Users and roles: invite colleagues, change roles, hand over the account

Rentalbuddy separates two things that are easy to mix up:

The account is your company. Bookings, locations, products, settings and the subscription belong to the account.
A user is one person's login. Several users can sign in to the same account, each with their own email address, password and role.

If a colleague needs access, you add a user to your existing account. You don't create a second account for them: a second account would have its own separate bookings, locations and subscription.

Where users are managed: Settings → Users

Open Settings in the left menu and choose the Users tab: "People who can sign in to this account, and what they are allowed to do."

The list shows Name, Email, Role, Status and Created, sorted by role (owners first). Status is either:

Active: the person has set their password and can sign in.
Invitation pending: the invitation has been sent, but the person hasn't used the link yet.

Account owners see Add User and can click a user to edit them. Account members, Booking staff and viewers can see the list but not change it.

Add a user: the invitation flow

Nobody types a password for someone else any more. You invite the person, and they choose their own password.

Settings → Users → Add User.
In Add new user, fill in Name and Email. Phone Number is optional.
Choose the Role. Account member is preselected. Click a role to see what it can do.
Press Add User. You see User invited, and the person appears with Invitation pending.

The dialog explains what happens next: "The user receives an email with a link to set their password. The link is valid for 1 hour; you can send a new one from the user's edit dialog."

The invitation email (in English) comes from Rentalbuddy. Its subject says who invited them to which account, and its button Set your password opens the page where they choose a password. Completing that page also confirms their email address, and they can sign in straight away. Other account owners get an email that a new user was added.

If the invitation could not be sent, you see: "The user was created, but the invitation email could not be sent. Open the user and choose Resend invitation to try again."

If the address is already in use you see either "A user with this email address already exists." (the person is already on your account; find them in the list) or "This email address can't be invited. If the person believes this is a mistake, ask them to contact support." (the address can't be used on your account, typically because it already belongs to another login). Use a different email address for them, or ask support.

The invitation link expired or never arrived: Resend invitation

The link is valid for 1 hour after it was sent. If the person was too late, or can't find the email:

Settings → Users → click the user (status Invitation pending).
Press Resend invitation. You see "Invitation sent to …".
Ask them to use the new email soon, and to check spam or junk.

Once the person has set their password, the same button reads Send password reset email and sends them a normal password-reset email instead. That is how you help a colleague who has forgotten their password.

If you press it several times in a row, you may see "Too many emails sent recently. Please wait a moment and try again." Wait a minute and try again. There is also a limit on how many invitations one person can send in a short time, with the same message.

The four roles: Account owner, Account member, Booking staff, Account viewer

These are the roles on a normal Rentalbuddy account, in the order the admin lists them, with the descriptions it shows:

Account owner: "Full access to this account." "Runs bookings, products, locations and settings, invites and removes users, and handles billing. Every account needs at least one owner."

Account member: "Everything an owner can do, except users and billing." "Runs bookings, products, locations and settings. Sees users and billing without being able to change them."

Booking staff: "Handles bookings and customers, nothing else." "Creates, changes, moves and cancels bookings, checks customers in and out, registers payments and updates customer details. Sees products, prices, locations and settings without being able to change them, and cannot make refunds."

Account viewer: "Sees everything on this account, changes nothing." "Opens every page and reads bookings, customers, products and settings. Suited to accountants and seasonal staff who only look things up."

In practice:

	Owner	Member	Booking staff	Viewer
Bookings: create, edit, move, cancel, check in and out, register payments	Change	Change	Change	Read only
Customers	Change	Change	Create and edit, not delete	Read only
Products, promo codes, memberships, locations, open dates, locks	Change	Change	Read only	Read only
Refunds	Yes	Yes	No	No
Settings (account, language, emails, payments, taxes, integrations)	Change	Change	Only My profile; Customer flow read-only	Only My profile; Customer flow read-only
Users	Invite, edit, remove	See the list	See the list	See the list
Billing (subscribe, change plan, Billing Portal, VAT number), connecting Stripe and Complete at Stripe	Yes	See only	No	No
Make a test booking	Yes	Yes	Yes	No

Booking staff is for the front desk. They can make bookings (the book button in the top bar and Book for customer), use Edit on a booking (extend, move or a full edit), Cancel, check customers in and out, drag bookings in Booking Management, use Edit Lock on a booking, register payments and send payment links, mark bookings as printed, mark missing attendees in Event Overview, create and edit customers, and use Make a test booking. They cannot:

refund: the Refund button is hidden, and a manual payment with a negative amount or a refunded status is refused,
delete customers,
change products, promo codes, memberships, locations, open dates, locks or settings,
open Gokaya 8E or Allockate doors remotely,
manage users or billing.

Under Settings Booking staff see what a viewer sees: My profile, Users (read-only) and Customer flow (read-only).

Account viewer is read-only everywhere. A viewer opens the same pages as everyone else (home, bookings, booking management, customers, products, locations, promo codes, memberships), but buttons that create, change or delete are hidden. Under Settings a viewer has My profile (their own name, phone and password), Users and Customer flow, the last two read-only.

Pages your role can't save are shown read-only. Viewers everywhere, and Booking staff outside bookings and customers, see the form fields greyed out so nothing looks editable. On locks, the Active switches are greyed out and the edit, sync and delete icons are hidden, as are the remote open buttons. Show Master PIN stays visible to everyone.

If someone opens a page their role doesn't allow, for example from an old bookmark, they are taken back with You don't have access to that page. If the role may open the page but not something on it, the notice is "You don't have access to that"; if it tries an action it isn't allowed, "You don't have permission to do that".

When a login simply expires, the admin renews it in the background without a notice. When a session has been revoked, for example after the user's role was changed, the user is signed out and sent to the login page.

Edit a user or change their role

Settings → Users → click the user (or the edit icon).
Edit user shows the User ID and Created date. Change Name, Phone Number or Role, and press Save. You see User updated.

Things to know:

The email address can't be changed here. The email identifies the login. If a colleague needs a different address, invite the new address and remove the old user, or contact Rentalbuddy support.
When you change someone's role, they are signed out and get an email "Your role on … was changed". They sign in again, and the new role applies.
You can't change your own role. On your own user the role picker is locked: "You cannot change your own role. Ask another owner."
You can only give roles your own role allows on this account. Other roles aren't offered.

Remove a user

Settings → Users → the delete icon on the user's row.
Confirm Delete user? ("Are you sure you want to delete this user?") with Delete user. You see User removed.

The person's login stops working and they get an email that their access was removed. Their bookings, changes and everything else on the account stay. There is no "suspend" state; removing is how you take someone's access away the same day. You can invite the same address again later.

The delete icon is not shown when removal isn't allowed:

You can't remove yourself ("You cannot remove yourself. Ask another owner.").
The last owner can't be removed or demoted. "An account needs at least one owner. Make someone else an owner first." When you edit the only owner, the role is locked with "This user is the account's only owner, so the role stays as it is. Make someone else an owner to change it."

Inviting users needs an active subscription (trials don't count)

Inviting and managing users is a paid feature. On an account without an active paid subscription, the owner sees this on the Users tab, with a Billing button:

"Inviting and managing users is available once the account has an active subscription. Until then you can see who has access."

Add User, editing and removing are hidden until then.

A free trial does not count. Subscribe first (see the account settings guide), then invite your colleagues.
A subscription whose payment has failed does not count either, until the payment has gone through.
Accounts that are invoiced, or billed through a partner, count as paid.

Viewing the user list is always possible.

When the account needs a plan and you're not the owner

Only an account owner (or a partner owner) can choose a plan and add billing. If the subscribe dialog or the billing-expired dialog opens for anyone else, it says: "Only your account owner can choose a plan and add billing. Ask them to do it, and you can carry on as soon as the account is active." If the dialog can't be closed, it offers Log out.

For the same reason, the trial banner's Subscribe button is hidden for users who can't handle billing, Need more time? only shows for users who can change settings, and the button to the Stripe billing portal on a payment-failed banner is hidden for them.

Emails people get about their access

All of these are sent in English by Rentalbuddy:

When	Who gets it	What it says
A user is added	The new user	The invitation with Set your password (valid 1 hour)
A user is added	Every other account owner	"New user on {account}: {name}"
A role is changed	That user	Their new role, and that they must sign in again
A user is removed	That user	Their login no longer works
Send password reset email	That user	A normal password-reset email

Hand over the account to a new person (new owner, chairman or manager leaving)

When the person who ran Rentalbuddy leaves (a new chairman, a new manager, a new season worker in charge), do the handover while the old owner can still sign in. It touches three systems: Rentalbuddy, Igloohome and Stripe.

In Rentalbuddy (the old owner does this):

Settings → Users → Add User: invite the new person as Account owner. The account needs an active subscription for this.
The new person opens the invitation and sets their password within the hour (Resend invitation if they miss it).
Settings → Account: update Contact Person Name, Phone Number and Account Contact E-mail.
Settings → Billing: update Email address for receipts & invoices, and change the payment card in the Billing Portal if the old owner paid with their own card.
The new owner signs in and removes the old owner under Settings → Users, or changes them to Account member or Account viewer. The old owner can't remove themselves.
Check each location's Location email and Location phone (Locations → the location → Location & Contact Details): those are the contact details your customers see.

In Igloohome (vendor side): your locks are paired to one Igloohome account, and Rentalbuddy is connected to that account. The new person needs access to that same Igloohome login, not a new one. A different Igloohome account doesn't have your locks. How to change the email or owner of an Igloohome account is up to Igloohome; check their help. After a change, you can connect again under Settings → Integrations → Connect with Igloohome app. The Igloohome setup guide has the details.

In Stripe (vendor side): the Stripe account your bookings are paid into belongs to whoever created it. Give the new person access in the Stripe Dashboard, and change the bank account or legal representative there if needed. How to do that is Stripe's, so check Stripe's own help. Only an account owner (or a partner owner working in the account) can connect Stripe in Rentalbuddy.

If the old owner has already gone and nobody left can sign in as an owner, contact Rentalbuddy support to have an owner added.

Partner roles: Partner owner, Partner member, Partner viewer

Partners (resellers who look after other companies' Rentalbuddy accounts) have their own partner account, with three extra roles:

Partner owner: "Owner on every managed account, and on the partner's own account." It can step into any managed account to handle bookings, products, locations, settings, users and billing. Refunds stay with each account's own owners and members.
Partner member: "Member on every managed account, and on the partner's own account." Users and billing are view-only everywhere, and refunds stay with each account's own owners and members.
Partner viewer: "Viewer on every managed account, and on the partner's own account." Changes nothing anywhere.

Partner roles can only be given on the partner's own account. On a customer's account, a partner owner can appoint the customer's own Account owner, Account member, Booking staff or Account viewer. A partner owner may even appoint a customer owner who can refund, although the partner can't refund itself. On their own account a partner can also use the plain account roles, Booking staff included, for staff who should only work on the partner's own account.

What partner users see:

Accounts in the left menu, listing the accounts they manage. Clicking an account opens its settings, including its Users tab. More about the list below.
Impersonate account to work inside a customer's account (see below).
In the Location picker in the left menu, locations are grouped into Your locations and Other accounts.
View for all accounts on the Locations and Customers lists (not while you impersonate). It is on by default and shows every account you manage; switched off, you see only the account you are signed in to. The choice is remembered in this browser.
For customers the partner bills itself, Partner settings on the customer's Billing tab sets the plan and limits (Type, Payment status, Locations Limit, Locks Limit); see the account settings guide.

The Accounts list and its Columns picker

The Accounts list shows the accounts you manage, with the company, contact person, account type, payment status, billing provider and lock and location usage. Use Columns above the list to choose what it shows: Logo, Created, Account ID, Contact, Email, Phone, Country, Currency, Disabled, Account Type, Payment status, Provider, Locks and Locations. Company is always shown. Created, Country, Currency and Disabled are off until you switch them on, and Reset to default brings back the standard set. Your choice is remembered in this browser only.

Accounts that Rentalbuddy has deactivated are hidden until you switch on Show disabled accounts ({count}), and are marked Disabled.

Your search, filters, sorting and page on the Accounts list are kept in the page address. Open an account and use the browser's Back button to return to the list exactly as you left it; you can also bookmark the filtered list or send the link to a colleague.

Partners can't create, deactivate or delete accounts. To add a new customer account, or to have one switched off or back on, contact Rentalbuddy.

Work inside a customer's account: Impersonate account

Press Impersonate account under the Location picker in the left menu. It is only there when you have another account to switch to.
Choose account to impersonate opens. Search by company, contact name, email or account id, and press Impersonate on the account. Deactivated accounts are only listed when Show disabled accounts ({count}) is on.
You can also use the impersonate icon (Impersonate this account) on a row in Accounts.

While you are inside the account, a banner at the top shows Impersonating account: {name} with Stop, the menu shows Impersonating account with Stop, and the Location picker lists only that account's locations. My profile is hidden under Settings while you impersonate. Press Stop to return to your own account. Impersonation also ends by itself after 8 hours.

For partner users the paid-subscription requirement is checked against the partner's own account rather than the customer's, so a partner can normally set up users on a customer account that is still on trial.

A customer whose account is managed by a partner sees that on the Billing tab. See the account settings guide.

Log in and forgotten password

The login page asks for Email address and Password; press Log in.

If you have forgotten your password (often asked in a hurry, standing at the station):

On the login page, press Forgot your password?
Enter your email address and press Send Email.
The confirmation screen says a secure link has been sent "if an account is registered under it". The link expires in 60 minutes. Check spam or junk if it doesn't arrive, and check that you typed the address your login was created with.
Open the link and choose a new password.

An account owner can also send you a reset from Settings → Users → your user → Send password reset email.

If you are signed in and just want a new password, use Settings → My profile → Change password.

If sign-in is refused with "Email address not verified, sign-in forbidden. Please check your email for a verification link.", the address has never been confirmed. For an invited colleague, the fix is Resend invitation; completing the new link confirms the address.

Common questions

How do I add a colleague so they can log in with their own login? Settings → Users → Add User, enter name and email, choose a role and press Add User. They get an email with a link to set their own password.

Why can't I see Add User? We are on a trial. Inviting users needs an active paid subscription, and a trial doesn't count. Subscribe under Settings → Billing, then invite. If you do have a subscription, your role may be Account member, Booking staff or Account viewer; only owners manage users.

My colleague says the invitation link doesn't work. The link is only valid for 1 hour. Open the user under Settings → Users and press Resend invitation.

Is there a read-only login, for our accountant or seasonal staff? Yes: Account viewer sees every page and changes nothing.

Can staff do everything except billing and users? Yes, that is Account member. Members run bookings, products, locations and settings, and can see users and billing without changing them.

Is there a role for front-desk staff who should only handle bookings, not prices or products? Yes: Booking staff. They create, change, move and cancel bookings, check customers in and out, register payments and edit customers, but can't change products, prices, locations or settings, and can't refund.

Can Booking staff make refunds or delete customers? No. The Refund button is hidden for them, and deleting customers stays with owners and members.

Why are all the fields greyed out on a page? Your role can see that page but not save it, so the fields are shown read-only. Ask an account owner if you need to change something there.

My colleague is told "Only your account owner can choose a plan and add billing". Only account owners can subscribe or add billing. Ask the owner to do it; your colleague can carry on as soon as the account is active.

Why can't I change my own role or delete myself? Nobody can. Ask another owner. If you are the only owner, make someone else an owner first.

Our chairman is leaving. How does the new person take over? While the old owner can still sign in: invite the new person as Account owner, update contact and invoice emails, then the new owner removes or demotes the old one. Hand over the Igloohome and Stripe logins on their side as well.

I'm a partner. How do I get into my customer's account? Press Impersonate account under the Location picker, search for the customer and press Impersonate. Stop takes you back; it also ends by itself after 8 hours.

I'm a partner. How do I add a new customer account? Partners can't create accounts themselves. Contact Rentalbuddy to have the customer account created and linked to you, then set up its users.

Can I choose which columns the Accounts list shows? Yes, with Columns above the list. Reset to default brings back the standard columns, and the choice is remembered in this browser.

I'm a partner. My search on the Accounts list is gone when I come back from an account. Use the browser's Back button: the list keeps your search, filters and page in its address. Clicking Accounts in the menu opens a fresh list.

Can we use the same email for two Rentalbuddy accounts, or a second company? No. One email address is one login on one account. A separate company that invoices separately needs its own account and its own logins, because company details, payments, taxes and billing all belong to the account.