On this page
Quick Overview
A credit request log that connects the receipt shortage, the supplier claim, the credit memo, and the general ledger entry.
A supplier ships four pallets, the receipt confirms three, and the invoice still bills four. If the shortage is noted in an email and never turned into a credit request, the company pays for product it never received. The loss is quiet because no single team owns the gap between receiving, purchasing, and accounts payable.
Start with the receiving evidence
A short shipment is a factual claim, so it needs factual support. Capture the carrier, the trailer, the seal, the purchase order, the packing slip, the counted quantity, and the condition of the load. If the pallet count differs from the packing slip, record the count at the moment of receipt rather than reconstructing it later.
Photographs help when the shortage involves damaged or missing cartons, but they do not replace a counted quantity and a signed receipt. A photo without a count can show that something looked wrong; it cannot show how many units were actually accepted.
Open the credit request before the claim window closes
Supplier agreements often set a window for shortage claims. The log should record the receipt date, the claim deadline from the agreement, the date the request was sent, and the supplier acknowledgment. A request that is prepared but not sent is not a claim.
When the deadline is unknown, treat that as a data gap and ask the supplier or the purchasing owner. Do not assume the standard terms allow an unlimited window. The cost of asking is small compared with writing off a valid shortage because the claim arrived late.
Record the request and the response separately
The credit request and the supplier response are different events. The request record shows what the company asked for and when. The response record shows what the supplier approved, denied, or asked to review. Keeping them separate prevents a denied request from looking like an open claim forever.
Match the credit memo to the invoice
A supplier credit memo is not cash until it is applied correctly. The log should link the credit memo number, amount, date, and the invoice or debit note it offsets. Accounts payable should be able to see the credit before paying the invoice, not after a month-end review.
Partial credits need special attention. A supplier may credit the unit price but not the freight, or credit the quantity but not the tax. Record the basis of the credit and compare it with the original invoice. An unexplained difference is an open item, not a rounding error.
Escalate repeated shortages by supplier and item
One shortage may be a loading error. The same item short on three consecutive receipts is a pattern. Review the log by supplier, item, and receiving location, and send the pattern to the purchasing owner with the supporting receipts. The goal is a correction, not a louder complaint.
The review should also check whether the shortage is real. A receiving error, a unit of measure mismatch, or a mislabeled pallet can look like a supplier short. The log should include a disposition for those cases so the supplier is not blamed for an internal data problem.
Close the loop with a reconciliation
At the end of each period, reconcile open credit requests against credit memos received and invoices paid. Any request older than the agreed response time needs an owner and a next step. Any credit memo that cannot be matched to a request needs an explanation.
The reconciliation is also a check on the original receipt. If the inventory record still shows the full quantity, the shortage was never corrected in stock. A credit that fixes the payable but leaves the inventory wrong creates a second problem that will surface at the next count.
Control table
| Log field | What to record | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Receipt reference | PO, packing slip, carrier, seal, count | Proves what was actually accepted |
| Claim window | Agreement deadline and send date | Shows whether the request was timely |
| Request amount | Quantity, unit cost, freight, tax basis | Defines what the supplier owes |
| Supplier response | Approved, denied, pending, reason | Keeps the claim status honest |
| Credit memo | Number, amount, date, applied invoice | Connects the credit to cash |
| Inventory correction | Adjustment reference and approver | Keeps stock aligned with the receipt |
Frequently asked questions
Does a signed bill of lading prove the quantity received?
It proves what the carrier and receiver acknowledged at the dock, which may differ from the carton count inside the trailer. Use it with the receiving count, not instead of it.
Who should own the credit request?
Purchasing or supplier administration usually owns the supplier conversation, while receiving owns the count evidence and accounts payable owns the application. The log should name one owner for the overall case.
What if the supplier denies the claim?
Record the denial reason and route it to the purchasing owner for a commercial decision. Do not reopen the same request without new evidence.
Where to begin
The supplier lead time change log shows how the surrounding record can stay reviewable, and the purchasing and supplier administration describes the kind of administrative support that can keep the queue current without taking over the decision. The U.S. Government Accountability Office, Standards for Internal Control (opens in a new tab) provides public context for the operating risk described here.
On October 22, 2026, take one open item from this workflow and test the record against the fields above. If a reviewer cannot identify the owner, the deadline, the evidence, and the next action, fix the record before adding volume.
Tags: supplier short shipment credit request log, distribution operations, workflow controls
