Card payments, deposits, and Stripe Connect
Take card payments for packages up front and deposits on the diary, refund without phoning the bank, and split what each instructor has earned.
What's included
- Stripe Connect Express onboarding for every school
- Deposits when a student books, balance on the day
- Refunds in two clicks, with a reason code
- Per-instructor earnings: what they’ve earned and what’s owed
- Request a payment link by SMS or share it through the student portal
- 2.5% + 20p per lesson payment (2.5% + €0.25 in Ireland), all-in, with Stripe processing included
How to take a card payment for a driving lesson
- 1
Connect the school to Stripe
On first run, click "Connect Stripe" and complete the Express onboarding (KYC, business details). Takes ~5 minutes; once approved you can start charging.
- 2
Send a payment link
Pick a student and a product or amount. Passdesk generates a Stripe-hosted payment link you can send the learner by SMS.
- 3
The learner pays
When they pay, the booking marks paid, the package balance updates, and the instructor earnings entry posts to their cockpit.
- 4
Refund if needed
Open the purchase, click Refund, pick reason. The Stripe refund fires and the audit log records it.
FAQ
Do I need a card reader?
No. Passdesk uses Stripe Connect to send a payment link the student opens on their own phone, so there’s no reader and no contract with a card-machine company.
What are the fees?
2.5% + 20p per payment, all-in (2.5% + €0.25 in Ireland). That covers Stripe's card processing (1.5% + 20p on UK consumer cards), so a £40 lesson nets the school £38.80, and there is no monthly minimum or reader rental.
How are instructor earnings split?
Each instructor has a configurable earnings rate. Passdesk records what they earned per lesson and shows it on their cockpit; the school pays them out of the school’s connected Stripe balance.