Blog · Data quality and reconciliation
How credit notes, returns and rebates enter the revenue measures without breaking them: the rule that every measure is net of credits, the period a credit belongs to, the original invoice's or the credit's, the credit-to-original link that lets a return reduce the right customer, product and rep, uncoded credits as their own leak, and the identity that gross less credits equals the ledger's net figure on every roll-up.
A distributor's revenue by rep is computed on invoices. Its credit notes, a few percent of revenue, sit in a separate export nobody joins. The rep who sold the most also had the most returned, and the report does not know. This guide sets out the net rule, the period rule, the link to the original, uncoded credits, and the identity.
| Rule | Statement |
|---|---|
| Net | Every revenue measure is invoiced value less credits, returns and rebates |
| Period | A credit belongs to the period it was issued |
| Attribution | A credit reduces the customer, product and rep of the original invoice it references |
| Uncoded | A credit with no original reference is attributed to the customer only, listed as uncoded |
Customer and rep identifiers only.
Σ gross invoiced − Σ credits = ledger net revenue, per period, at every level of the roll-up Σ credits = coded to an original + uncoded
| Rep | Gross invoiced | Credits, coded to originals | Uncoded credits | Net | Credit share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R-04 | $6.4m | $410,000 | $60,000 | $5.93m | 7.3% |
| R-11 | $4.9m | $90,000 | $10,000 | $4.80m | 2.0% |
| R-17 | $3.2m | $70,000 | $0 | $3.13m | 2.2% |
Rep R-04 sold the most and had three and a half times the credit share. On gross, the top rep; on net, still the top rep, with a returns pattern that the product split explains.
| Reason | Value | Products |
|---|---|---|
| Returned goods | $260,000 | Two SKUs, one customer |
| Pricing correction | $110,000 | Overrides above agreement |
| Goodwill | $40,000 | |
| Uncoded | $60,000 |
Two SKUs at one customer explain most of it, which is a quality or a fit question, and the pricing corrections are the unagreed discounts arriving late.
Measures on gross. The rep with the returns looks best.
Credits moved into the original's period. History restated monthly.
No link to the original. Credits reduce the customer and nobody's product or rep.
Uncoded credits ignored. A leak with no owner.
Annual rebates in one month. December collapses; the norm for December is wrong.
Mapped once, the invoice lines, the credit notes and the rebate schedule produce net revenue at every level, the credit split by reason and the uncoded list every period, with the identity checked. Covirage builds this from the exports as they are. The metrics governance solution describes the setup, and the revenue leakage guide covers uncoded credits as one of the seven.
Because moving a March credit into January restates January every time a credit is issued, and last month's pack never settles. The credit is in its own period, attributed to the original's customer and product. Both facts are kept: when it was issued, and what it reduces.
A credit note with no reason code and no link to an original invoice. It reduces revenue and nobody knows whose or why. Uncoded credits are listed with their value every month, and a rising share is a process finding: returns handled outside the system, or goodwill given without a record.
As credits against the customer, coded as rebate, in the period they are accrued or paid per the company's policy, stated. A rebate accrued monthly against the contract is a planned credit; one paid annually in a lump distorts the month it lands unless it is spread by rule. The policy is on the report.