Part 3 · FMCG trade practice · Chapter 3.13
Claims
Draft: the wording may change.
The idea
The claim is a bill to the company. You have already spent the money — on free goods, on a discount, on a damaged carton, on a price cut. The claim asks the company to pay it back. Like any bill, it needs a number, a date, the right rate, proof attached, and it must reach the customer on time. A claim missing any of these is not paid.
Four common claims
| Claim | What you spent | Proof |
|---|---|---|
| Scheme | Free goods or discount given to retailers | Retailer bills showing the scheme, circular number |
| Damage | Goods damaged in transit or returned damaged from the market | Lorry receipt remark, return slips, the goods themselves for inspection |
| Expiry | Goods that expired before they sold | Batch-wise list, the goods for inspection |
| Price drop | Stock bought at the old price when the company cut its price | Stock statement on the day the new price started |
A price-drop example: the company cuts Marie 250g from ₹24.60 to ₹23.40 a pack from 15 November. We hold 40 cases of 24 packs bought at the old price. The claim is 40 × 24 × ₹1.20 = ₹1,152, supported by the stock count on 15 November.
A scheme claim form
Claim No. CL/2611/07 — to: the biscuit company — Scheme circular TN/BIS/2611-03 — Period 1–30 November 2026
| Retailer | Our bill | Date | Cases | Free packs | Value at ₹8.20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravi Stores | 2451 | 04-11-2026 | 4 | 12 | ₹98.40 |
| Lakshmi Stores | 2468 | 06-11-2026 | 2 | 6 | ₹49.20 |
| Murugan Traders | 2502 | 12-11-2026 | 20 | 60 | ₹492.00 |
| Selvi Bakery | 2617 | 01-12-2026 | 2 | 6 | ₹49.20 |
| … 140 more bills | |||||
| Total | 410 | 1,230 | ₹10,086.00 |
Attached: copies of every retailer bill, the stock statement for November, and the secondary sales report.
Why the company cut ₹1,197.20
The company's credit note came back for ₹8,888.80. The cuts:
| Line | Reason | Cut |
|---|---|---|
| Murugan Traders | A wholesale outlet — excluded by the circular | ₹492.00 |
| Selvi Bakery | Bill dated 1 December — outside the scheme | ₹49.20 |
| 80 packs on 11 bills | Free packs given but not printed on our bill | ₹656.00 |
Other common reasons a claim is rejected:
- Filed after the deadline in the circular.
- Free goods claimed at PTR instead of PTS.
- Claimed quantity is more than the secondary sales you reported for that product.
- Display claim without photos, or damage claim with no goods to inspect.
- Your totals don't match the attached bills.
Every one of these is a paperwork failure, not a dispute about the scheme.
The entries
When the claim is raised, it is income we are owed:
| Account | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| Claims receivable — biscuit company | 10,086.00 | |
| Scheme claims (income) | 10,086.00 |
When the company's credit note arrives, we owe the company less: debit the company's account ₹8,888.80, credit claims receivable ₹8,888.80. The ₹1,197.20 left in claims receivable is reversed in the month it is rejected (chapter 1.14), not by editing the November claim. Your CA will tell you whether the company's credit note carries GST; it depends on how the scheme is set up.
Common mistake
Letting claims pile up "to file together later". Each month adds a few thousand rupees to claims receivable. A year later the scheme officer has changed, the bills are hard to find, and the deadline passed long ago. Keep a list of open claims with their age, like a list of retailers who owe you. A claim older than three months is money you are quietly losing.
Where you'll use this
In Part 4, the claim is built from the bills that carried the scheme, and the open-claims list ages automatically (chapters 4.6 and 4.16). The software can only claim what the bills show, which is why the free packs must be on the bill.
Check yourself
- Why is a claim "a bill to the company"?
- A free pack given to a wholesaler under a scheme that excludes wholesalers — who pays for it?
- The company rejects ₹1,197.20 of an October claim in December. In which month do you pass the correction?
Answers
- Because it asks the company to pay money you already spent, and it needs the same things a bill needs: number, date, rate, proof and a deadline.
- The stockist. The company will cut it from the claim.
- December, the month the rejection is known — by a reversing entry, not by editing October.