Waivers let you collect legal acknowledgments from every guest who takes part in a risky activity. They are digital, trackable, and linked to the right customer record. This guide covers how to switch waivers on, design your template, share the signing link, check status at the door, and link signed copies to bookings.
1. What waivers are, and the core rules
A waiver is a liability release form your customers sign before an activity (climbing, karting, kids' play, trampoline, axe throwing, etc.). Smeetz waivers are fully digital.
Four things to know before you set anything up:
Waivers work with or without an order. A guest can pre-sign days before visiting, sign on-site with no booking, or sign from a booking email. You are not forced to tie a waiver to a booking at signing time.
Signing is never a checkout blocker. The booking flow stays unchanged. Waiver prompts appear after payment, in the confirmation and in the email, never as a gate before paying.
One active template per organiser. You can edit it any time, but past signed waivers keep a snapshot of the exact version they signed, so they never change retroactively.
Waivers expire. You choose how long a signature stays valid (for example 12 months). Expired waivers are stored permanently for audit, but treated as invalid at check-in.
2. Turn waivers on for your organiser
📌 How to access: app.smeetz.com > Settings > Waivers
Waivers are controlled by an organiser-level toggle. When it is off:
You cannot require waivers on products or tickets.
Booking emails do not include waiver prompts, but the customer is prompted to sign the waiver in a separate email sent after the booking is finished.
When you enable it, Smeetz uses your active template (or walks you through creating one if you haven't yet). Waiver entry points (hosted page, widget, QR) become available, and staff can start checking waiver status at the door.
3. Create and publish a waiver template
📌 How to access: app.smeetz.com > Catalogue > Waivers > View waiver templates
The template defines what your customers see and sign.
The Waiver templates panel, opened from Catalogue > Waivers > View waiver templates. The toggle next to each template marks it active.
3.1. Waiver content
Write your terms, medical clauses, and consent statements in rich text. You can add acknowledgment sections: explicit checkbox statements the guest has to tick before they can submit. Default wording is pre-filled; adapt it to your venue's legal needs.
3.2. Identity fields
For every field, choose one of three states:
Visible: shown but optional.
Optional: shown and skippable.
Required: blocks submission until filled.
Fields always required: First name, Last name, Email, Date of birth.
Fields you configure: Phone, ID number, Address.
⚠️ Age rule: the adult signer's DOB must be 18+. Guests under 18 cannot sign for themselves. They must be added as minors under an adult.
3.3. Minor dependants
Turn this on if adults at your venue sign on behalf of children. Once enabled, the signer can choose "Just me" or "Me and minors" and add multiple minors under the same waiver. Each minor is captured with first name, last name, DOB, and optionally an ID number.
✅ One adult can cover all their minors with a single signature. If the same minor returns later with a different adult, a new waiver is required under that new guardian.
3.4. Signature method
Choose one:
Drawn signature: guest signs on a touchscreen canvas. Best for tablets at reception.
Checkbox: a single "I agree" box. Best for quick online flows.
3.5. Marketing opt-in (optional)
Add a marketing consent checkbox to the signing form. The label is configurable. Consent is stored on the customer's profile and can be filtered in your customer list later.
⚠️ The marketing box is never pre-checked. Compliance requires an explicit opt-in.
3.6. Expiry duration
Set how long a signed waiver remains valid from the moment of signing (for example 1 year). The expiry date is shown on the signed copy and on the PDF.
3.7. Publish, edit, replace
Only one template is active at any time. You can:
Edit the active template: changes apply only to new signatures from that point on.
Replace the active template with a new version. Again, only new signatures use the new version.
View any past signed waiver with the exact content it was signed against.
4. Share the signing link with your customers
Waivers can be signed from six entry points. Your template generates all of them automatically.
Booking confirmation email: when an order contains a waiver-required item, the email includes a "Waiver required, sign before arrival" section with a CTA button and a fallback URL. Email prefill works too (
?email=,?order_id=).Booking confirmation page: post-payment, a non-blocking prompt with the signing CTA.
Hosted signing page: a public URL on Smeetz of the form
https://waiver.smeetz.com/en-US?tempid={template id}. Share it anywhere: own emails, SMS, printed materials.Website widget: a button you embed on your own website. Opens the hosted signing page.
QR code: automatically generated at organiser level. Print it at reception, display on a tablet, stick it on kiosks. Staff can also generate per-guest QR codes pre-filled with email or order id.
Staff-shared link: any staff member can email or SMS the signing link from the back-office to a guest on the spot.
All entry points load the same active template and support locale switching.
5. What the customer experiences
Regardless of the entry point, the flow is:
The waiver content is displayed in full, readable on mobile.
The guest fills required identity fields.
The guest chooses "Just me" or "Me and minors" and adds minors if applicable.
The guest ticks all required acknowledgments.
The guest optionally opts in to marketing.
The guest signs (checkbox or drawn signature, depending on your template).
A success page confirms the waiver was received and shows a QR of the signed copy.
A PDF copy is emailed to the address provided.
The customer-facing waiver form, filled with identity fields. The + Add dependent button lets the signer add minors before continuing to sign.
Success page after the guest signs, with the "A signed copy has been sent to …" message and a QR for staff to scan.
The signed-copy email with the Download your waiver (PDF) button.
✅ Signing a waiver automatically creates or updates the matching customer record (by email match). No duplicates are created. Minors are stored on the waiver record only and do not become separate customer records.
6. Check waivers at the door (POS & on-site)
This is the operational half of the feature: what your staff does at the gate.
6.1. Waiver status at check-in
📌 How to access: Point-of-sale > open the booking / scan the ticket
When staff scan a ticket or open a booking, the POS shows the guest's waiver status:
✅ Signed (valid): let them in.
⚠️ Signed (expired): signed previously but past its validity window. Treat as invalid.
❌ Not signed: staff can block entry, send the signing link by email, or display the QR code to resolve it on the spot.
6.2. Look up any waiver from the back-office
📌 How to access: app.smeetz.com > Catalogue > Waivers
Staff can search all signed waivers by email, name, or phone. Opening a record shows who signed, the minors included, the signature method, the signed and expiry dates, and the signed PDF.
Use filters to browse by:
Waiver template
Customer
Signed date
Expiration date
Status (Valid, Expired)
7. Link a signed waiver to a specific booking
For walk-in guests or POS-created bookings, the waiver and the booking are not automatically connected. You link them yourself so the booking's record shows the waiver on file.
7.1. Create the booking in POS
📌 How to access: app.smeetz.com > Create > Create a sale
Create or search the customer.
Select the product and ticket type.
Pick date, time slot, quantity.
Add a payment, then Complete order.
Booking confirmed dialog after completing a POS sale.
7.2. Link the signed waiver
📌 How to access: Order > Waivers tab
Open the order from Orders > Completed orders, or use the link in the booking-confirmed dialog.
Click Waivers in the order's left menu.
Click Add waivers.
Search by customer name, waiver title, or date.
Click Link on the matching row.
The Add signed waiver search dialog.
⚠️ Only waivers signed against the same organiser appear here. If you cannot find the one you need, double-check the guest signed against the correct template.
7.3. Verify the link
The waiver now appears on the order's Waivers tab with waiver id, customer name, signed date, and an Unlink action if you need to undo.
Waivers tab showing one linked waiver with the Unlink action.
8. Good to know
Versioning is automatic. Every signed waiver stores a snapshot of the template text and fields as they were at signing time. Future edits never rewrite history.
Expired waivers stay stored. Kept permanently for audit, but considered invalid at check-in.
Customers are created from signatures. A guest who signs without ever booking still shows up in your customer list.
Marketing consent lives with the customer. Opt-in from a waiver appears on the customer's profile and is usable in your marketing segments.
Reminder emails for expiring waivers are on the roadmap for a future release.
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