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Guests pay in full when they book, directly into your own Stripe account. If a guest cancels more than 48 hours ahead, they're refunded minus a card processing fee (currently 3 percent), which covers the card fee Stripe doesn't give back, so you aren't out of pocket. Inside 48 hours there's no refund. If you, or the weather, cancel at any time, the guest is refunded in full and WaterLynk gives back its own fee.

Because the money goes straight to your Stripe account, WaterLynk doesn't hold it. Any refund beyond these rules comes out of your balance. If you ever lose a payment dispute with a card company, WaterLynk refunds its own commission on that booking.

The guest messages you through WaterLynk. If you agree, cancel the old booking and choose "The angler can't make it or asked to reschedule, and I'm refunding them in full." The guest gets everything back, including the card fee, WaterLynk returns its own fee, the date reopens, and you absorb Stripe's fee. Then the guest books the new date.

It's your call. Inside 48 hours you can still say yes, or say no. There's no reschedule button for now; we'll build one if guides ask for it.

Wait 30 minutes past the start time and try to reach the guest by message and phone. A guest who arrives within that window gets whatever time is left on the trip; the trip still ends at the planned time. After 30 minutes it's a no-show: mark the booking as a no-show after the trip, and you keep the full payment.

If you'd like to be generous, you can refund a guest yourself. For a booking the guest already cancelled inside 48 hours, or a no-show, use the Refund button on the booking, up to 7 days after the trip date. The guest gets everything back including the card fee, WaterLynk returns its own fee, and you absorb Stripe's fee. Nothing stops you from waiting longer or agreeing a refund with the guest.

Your safety and that of everyone aboard come first, and you can always say no. Don't take the trip out if you don't feel it's safe. Stay calm and polite, explain that you can't take them today, and keep a record: afterward, mark the booking as a no-show and note briefly what happened. The guest is not owed a refund when you refuse for safety reasons.

If a guest becomes threatening, call local authorities first, then let us know. If you refuse for something other than safety (a bad mood or a better offer), that's handled as a guide cancellation with a full refund.

You decide. You never have to take anyone who isn't on the booking, and there's no refund for the extra people. If you're willing, ask the guest to rebook for the larger group through WaterLynk so everyone is covered by the waiver and your insurance. Each trip has a maximum guests limit that you set, and the booking form enforces it.

Don't collect extra money in cash for the trip price: it falls outside the platform and the protections that come with it.

Not for the trip price. The price a guest agreed to when booking is the price, and asking for more is a breach of your Guide Platform Agreement. Optional extras the guest chooses (a tip, a lunch, a gear rental) are fine and are the guest's to give. If a guest offers to "pay the rest in cash," please decline and point them back to WaterLynk.

You do. A weather or safety cancellation is always a full refund to the guest. Please decide as soon as it's clear, ideally the evening before, and never leave a guest waiting at the ramp. When you cancel, pick the reason (weather, mechanical or other). We can see each guide's history, and a guide who cancels for weather unusually often will get a conversation from us.

A guest can't cancel for weather alone, though they can always ask you to cancel. If you cut a trip short after it has started, we recommend offering a fair partial refund or a rebooked trip, but it's your decision.

Guests should report within 48 hours. We'll contact you and give you 3 days to respond. Not catching fish, normal seasonal weather and a quiet river aren't grounds for a refund, because you sell your time and skill.

If the report is about what was promised (the boat, trip length, listed inclusions or safety), we'll ask you for your side and encourage a fair fix: a partial refund, a credit or a rebooked trip. If you don't respond, or the listing was clearly misleading, WaterLynk may refund the guest and recover it from your balance. This is covered in the Guide Platform Agreement.

If you don't show up for a booked trip, the guest is refunded in full including the card fee, taken from your balance. Two verified no-shows means your profile is suspended until we've talked.

Yes. Sign in, open your profile settings (the Contact & alerts tab), and use "Your data" to ask for a copy of the information we hold about you, or to ask us to delete your account. A person on our team handles each request and replies by email, and may ask you to confirm it's you.

If you have upcoming bookings, they may need to be cancelled first. We may keep records we need for legal, tax and dispute reasons, such as bookings, payments and signed waivers. You can also write to support@mywaterlynk.com.

Use "Report this review" under the review on your public page, and tell us what's wrong (not a real customer, abusive, shares private information, or false claims). A person on our team looks at each report, and you can also write to support@mywaterlynk.com.

Reviews should reflect a genuine experience. We take down reviews that break the rules, such as fake or abusive ones, but a review isn't removed just because it's critical or because you disagree with it.