Overview
Require timely answer is a Compliance setting on Calendar Schedules and Ad Hoc Slots. When it's ticked, a Checklist finished after the slot's deadline — typically during a grace period — is flagged as answered too late and goes to Awaiting Validation. The user can add an optional explanation for the delay when they finish.
Use it for time-sensitive work where when a Checklist is done matters as much as whether it's done, so late work is explained and reviewed rather than quietly counted.
At a glance |
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Who can do this | Super Users, the Schedule's Owners or creator, or a Role with Schedules › Modify (Schedules › Create for new Schedules) |
Where | Schedules › a Calendar Schedule › Settings › Compliance; Schedules › Ad Hoc Slots › Compliance |
Works on | Backend (web) to set up. Users explain delays in the Mobile app. |
Availability | All organizations |
💡 Why this matters: For pre-opening safety checks, hourly walk-throughs or regulatory rounds, a Result finished 15 minutes late otherwise looks the same as one finished on time. With Require timely answer, late work arrives with an explanation and a Reviewer checks it.
How it works
Checklist finished | With Require timely answer ticked |
Before the deadline | Recorded normally. No prompt, no validation from this setting. |
After the deadline, before the End of grace period | The Deviations screen says "The checklist was answered after the expected deadline." The user can add an Explanation (optional) and photos. The Result goes to Awaiting Validation. |
After the End of grace period | The Checklist is no longer available. If it wasn't completed, it becomes a Missing Result — this setting doesn't change that. |
⚠️ Heads-up: Finishing late is only recorded when Require timely answer is ticked. Without it, a Checklist finished during the grace period is still overdue, but the Result isn't flagged as late and nobody is asked to validate it.
The deadline and grace period come from the slot — see Adding Grace Periods to Schedules and Calendars. Without a grace period, the Checklist can't be opened once the deadline has passed, so there's little room to finish late.
Turn on Require timely answer
1. Open the Schedule
In the Mobaro Backend, go to Schedules, select the Calendar Schedule and click Edit.
2. Open Settings
Click Settings in the Schedule's header.
3. Tick Require timely answer
In Compliance, tick Require timely answer ("Checklists answered too late will be marked as requiring validation.") and click Save.
On an Ad Hoc Slot, the same checkbox is in the slot's Compliance section. To change many Schedules at once, click Toggle Multiselect in Schedules, select them, click Edit › Bulk Change Compliance Settings, and set Require timely answer to Enable.
Review late Results
Late Results wait in Awaiting Validation until a Reviewer, a Super User or anyone else allowed to validate approves or disapproves them — see How to validate Checklists. The Result shows "The result was answered too late." with the expected time, and the user's explanation if they gave one.
Add Reviewers to the Schedule before you turn the setting on. Without Reviewers, only Super Users can validate its Results, and late Results pile up.
To keep an eye on late work, filter Results by Awaiting Validation, or add a Deviation overview widget to a Dashboard with Show results that are answered too late ticked.
Example: a daily pre-opening check
Setup: a coaster's pre-opening inspection is due at 9:00 AM with a grace period until 9:30 AM. Require timely answer is ticked and the ride supervisor is a Reviewer.
On a normal day, the operator finishes at 8:50 AM. The Result is recorded normally.
On a busy day, the operator finishes at 9:18 AM. The app shows the Deviations screen, and they write "Guest incident at the front gate delayed opening procedures by about 20 minutes." The Result goes to Awaiting Validation, and the supervisor reads the explanation, confirms the work was done correctly and approves it.
Over time, the explanations show that delays cluster on weekend mornings, so operations adds staff at the front gate.
Best practices
Use it on Checklists where timing matters, not on every Schedule, so Reviewers aren't flooded.
Pair it with a grace period, so late work can still be finished and explained.
Review late Results within the same shift, while the reason is still fresh.
Frequently asked questions
Can users document a reason for the delay when a checklist is finished late?
Yes, with Require timely answer ticked. When they finish after the deadline, the app's Deviations screen lets them add an optional explanation and photos. The Result goes to Awaiting Validation even if they leave it empty.
Why does this checklist require validation, and how do I turn that off?
A late finish is one cause: untick Require timely answer in the Schedule's Compliance section. Other Compliance settings can also flag Results — see Schedule compliance settings.
The closing checks are too late and I can't see them anymore. Can this setting let staff still finish them?
No. It only flags Checklists finished late within the grace period. Once the End of grace period passes, the Checklist closes. To allow more time, add or extend a grace period — see Adding Grace Periods to Schedules and Calendars.
Can managers still approve the checklist during the grace period?
Yes. A completed Result can be validated at any time, during or after its slot. See Schedule compliance settings.