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A second bill is stapled on top. You can still see the first one underneath. The corner of the original peeks out from under the staple line, printed in faded black ink instead of the crisp blue of the new sheet. The driver who dropped the shipment off 12 minutes ago is leaning against their cab door, scrolling on their phone, waiting for you to sign off so they can head to their next stop. You set your handheld scanner down on the concrete ledge at your Dock Tally station next to your stack of empty pallets to get a closer look.
Cross-reference every listed unit with what you counted on the trailer floor
You already counted 192 cases of canned goods stacked 12 high on 16 pallets when you unloaded the trailer 10 minutes ago, so start by matching that count to the top line of the corrected bill. Make sure the SKU numbers listed match the labels on the cases, especially for the two specialty stock lines your store only restocks every three months. Check the weight listed for each pallet to confirm it aligns with the scale reading you took before you moved the pallets into cold storage, to avoid mismatches that cause issues later when your inventory team restocks shelves. If you spot a SKU that doesn’t match, flag it with a neon marker in the margin of the corrected bill before you move on, so you don’t forget to follow up later. If you find a count that doesn’t match, do a quick recount of the relevant pallets before you mark the discrepancy, to make sure you didn’t miscount during the initial unload. It’s not uncommon for carriers to adjust counts last minute when they notice a pallet was left off the original manifest, so a quick second count saves everyone time later.
Note any gaps between the original bill and the corrected version
Gently lift the edge of the corrected bill to peek at the original underneath, without tearing the staple that holds them together. You don’t need to pull the staple out to compare the full two sheets, just lift the edge enough to read the relevant lines, so the two documents stay attached for all future reviews. If the staple is too tight to lift the edge, use the tip of your pen to gently pry the corner up, taking care not to tear the paper. Jot down any differences you spot in the empty space at the bottom of the corrected bill, so you don’t have to keep lifting the top sheet later. Illustrative example: The original bill might have listed 188 cases instead of 192, with a different freight class code that would have assigned higher handling fees to your facility instead of the carrier. You don’t have to figure out why the change was made right now, just document what changed, so your operations team can follow up if needed later. Make sure you write legibly, using a ballpoint pen that won’t smudge if the sheet gets damp from the cold air coming off the cold storage doors behind you.
Log edits and variances for your internal records
Fill out each line of the log below as you verify details, so you don’t miss any gaps that could cause inventory discrepancies later. You can add extra rows in the blank space below the printed table if you spot more variances that aren’t listed here. Keep all notes specific, so anyone else who reviews the sheet later doesn’t have to guess what you meant when you logged the details.
| Variance type | Original bill value | Corrected bill value | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total case count | 188 | 192 | 4 extra cases of organic diced tomatoes confirmed during unload |
| Freight class | 85 | 70 | Adjustment matches standard class for non-perishable canned goods for this lane |
| Delivery appointment window | 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM | 9:45 AM – 11:45 AM | Driver arrived 10 minutes early, unload completed 35 minutes ahead of original window end |
| Damaged unit count | 0 | 1 | Single dented case of black beans set aside for carrier pickup |
Get a dated signature from the carrier representative before they leave
Wave the driver over from their spot by the cab, and point out the variances you noted so they are aware of the changes between the two bills. Ask them to sign and date the bottom right corner of the corrected bill, right next to where you will sign, to confirm they agree with the updates listed. Make sure the date matches the actual delivery date, not the date listed on the original bill if that’s different, to avoid confusion when your team processes the paperwork later. If the driver says they aren’t authorized to sign, ask them to call their dispatcher for verbal confirmation of the changes, and jot down the dispatcher’s name and the time of the call in the margin of the bill. You don’t need to argue with the driver if they push back on a variance, just document their response in the notes section so your team has a record of the conversation. Once they sign, you can give them the customer copy of the corrected bill, and keep the original stapled set for your records. If they ask for a copy of the original bill as well, you can scan a quick copy on your portable scanner and send it to their work phone while they wait, so they have all the documentation they need for their own logs.
Pull this corrected bill when you reconcile weekly shipment totals
When you sit down at the end of the week to match all delivery paperwork to your inventory logs, this is the sheet you’ll reach for first, instead of digging through a stack of loose papers to find the original bill. You won’t have to search through dozens of unfiled sheets to find this one, because you’ll file it in the color-coded folder for this week’s deliveries right after the driver leaves, with a small neon sticky note on the corner to mark that it has an attached original bill for reference. When you pull it for reconciliation, you’ll be able to quickly cross-check all the details you logged at the dock, without having to rely on memory of how the delivery went earlier in the week. You’ll cross-reference the variances you logged with the counts entered into your inventory management system, to make sure every case that was delivered is accounted for in your stock levels. If there’s a mismatch between the counts on this sheet and the counts entered by your inventory team, you’ll lift the edge of the corrected bill to check the original details, to see if the discrepancy came from a data entry error or an unlogged adjustment. You’ll also use the signature on the bottom of the sheet to confirm the carrier was aware of all variances at the time of delivery, if your operations team has questions about the shipment later. You can file the sheet in your completed delivery folder once you’re done reconciling, so it’s easy to find if you need to reference it again for future inventory audits or shipment reviews.