Changing our policy on avoidable Supplier cancellations

Here’s why we’re making these updates.

Updated Dec 07, 2022

Highlights

  • Preventable cancellations hurt customers, Suppliers, and Star Macs, so we’re changing our policy
  • If you cancel for preventable reasons, a fee will be deducted from future payouts
  • Cancellations for valid reasons beyond your control won’t incur fees

As our partners on Star Macs, Suppliers do an incredible job of honoring reservations and going above and beyond to support customers every day. That’s why customers from different area trust complete strangers with their project and machinery used.

But when Suppliers cancel on customers for preventable reasons—like accidentally double-booking—customers lose the confidence to book on Star Macs, and this impacts all Suppliers and hurts our entire ecosystem.

We found that the costs of helping customers finding a similar machinery or better machinery, after a Host cancels for an avoidable reason at last minutes is high and making customer loss of trust when booking on Star Macs.

Changes to our cancellation policy fees

If a Supplier cancels a reservation for a preventable reason, an updated fee will be deducted from future payouts. The fee depends on the reservation amount and how close to start work time the reservation is canceled.

A fee will also apply if a customer is unable to use the machinery because it poses a significant health risk, or because the machinery is substantially different from the listing description, like if a Supplier machinery is a 45Ton but actually is a 20 Ton Crane. These reservations (and other examples below in the “Answers to frequently asked questions” section) will be treated like last-minute cancellations.

The total reservation cost used to calculate the fee includes the rental rate, transport fee, but excludes taxes. For rents 28 days or longer, the reservation cost up to the first 30 days is used to calculate the fee.

  • If the reservation is canceled more than 30 days before start work, the fee is 10% of the reservation amount.
  • If the reservation is canceled more than 48 hours and less than 30 days before start work, the fee is 25% of the reservation amount.
  • If the reservation is canceled 48 hours or less before start work, or after start work, the fee is 50% of the reservation amount for the days not used.

These consequences from the cancellation policy remain the same:

Support when unpredictable events happen

If you have to cancel for unavoidable reasons, we’ll work with you and help your customers find another machinery to rent, without fees. These situations include:

  • A valid reason beyond your control, such as emergency repairs (like a spare part or engine of machine break down causing machinery or equipment fails to perform the functions) or serious personal illness that prevents you from servicing.
  • Proof that a customer intends to have illegal jobs or break supplier machinery or company policy rules.
  • An extenuating circumstance, such as declared emergencies and epidemics or government restrictions.

If you’re not sure if your situation qualifies here, contact us before you cancel. Please remember that you should never cancel for any reason that violates our Nondiscrimination Policy, and any misrepresentations regarding your reasons for canceling can lead to additional consequences.

Answers to frequently asked questions

What type of evidence can I provide if I need to cancel? 
If you have to cancel for a valid reason beyond your control, you’ll be asked to submit proof to Star Macs (admin@starmacs.com.my). For example, you might provide photos, videos, and other documentation in the case of emergency repairs, or a letter from a doctor in the case of serious personal illness.

If you’re canceling because you believe a customer will have an illegal offered works or break break supplier machinery or company policy rules, you’ll be asked to submit evidence to Star Macs (admin@starmacs.com.my).

If you’re not sure if you have a valid reason for a cancellation, contact us first. We’ll work with you to review your evidence together.

Please remember that suspicions about customers having illegal works aren’t always accurate, and you should never cancel for any reason that violates our Nondiscrimination Policy. If you’re concerned your customers may violate the illegal jobs or your machinery or company policy rules, try messaging the customers and asking these follow-up questions:

  • What’s the purpose of your offered job?
  • Can you confirm you’ve read the machinery and supplier company policy rules?

What if my customer and I agree on a cancellation?
If your customer reaches out and asks to cancel their reservation, and you’re comfortable with the cancellation, you won’t be subject to the fees or consequences in this policy.

From there, you’ll have the chance to confirm your customer’s request. If you confirm, neither you nor your customer will be assessed fees or consequences. If you don’t want to approve their cancellation request, your standard cancellation policy will apply to their reservation.

Please keep in mind that it’s a violation of the Supplier Cancellation Policy to encourage a customer to cancel a reservation that you can’t honor.

What happens if a customer cancels a reservation?
Your cancellation policy applies as usual to customer cancellations.

What happens if I have to cancel due to software-booking issues that led to a double-booking?
In case of an issue with our service, Star Macs will waive any associated fees and consequences. If a problem comes from a third-party software provider, and a Supplier needs to cancel a reservation as result, the Supplier will need to provide evidence of the third-party’s incident or outage for consideration when requesting a waiver of any fees and consequences.

Evidence could include (but is not limited to) email communications from a third-party provider regarding an incident or outage, or evidence of a phone call with a third-party provider, along with a summary of that call.