Check which terms apply
Use this proposed review method when a business customer reduces a payment. The applicable agreement and current counterparty instructions determine the records, response route and deadlines; this is not a universal submission rule.
UNFI's supplier terms illustrate why applicability matters: payments may be net of deductions, chargebacks and fees. That provision does not prove an individual deduction is correct. Check the governing agreement and transaction.
Gather the minimum records
Start with the invoice, remittance, deduction notice and purchase order. Keep their references separate and preserve the original reason code. If only a total is supplied, request deduction detail before assigning a reason.
- Price or allowance: dated agreement, promotion or allowance record for the order.
- Quantity: ordered, invoiced, packed, shipped and acknowledged quantities in the same unit, with any conversion shown.
- Delivery or routing: shipment reference, applicable instructions and carrier or receiving record. A packing list alone does not show customer receipt.
- All cases: linked credits, prior adjustments and earlier responses; check duplicates before adding amounts.
Build the evidence register
Record the deduction and invoice references, stated reason, amount/currency, applicable terms, evidence file/page, contrary evidence, missing record, disposition and reviewer.
Use explained by supplied records, needs more evidence, or customer review required. Preserve both values when documents disagree. Use the downloadable register below; its columns are working suggestions.
Worked example: a USD 90 gap
Fictional records only. SYN-INV-101 is USD 1,200; the linked remittance shows USD 1,110 paid and USD 90 withheld. An assumed applicable agreement explains a USD 30 allowance. A packing list shows 100 cases; the remaining reason and receipt evidence are missing.
USD 1,200 − USD 1,110 = USD 90. Of that gap, USD 30 is explained and USD 60 remains unexplained. Request the reason detail and, if quantity is disputed, the relevant receiving record. USD 60 is unresolved, not a recovery estimate.
Stop when the evidence is missing
Check dates, references, currencies, duplicate deductions and credits. Record a deadline only from a current applicable notice or instruction, with its source. This checklist supplies no default deadline.
If records do not support an assessment, request them before proposing work. The customer verifies facts and controls every response or submission. Describe the blocker in a nonsensitive inquiry; agree minimum records and a secure transfer route first.