Month-end depletion allowance checklist

A printable checklist for reconciling each distributor's depletion allowance invoice at month end. Print one copy per distributor, work top to bottom, and keep it with the approval.

Print this checklist

Distributor: ____________________   Month: __________

1. Before you start

• Distributor's DA invoice for the month is saved, with the file name unchanged.
• A fresh DA export for this distributor has been pulled from your trade spend platform.
• Last month's notes for this distributor are open (name mappings, known rate differences, open questions).
• Any new deals approved this month are entered in the platform.
• The invoice and the export are for the same distributor.

2. Check the invoice on its own

• Invoice total noted: $____________
• Cases times DA across all rows equals the invoice total.
• Header row found and columns identified: product, pack, price, DA, cases.
• Total or subtotal rows excluded from your sums (they can sit at the top or the bottom).
• Negative quantities (credits) found and noted, including any that refer to an earlier month.
• Rows with a $0 DA set aside; nothing to key on them.

3. Group and match

• Invoice grouped by product, price and DA, with cases summed.
• Any price that matches no deal on file checked for a typo (a missing digit or decimal).
• Name differences mapped (for example "Tea" on the invoice vs "Iced Tea" in the platform).
• Pack sizes confirmed: loose (24-1) vs 4-pack (24-4) vs variety (24-8) kept apart.
• Variety pack products summed into the one variety pack line per brand and price tier.
• Duplicate deal lines identified; cases placed on one of them only.
• No invoice total used on more than one line.

4. Key and compare

• Cases keyed in the platform's line order.
• Platform calculated total noted: $____________
• Difference (invoice minus platform): $____________
• Every invoice row not on a line listed with product, price, DA, cases and dollars.
• Every rate difference listed (cases times the gap between invoice DA and deal DA).
• Unplaced rows plus rate differences explain the whole difference.

5. Resolve

• Pricing typos sent back to the distributor with the row and the correct price.
• Deals missing from the platform confirmed as approved or not approved.
• Rate differences accepted or disputed, one decision per line.
• Credits for earlier months matched to the right period.
• Approval or dispute sent, with the difference explained in one or two lines.

6. Record for next month

• New name mappings written down for this distributor.
• Rate differences you accepted, and why.
• Layout changes on the invoice (new columns, moved total row, new tabs).
• Open questions to the distributor, with the date asked.
• Time spent: ______ (worth tracking, to see where the hours go).

How to use this checklist

The checklist follows the order in our depletion allowance reconciliation guide. Section 3 is where most errors are caught; if something there is unfamiliar, the common DA invoice errors guide explains each one, and the Tradeparency DA export guide covers the columns and pack notation. Section 6 is the one people skip and the one that saves the most time: most questions come back every month, from the same distributor, in the same form.

Tips for getting through several distributors

• One sheet per distributor. Deal lists, naming and layouts differ by distributor, so mixing them on one page is how lines get keyed against the wrong bill.
• Start with the biggest invoice. It carries the most dollars and usually the most questions for the distributor, so asking early gives them time to answer before month-end close.
• Keep the filled sheets together. Next month, section 6 of each one is the first thing to read.

Depletion Reconciler covers sections 2 through 4 in one step: drop the export and the invoice, and it groups the invoice, fills each deal line in order, and shows the totals check with every unplaced row and rate difference. For section 6, it remembers the picks you make and any "put on line" rules you teach it, per distributor, and carries them to next month. You still decide and approve in your platform.

Tradeparency is a trademark of its owner. Depletion Reconciler is an independent tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Tradeparency or Andavi Solutions.