Part 2 · Running the business · Chapter 2.10
Delivery
Draft: the wording may change.
The idea
A bill says the goods were sold. Only the retailer's signature says they arrived. Every delivered bill comes back with a signature or a shop stamp, and every return at the door comes back on paper the same day. The signed receipt is your only defence when a shop says, "I never got it."
Loading the van
The day's bills for one route are grouped into a loading sheet: the total of every product across all the bills on that route. The godown loads from the loading sheet, not from memory.
| Product | Bills on route 4 | Cases to load |
|---|---|---|
| Biscuit 100 g | 11 | 14 |
| Tea 250 g | 6 | 5 |
| Soap 4-pack | 9 | 8 |
Before the van leaves, someone other than the loader counts the van against the sheet and signs. The driver signs too. From this moment, the goods on the van are the driver's responsibility until each bill is handed over.
At the door
On the route, the driver hands over each bill with its goods. The retailer counts, then signs or stamps the office copy of the bill, with the date. That copy is the proof of delivery (POD).
Things go wrong at the door. Each has its own paper:
| What happened | What the driver does | What the office does that evening |
|---|---|---|
| Delivered in full | Gets the bill signed | Marks the bill delivered |
| Shop closed | Brings the goods and the bill back | Holds the bill; delivers tomorrow, or cancels it with a credit note if the order is dead |
| Retailer refuses 2 cases (wrong item, damaged) | Writes "2 cases returned, reason" on the bill; both sign | Raises a credit note for 2 cases; goods go back into stock or damage |
| Short on the van | Writes the shortage on the bill; both sign | Checks the van count; raises a credit note; finds the cause |
| Cash or UPI paid at the door | Gives a receipt from the receipt book | Enters the receipt against that bill (chapter 2.1) |
Settling the van
When the van comes back, settle it before the driver goes home:
- Bills out = bills delivered + bills returned whole.
- Goods out = goods delivered + goods brought back.
- Collection = cash and UPI handed over = receipts written.
Say route 4 went out with 18 bills worth ₹1,42,000. 16 were delivered, 1 shop was closed (₹6,300 back), 1 shop returned 2 cases (₹2,480 credit note). Every rupee and every case is accounted for, and the driver signs the settlement.
Goods moving by road may also need an e-way bill, depending on the value and the distance. Check the current rules and limits on the official e-way bill portal; chapter 2.6 covers it with GST.
Common mistake
Delivering without getting the bill signed because the shop is busy and the driver is in a hurry. Three months later the retailer disputes a ₹9,000 bill. You have the bill and the loading sheet, but nothing from the shop. You either write it off or lose the customer arguing. A ten-second signature would have settled it.
Where you'll use this
In Part 3, damage and short-supply claims to the company need the same proof: what came, in what condition, signed by whom. The signed receipt habit at your door is the habit the company expects at yours.
Check yourself
- What is a loading sheet made from?
- A retailer refuses 2 cases at the door. Which document follows, and when?
- How do you settle a van at the end of the day?
Answers
- The day's bills for that route, totalled by product.
- A credit note for the 2 cases, raised the same evening from the note signed on the bill.
- Bills out equals bills delivered plus returned; goods out equals goods delivered plus brought back; collection handed over equals receipts written.