What is Direct Billing + How to Get It for Your Company
So, what is direct billing and how does it work?
Hotel direct billing puts every reservation on one invoice so your team can book now and reconcile faster later. This guide explains how the credit line, statement cadence, and autopay work to simplify hotel payments and control spend.
Direct Bill is Engine’s straightforward way to pay for hotels and other travel without passing around cards or chasing receipts. Engine fronts eligible hotel, flight, and car rental charges, then rolls everything into one consolidated statement. Finance teams get a single, searchable record of room and tax, fees, and folios for faster reconciliation and clearer project tracking.
Here is how it works. Apply once for a line of credit. After approval, choose weekly, biweekly, or monthly statements. Admins control who can book on Direct Bill and can require project or job codes on each reservation. Travelers book through Engine as usual and charges post to your company account. Turn on autopay from your bank account or pay on the billing date. Add Incidentals Coverage to remove card requests at check in. Folios attach to reservations and are ready to export.
How Can Direct Bill Boost Your Business?
Engine is 100% free to join. Create an account, open Settings, select Billing and Payments, and click Get Started to apply for Direct Bill. Most teams are approved within two to three business days, so you can start consolidating your hotel and travel spending right away.
See for Yourself What Direct Bill Can Do
What is Direct Billing For?
Direct Bill is a line of credit from Engine that pays hotels, flights, and car rentals up front. Your company receives consolidated invoices at set intervals, and you can export folios and statements as CSV or PDF for your accounting system. Many customers pair Direct Bill with Incidentals Coverage so travelers are not asked for a personal card at check in. The result is fewer delays at the front desk and less back and forth after the trip.
Why Finance and Ops Love It
- One invoice for everything. Centralize charges across projects and teams to simplify reconciliation.
- Cash flow friendly. Book now and pay on your statement, with limit adjustments as you grow.
- Fast to approve. Typical approvals are completed in 48 to 72 hours.
- Cleaner close. Export statements and folios, and enable autopay from your company bank account.
- Control and visibility. Real time reporting and user permissions give teams oversight without extra busywork.
How the Billing Cycle Works
Once enabled, Engine fronts eligible bookings and sends your finance team organized statements on a schedule you choose. Statements can be weekly, biweekly, or monthly. Each statement includes the essentials your accounting team expects to see such as traveler name, property, stay dates, taxes and fees, and any project tags you use for internal tracking. You can enroll in autopay so invoices process automatically on your billing date, or you can pay manually if that fits your workflow better.
What Travelers Experience
For travelers, Direct Bill keeps check in simple. They show a confirmation and a government issued ID, and the room and tax are billed to your company account according to your setup. When you add Incidentals Coverage, staff at the front desk do not need to swipe a personal card for deposits. After checkout, folios flow back into your statement and are available for download in a consistent format, which means fewer calls and emails asking people to send receipts.
Controls Your Admins Will Appreciate
Admins can set who is allowed to book on Direct Bill, choose the statement cadence, and configure autopay. You can add and remove users, set basic permissions, and require booking details such as project codes or job numbers so costs post to the right place. If your needs change, you can request a credit limit review and adjust your cadence to match the pace of your projects.
Interested In Applying for Direct Bill?
- Signup for a free Engine.com account.
- In your Engine account, open Settings → Billing and Payments.
- Under Add Direct Bill, select Get Started and submit the application.
- Approval typically lands within 48 to 72 hours. You will receive an email with your line of credit details and billing date.
- Add bank account information, set user permissions, and enroll in autopay. You can start booking on Direct Bill as soon as you are approved.
Who Gets the Most Value
Direct Bill shines for project based, deskless teams that need lots of rooms near job sites and want unified billing without enterprise complexity. If you manage construction crews, field services, logistics, energy, or manufacturing projects, the combination of consolidated invoicing, real time reporting, and traveler friendly check in removes friction at every step. Centralized statements also help finance teams close the books faster and give operations a clear view of spend by project.
Ready to simplify billing? Ask your admin to enable Direct Bill in Settings or talk to our team to tailor limits and statement cadence. Then bundle Incidentals Coverage to remove check in friction for travelers and keep reconciliation straightforward for finance.
Direct Bill FAQs
1) What is hotel direct billing?
Hotel direct billing lets a company pay a traveler’s eligible room and tax on account instead of using personal or corporate cards at check in. Charges roll into a consolidated statement for the company.
2) How does hotel direct billing work on Engine?
Your company applies once for a line of credit. After approval, eligible hotel, flight, and car rental bookings are fronted by Engine and appear on a single statement. Admins choose weekly, biweekly, or monthly billing and can enable autopay.
3) What does “direct bill” mean on a hotel reservation at check in and check out?
At check in, the front desk bills room and tax to your company account according to your setup. If Incidentals Coverage is enabled, travelers are not asked for a personal card for deposits. After checkout, folios attach to the reservation and flow into your statement.
4) How do we submit a hotel direct bill application, and what is required?
Signup for an account, then apply in account settings and provide company details, billing contact, and bank information if you want autopay. A credit review is completed, and most decisions arrive in two to three business days.
5) Do we need a hotel specific direct bill form or contract for each property?
No. You do not complete separate credit forms for individual hotels. Direct Bill works across eligible hotels in Engine once your account is approved.
6) Which hotels support Direct Bill?
Direct Bill is available on eligible properties shown in Engine. Availability can vary by brand and location, so select hotels in the platform to confirm support before you book.
7) How are incidentals handled at hotels with Direct Bill?
By default, incidentals are separate from room and tax. If you add Incidentals Coverage, Engine includes approved incidentals on your statement so travelers are not asked for a personal card.
8) How are hotel invoices and statements delivered, and can we export data?
Statements follow the cadence you choose and include traveler name, property, dates, taxes and fees, and totals. You can export folios and statements to CSV or PDF and use project codes or job numbers for tracking.
9) Can hotel direct billing support long term stays or relocations for crews?
Yes. Direct Bill is designed for project based travel and crew lodging, making it easy to track extended stays, relocations, and multi week reservations under one account.
10) Is hotel direct billing the same as “direct bill” used by insurers like Travelers?
No. Insurance direct bill refers to how policyholders pay premiums. Hotel direct billing is a payment and invoicing method for lodging and travel spend managed by your company through Engine.
