Free receiving log

About this document

A receiving log checks a delivery against the order it answers: ordered versus received per item, with the difference computed where both numbers exist. Five minutes at the back door, and it settles disputes that would otherwise take five emails.

When to use it

• Every delivery — ideally while the driver is still there.
• Vendors with a history of substitutions or partial shipments.
• Deliveries someone else signs for, where "received" should mean "received and checked".

Getting it right

• Count before shelving; once stock disperses, the delivery can't be reconstructed.
• Report condition problems in the notes immediately ("one case dented — set aside") — vendors treat same-day reports differently from week-old ones.
• Reference the PO number so the paper trail closes: order, shipment, check.

It records what arrived — it doesn't file the vendor claim or credit a shortage might justify; it hands that conversation its facts.

Part of Keep the store stocked — the whole situation, connected.

Common questions

The driver won't wait for a full count?

Count cases against the slip on the spot, note "contents unverified," and finish the item-level check the same day. Partial verification recorded honestly still counts.

The difference column shows -2 — now what?

Check the packing slip, then the PO, then call the vendor with all three numbers in front of you. This log's job is making that call short.

Isn't the packing slip enough?

The slip says what the vendor claims they sent. The log says what you counted. The gap between those two documents is the entire point.