FAQs: Processing Vendor Refunds and Credits

What is the difference between a refund and a credit?

A refund occurs when a prepaid order must be canceled and the money paid is returned to the library. The acquisitions records that represent the library’s order must be marked as unpaid, canceled, and the funds disencumbered.

A credit is similar to a refund, but the vendor keeps the funds, allowing you to use that money to buy something else from the vendor. When the library receives notice of a vendor credit, the orderline should be unpaid and canceled.

How do I refund or credit an order with the Modify Order wizard?

One possible scenario for a vendor refund is that the library prepays a volume of conference proceedings announced in a vendor’s pre-publication list. However, the conference never takes place, and so no conference proceedings are published. The vendor cannot satisfy the library’s prepaid order, and returns the funds, or credits the library.

When the order is displayed, an indication that the order was prepaid displays in the additional orderline information INSTRUCT field.

Payment enclosed

When the library gets the refund or credit because the conference has been canceled and therefore has no published proceedings, the orderline must be changed.

To handle this type of refund

How do I credit an order that had been paid by invoice?

One possible scenario for a vendor refund is that the library sees a pre-publication notice and orders an item. The vendor promptly sends an invoice for $59.95, which the library pays. The item, however, does not arrive. When the library claims the item, the vendor admits that publication of the item has been delayed by a year. The library asks for a refund. The vendor sends the refund or a credit notice. The library must remove payment from the orderline item but must do it through the previously paid invoice.

To cancel the order

How do I keep track of refunds and credits?

Libraries may want some record of having received a refund or credit. You can record a statement in the extended information of the vendor record, indicating the amount and the order/line that was refunded.

CREDIT:9/17/2003,PO-168/2003 line:1,$23.85