Rob spent years inside large dental service organizations as a systems architect, watching clinics leave millions on the table through preventable revenue leaks. After advising 50+ clinic owners across dental and allied health and participating in multiple M&A processes, he saw the same patterns repeat across physio, chiro, massage, and acupuncture practices. He built Caretrics to automate what clinic owners were doing manually.
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A written cancellation policy is not a deterrent unless patients know about it. A written-and-enforced policy reduces no-shows by 30 to 50 percent, because patients who know there is a real financial consequence are 2 to 3 times less likely to no-show.
This guide gives you a copy-paste policy template, the three places in Jane.app where it needs to live, and the enforcement workflow that turns about 70 percent of late-cancel fees into actual revenue.
It pairs naturally with the SMS and email reminder setup, which handles the reminder side; this guide handles the consequence side.
Most clinics choose one of three patterns:
| Pattern | Late cancel charge | When it works | |---|---|---| | Strict | 100% of fee | High-demand markets, full waitlist, premium positioning | | Lenient | 25% of fee | Smaller clinics still building patient relationships | | Tiered | First offense: warning. Second: 50%. Third: 100% | Most clinics, most of the time |
The tiered approach is the default we recommend. It signals you take the policy seriously without nuking the patient relationship on the first offense.
CANCELLATION & NO-SHOW POLICY
At [Clinic Name], we value your time and the time of other
patients waiting for appointments.
- Cancellation notice: We require 24 hours advance notice to
cancel or reschedule your appointment.
- Late cancellations: Cancellations made with less than 24 hours
notice may be charged 50% of the appointment fee.
- No-shows: Patients who miss appointments without notice will
be charged 100% of the appointment fee.
- Repeat offenses: After 2 no-shows, we require a credit card on
file to hold future appointments.
- Emergencies: We understand emergencies happen. Please call us
to discuss if you have missed an appointment due to an
unavoidable emergency.
By booking an appointment, you agree to this policy.
Questions? Call us at [Phone Number].
A policy buried in a footer link does not change behavior. Place it in all four spots:
In Jane: Settings → Policies → Cancellation Policy. Then in Settings → Online Booking, enable the policy-agreement checkbox so patients have to actively accept it before booking.
Important: Jane does not automatically charge no-show fees. Charging is a manual step (see Step 4).
The enforcement workflow is the part most clinics skip. Without it, the policy is decorative.
When a no-show happens, do this within 24 hours:
Subject: Missed appointment at [Clinic Name]
Hi [Patient First Name],
We noticed you missed your scheduled appointment on [Date] at
[Time]. We held this time for you, but were unable to fill it
with another patient.
Per our cancellation policy, no-shows are charged the full
appointment fee. You can review the policy here: [Link]
What happens next:
- We have applied a $[Amount] charge to your account
- You can pay online: [Link] or call us at [Phone]
- Once paid, you are welcome to rebook
We understand life happens. If this was an emergency, please call
us to discuss.
[Clinic Name]
About 70 percent of patients pay the no-show fee. The remaining 30 percent typically do not return, but they were the highest-risk patients in your panel anyway.
Once the policy is published and the enforcement workflow is running:
See how much revenue your clinic is leaving on the table
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