the date and time, name, phone number, item and what's wrong (optional) and press "Add booking". It appears in the same schedule as customer bookings, and on the day you check it in with "Check in". Nothing is sent to the customer. You can add bookings even when "Accept drop-off bookings for new repairs" is off, and the per-slot limit doesn't block them. The "⋯" menu shows "Entered by the shop"

On-site repair (going to the customer)#

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Take on jobs where you go to the customer to do the work, such as piano tuning or call-out repairs. On the phone you only schedule the visit; when you arrive you check in from that visit and get the estimate and signature on the spot. When you're finished, you mark it done and handed over in one step. No more copying addresses into a notebook, retyping them into a map app, writing estimates and consent forms by hand on site, or re-entering everything back at the shop.

1. 1In Settings > Bookings, mail-in & on-site, open "On-site repair", tick "Accept on-site repairs" and press "Save". If you enter a call-out fee, it's added as a line on the estimate when you check in on site. "On-site" appears in the side menu
2. 2When a customer calls, open "New check-in" and choose "On-site" as the check-in type at the top. Enter the customer, the item and what they told you, the visit address and the visit date, then press "Schedule visit". No ticket is created yet. If the date isn't decided, tick "Date and time not decided yet"
3. 3Visits are listed in the weekly schedule on "On-site" in the side menu. "Next visit" at the top shows today's next visit, and "Map" and "Phone" open your map app and phone directly
4. 4When you arrive, press "Check in". The new check-in screen opens with what the customer told you and the call-out fee on the Estimate tab. Agree on the work and price on the spot, have the customer read the "On-site repair terms" and sign, then register. The ticket starts as "In repair"
5. 5When you're finished, press "Done & hand over" on the ticket. It moves to done and picked up in one step. Because you hand it over in person, no completion notice is sent

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The On-site page

At the top, "In progress" (repairs checked in on site that haven't been handed over yet; tap one to open its ticket) is on the left and "Next visit" is on the right. Below is a Monday-to-Sunday schedule: the line on the left of each visit is colored by staff, and visits are marked "Next", "In progress", "Follow-up" or "Done". Tap a visit to open a window where you can check in, open the map, call, change the date or cancel. Visits past their date that haven't been checked in, and visits without a date, are listed below the schedule

When you can check in

"Check in" becomes available on the day of the visit (so you don't press it by mistake on a future visit)

If it can't be finished on site

Press "Take it back" below "Done & hand over" on the ticket to switch to an in-shop repair (done → notify → hand over). Press "Visit again" and enter the next visit's date to list it on the On-site page marked "Follow-up"

When a follow-up visit is done

When you mark the ticket as picked up, its visits up to today are marked done automatically. For a visit that ended without handing the item over, tap the visit and press "Mark this visit as done"

The customer's copy

Use "Show customer page QR" in the visit box on the ticket and have the customer scan it with their phone camera. The work details and price stay on their phone (instead of a paper copy)

Visit address and staff

For returning customers, entering the phone number fills in the last visit address. Shops with two or more staff can assign a staff member to each visit

Refurb (fixing items you bought and selling them)#

A check-in type for shops that buy broken items, fix them with parts they have, and sell them (all plans). No more entering a placeholder customer name and phone number, going through estimates and approvals, registering the item again on the products screen after you fix it, or adding up each item's cost by hand.

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1. 1In Settings, open "Refurb" under "Bookings, mail-in & on-site" and turn on "Use "Refurb" on New check-in"
2. 2On "New check-in", choose "Refurb" as the check-in type at the top. There are no customer fields, consent or signature. Along with the item type, model and repair details, enter the purchase cost and where you bought it (optional), then press "Save check-in". The ticket starts at "In repair", with "Refurb" in the customer name field
3. 3Pick the parts you used to fix it from inventory under "Parts & work used" on the ticket, then save (type part of a name to see suggestions). The parts' cost is added to the item's cost
4. 4When you're finished, press "Done & add to inventory" on the ticket. You can enter the price here or later on the product screen (if you set a price guide in Settings, it's already filled in). The parts you used are taken out of stock, and the item becomes a product with stock 1 (its category is the "Product category" in Settings, or the item type if that's blank) that you can sell at the POS

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Cost

The purchase cost plus the cost of the parts you used. It goes into the product's cost price. Parts without a cost price aren't included (the ticket shows how many)

When it sells

When you sell it at the POS, the stock section of the ticket shows the date, price and profit (price − cost)

How sales are counted

Sales are recorded as goods when you sell the product at the POS. The refurb ticket itself isn't counted in the sales ledger, the sales dashboard or unpaid balances (so nothing is counted twice)

When the name is already taken

If a product with the same name is already in inventory (for example, when you fix two of the same model), the ticket number is added to make it a separate product

What you can set

Under "Refurb" in Settings you can set three things. Enter a "Price guide" such as 2.5 (times the cost), and the price field for "Done & add to inventory" starts with the cost × that number (rounded up to 100 minor units, e.g. a whole dollar). Enter a "Product category" to use it as the category when items are added to inventory (blank = the item type). Enter "Common sources" one per line, and they appear as buttons under the "Bought from" field on check-in

Add customer fields#

Add fields for things you want to keep for each customer, such as company name or birthday. Each customer has one value per field, and when the same customer comes back the previous values are already filled in, so you don't have to ask again for every repair.

1. 1In Settings, open "Customer fields" under "Check-in & jobs"
2. 2Enter a "Field name" and choose a type (Text, Number, Choice or Date)
3. 3Tick "Required" or "Show to customer" if needed, then press "Add field"

Check-in

They appear in the customer section (below the phone number) for walk-in, mail-in and on-site check-ins. When you enter the phone number of a returning customer, empty fields are filled with the previous values. Checking in with a field left empty doesn't erase the saved value

Customer page

You can edit the values on the customer page under Customers or with "Edit repair info" on the ticket (clearing a field deletes the value). On the ticket they're listed as "Name: value" under the customer's name

Show to customer

Only checked fields also appear on the customer copy, estimate, completion slip and customer page

CSV

The jobs CSV gets one column per field, after the item fields

Preview on the right

A preview of the check-in screen appears on the right. The field you're adding is highlighted, so you can see how it will look at check-in before you add it (on narrow screens the preview appears below)

Delete

Deleting a field that has been used removes it from check-in, and values already entered stay on the customer pages. You can bring it back with "Restore" under "Deleted fields" below. Fields that have never been used are removed completely

Add item fields#

Things you ask at every check-in (string gauge, tuning, a school's asset number, and so on) can become their own input fields. Instead of typing them into the "Model / details" line each time, you just pick or fill them in.

1. 1In Settings, open "Item fields" under "Check-in & jobs"
2. 2Enter a field name and choose its type (Text, Number, Choice, or Date). For Choice, enter one choice per line; for Number, you can add a unit (such as mm). Press one of the examples next to "Start from an example:" (picked to suit your business) to fill in the name, type and choices all at once
3. 3Choose which item types it shows for. For example, show "String gauge" only for guitars and basses
4. 4Tick "Required" or "Show to customer" if needed, then press "Add field"

Check-in

When you choose the item type, the fields for it appear under "Model / details". You can't continue while a required field is empty

Ticket

They're listed as "Name: value" under the item. Change them from "Edit repair info" (required fields don't block saving here)

Show to customer

Only the ticked fields also appear on the customer copy, the completion slip, and the customer page. The shop copy and the ticket show all fields

Search and CSV

Searching the repair list also matches field values. The repairs CSV gets one column per field (a number's unit goes in the column heading)

Preview on the right

A preview of the check-in screen appears on the right. The field you're adding is highlighted, and switching the item type in the preview shows the fields for that type (on narrow screens the preview appears below)

Renaming and deleting

You can change the name and choices with "Edit" without losing values already entered (only the type can't be changed later). Fields you no longer use disappear from check-in when you press "Delete". Values already entered stay on tickets and in the CSV, and you can bring a field back with "Restore" under "Deleted fields" below

Group repairs of the same item by serial number#

For items that have a serial number, such as instruments, smartphones and bicycles, just enter the serial number at check-in and every repair of that item is grouped together. No more searching by phone number or memory for "What did we fix on this instrument last time?" There's no screen for registering items in advance. Just as customers are grouped by phone number, an item page is created as soon as there's one repair with that number.

1. 1In Settings > Check-in & jobs, open "Serial number" and tap the "Ask for the serial number at check-in" switch to turn it on (it's saved as soon as you tap it)
2. 2A "Serial number (optional)" field appears for each item at check-in. As you type the number, items that came in before with the same number appear as suggestions; if it's the same item, choose it
3. 3Choosing a suggestion fills in only the empty fields (customer name, phone number, type, model). Fields you've already filled in don't change

How numbers are matched

Spaces, hyphens and upper/lower case are ignored when deciding whether it's the same item ("sn 12-345" and "SN12345" are the same). The number is kept exactly as you typed it

Ticket

"S/N [number]" and "[n] other repairs of this item" appear under the item. Press the number to open the item page. Correct the number with "Edit repair info"

Item page

The owner (customer), number of repairs, last visit and total sales are shown on one page, together with notes on this item (specs and things to watch out for), the latest values of the item fields, and the repair history. To edit the notes, rewrite them right in the field and press "Save notes"

"Items" in Customers

Once there's at least one repair with a serial number, a "Customer / Items" switch appears at the top of Customers. Switch to "Items" to list items with serial numbers, most recent visit first, and search by number, item or customer name. The customer details page also lists that customer's items

Search, printed copies and CSV

Searching the repair list also matches serial numbers. "(S/N [number])" is added to the customer copy, the tag and the customer page, and a "Serial number" column is added to the job CSV

Redos and import

A redo check-in is filled in with the serial number from the original repair. When you import a ledger that has a serial number column, it goes into the serial number field