The truck is here, the invoice says one thing, the boxes say another. The rule is simple: the POS should reflect what is physically in your store, not what the paper says. Receive exactly what arrived and settle the rest with the supplier.
Signs you are in this situation
- Fewer units than invoiced, or a product missing entirely.
- Boxes damaged, product leaking, or dates too close to sell.
- The POS says This barcode is already in your catalog when you try to add a product.
- The cost on the invoice is different from last time.
What to do right now
- Count before you confirm anything. Open Suppliers → Receive Shipment (or the purchase order → Receive Shipment) and add one line per product with the Quantity you actually counted, not the invoice quantity.
- Enter the Cost price from the invoice and the Expiry date printed on the product. If a line is short, note it on your copy of the invoice for the supplier.
- Damaged units: do not receive them if they are going back on the truck. If you keep them, receive them and then write them off with Adjust and Reason Waste.
- If the barcode already exists, search for the product instead of creating a new one. Two products with one barcode will confuse checkout for months.
- Tap Confirm Receipt. Stock, cost and expiry update together. If it fails, nothing was saved; fix the line it points to and confirm again.
- Contact the supplier the same day about shortages, damage or dates, and follow your agreement for credit or replacement.
Decide
| If… | Then… |
|---|---|
| Short delivery, rest coming later | Receive what arrived now. Receive the rest as a second shipment when it comes. |
| Expiry dates are shorter than you can sell | Reject those units if your agreement allows. If you keep them, receive them with the real date so they show in Near Expiry from day one. |
| The cost went up | Receive at the new cost; the POS keeps a weighted average. Then check the margin in Reports → Product Sales and see Price change day. |
| A product you do not know arrived | Use Add Product on the receiving line to create it with a Sale price, or leave it off and clarify with the supplier before you sell it. |
| The same supplier is short or late repeatedly | Keep a simple record per delivery: promised, delivered, damaged. Use it at the next negotiation or to change supplier. |
Afterwards, and how to prevent it
- One person receives; they count, then confirm, on the same day.
- Create the purchase order first and receive against it, so promised and delivered are side by side.
- Check Inventory → Movements filtered by Delivery the next morning to confirm the receipt landed as expected.
- Keep the invoice with your own notes for any dispute.