Best practices for exchanging shipped orders

This article aims to provide you with an easy to follow guideline for how to process an exchange where the original order is shipped.

Warning: This guide only describes how to handle the situation in the Brightpearl back office. If the order is related to a sales channel, you may need to perform additional steps to process the exchange on the channel.

In the case where the original order has been shipped, the aim is to receive the old item into stock (if applicable) and raise a new sale to send the new item out, essentially treating it as a return and a brand new sale. The complexity comes in when the new product has a different price to the old product.

Below is a summary of the flowchart:

• Ensure the original order is invoiced.
• Raise a sales credit for the item being returned.
• Determine whether the item is being received back into stock.
  • If it is, receive the item back into stock.
  • If it is not, write it off or put it into quarantine.
• Raise a new sales order containing the new item.
• Compare the prices of the old item and the new item. 
  • If they are the same price, or you are not charging the customer for the difference, leave both the sales and credit as-is. Invoice the credit and the new sales order. Allocate the credit to the sales invoice.
    (Alternatively, you can change the prices on both to be zero if the products use the same sales code. This eliminates the need to allocate the credit and invoice together.)
  • If the new item is more expensive, arrange to take payment from them for the difference. Invoice the credit and the new sales order. Allocate the credit to the sales invoice.
  • If the new item is less expensive, determine whether you are refunding the customer the difference. Invoice the credit and the new sales order.
    • If you are refunding them, allocate the sales credit to the sales invoice, refunding the difference. (The total at the top of the page should detail the amount being refunded.)
    • If you are keeping the credit on account, allocate the sales credit to the sales invoice, such that there is a credit balance left on account.
    • In either case, you should end up with a fully paid order.
• Process the new order as normal.