Booking Page is offering times outside my working hours

Question

Someone has managed to book a slot through my booking link at a time that I don't work. I have checked my working hours within the app and it was 9-5 but someone has managed to book at 8. Why is this and how can I ensure it doesn't happen again?

Answer 1

Thanks! I actually changed it via schedule customisation in the end which I couldn't find before. My screen and options don't seem to look like those. Thank you!!

Answer 2

Hi @Sinead, 

I understand how confusing that must be, especially when you’ve already set your working hours correctly and still see bookings coming in outside of that. 

In most cases, this comes down to how availability is configured in Bookings beyond just your personal 9-5 hours. The booking page can sometimes allow earlier slots if the service itself is set to broader availability, or if it’s not strictly tied to your individual working hours. 

You can try these steps in order to help resolve the issue: 

1. Open the booking where the issue occurs. 

2. Double-check the time zone  

• Under Booking page > expand Region and time zone settings to see if it matches your current time zone.  

• A mismatch there can sometimes make times appear earlier or later than expected. 

3. Change Default scheduling policy 

• Go to Booking page, then expand Default scheduling policy > General availability. 
• If it’s set to something else, change it to “Bookable when staff are free.” 

• Next, go to Services, select the service where the issue occurs, and choose Edit Service. 

• Toggle ON Default scheduling policy > Save changes 

Once those are aligned, the booking page should stop offering times outside your working hours. 

If you still need any further assistance or clarification on any step, please feel free to leave a comment. Thank you again for reaching out! 

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Answer 3

A booking outside working hours usually means one of the Bookings layers (business hours, staff hours, service availability, or time zone) still allows that time. All must align to prevent early/late slots.

Below is a step-by-step way to lock this down.

1. Align business hours and staff working hours

Bookings uses business hours as the default; staff can override them. If business hours or staff hours include 8:00, that slot can appear.

1. Open Microsoft 365 and select Bookings.
2. Choose the correct Bookings calendar (if there are multiple).
3. Set business hours (global default):
   • Go to the business information page (business hours are defined there; see the “Set your business hours” section referenced in the employee-hours article).
   • Ensure business hours are set to 09:00–17:00 for the days worked.
4. Set staff working hours:
   • In the navigation pane, select Staff.
   • Select the staff member who was booked at 8:00.
   • Under Working hours:
     • Either leave Use business hours checked (so they inherit 9–5), or
     • Clear Use business hours and explicitly set Start = 09:00 and End = 17:00 for each working day.
   • Use the + button only if split shifts are needed; avoid adding any block that starts before 09:00.
   • Select Save.

This ensures the staff member cannot be booked outside 9–5 from the staff-hours perspective.

2. Check for days off vs. partial days

If a day was edited (e.g., to mark a day off), it’s possible that a new slot was added incorrectly.

1. On the same Working hours screen for the staff member, verify each day:
   • If a day should be completely off, select the x next to that day so it shows as a day off.
   • If a day should be working, ensure the time range is 09:00–17:00 only.
   • Remove any extra ranges that start before 09:00 or end after 17:00.
2. Verify service-level availability (per service)

Even if staff hours are correct, a service can be configured to allow bookings outside those hours.

1. In the Bookings web app, open the service that was booked at 8:00.
2. Go to Availability options.
3. Check how availability is defined:
   • If Set availability for a different date range is used, review the date ranges and ensure there are no ranges where:
     • Start time < 09:00, or
     • End time > 17:00.
   • For any date range where bookings should not be allowed outside 9–5, set those extra periods to Not Bookable.
4. Save the service.

This prevents that service from exposing early/late slots regardless of staff hours.

4. Confirm time zone behavior

Bookings works in the business time zone by default, but the self-service page can show times in the customer’s local time zone.

From the FAQ:

• All times are configured in the business time zone.
• If Always show time slots in business time zone is unchecked, visitors see slots in their own local time zones.

This can cause confusion:

• Example: Business time zone is 09:00–17:00.
• A customer in a different time zone might see a slot labeled “08:00” that actually corresponds to 09:00 in the business time zone.

To avoid confusion:

• Decide whether customers should see times in their own time zone or in the business time zone.
• If clarity is more important than local-time display, enable Always show time slots in business time zone so everyone sees the same 9–5 window.

5. How to prevent this happening again (summary)

To ensure no future bookings outside 9–5:

1. Business hours: Set business hours to 09:00–17:00 for all relevant days.
2. Staff hours: For each staff member:
   • Use business hours, or
   • Explicitly set 09:00–17:00 and remove any earlier/later ranges.
3. Days off: Use the x to mark full days off; avoid partial ranges that start before 09:00.
4. Service availability:
   • In each service’s Availability options, ensure no custom ranges allow times before 09:00 or after 17:00.
   • Use Not Bookable for any date ranges where no bookings should be allowed.
5. Time zones:
   • Confirm the business time zone is correct.
   • Configure whether the self-service page shows times in the business time zone or the customer’s local time zone, and communicate this to customers if needed.

Once these are aligned, Bookings will only offer slots within 9–5 in the business time zone, and customers will no longer be able to book at 8:00 unless that time is intentionally configured.

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References:

• Employee working hours in Microsoft Bookings
• Configure service availability in Microsoft Bookings
• Shared Bookings Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
• Microsoft Bookings