How It Works
Customer Approves Quote
After the electrician provides a quote through Sparky, the customer reviews it in the app. The quote includes the electrician's price plus Sparky's transparent 10% service fee.
Payment Hold
When the customer approves, the full amount (quote + fee) is held on their card via Stripe Connect. The money isn't transferred yet — it's securely held to guarantee payment for the electrician.
Work Completed
The electrician carries out the work. Once the job is marked as complete, the process moves to the review phase. Both parties can confirm the job was done satisfactorily.
24-Hour Review Period
After job completion, there's a 24-hour review window. This gives the customer time to raise any issues before the payment is finalised. If everything's fine, the process continues automatically.
Automatic Payout
After the review period, the electrician's full quoted amount is automatically paid out to their connected Stripe account. No invoicing, no chasing — the money just arrives.
Benefits for Electricians
- Guaranteed payment — the customer's card is charged and held before you start work, eliminating the risk of non-payment.
- No invoicing or chasing payments. Sparky handles the entire payment flow automatically.
- You receive your full quoted amount. The 10% service fee is added on top and paid by the customer, not deducted from your earnings.
- Automatic payouts to your bank account via Stripe Connect — the money arrives without you lifting a finger.
- Professional payment experience builds trust with customers and makes your service look polished.
Benefits for Customers
- Transparent pricing — you see the electrician's quote and Sparky's 10% service fee clearly before you approve.
- Your payment is held securely, not transferred immediately. You're protected during the work and review period.
- 24-hour review period after job completion gives you time to flag any issues before final payment.
- No cash needed on the day. Everything is handled digitally through the app with Stripe's bank-grade security.
- Clear payment history and receipts for all your electrical work, accessible any time in the app.
Under the Hood
Sparky's payment system is built on Stripe Connect with a hold-then-capture model. When a customer approves a quote, a PaymentIntent is created with `capture_method: 'manual'`, placing a hold on the customer's card for the full amount (electrician quote + 10% Sparky fee). The hold guarantees funds are available without transferring them. Once the job is marked complete, a 24-hour review timer is scheduled via Convex's `ctx.scheduler.runAfter`. If no dispute is raised, the payment is automatically captured and a transfer is initiated to the electrician's connected Stripe account for their full quoted amount. Sparky retains the 10% fee-on-top as the platform's application fee. The entire flow is managed by Convex serverless functions with real-time subscription updates so both parties can track payment status live. Stripe webhooks are processed via Convex HTTP actions to handle payment confirmations, failures, and payout events.
