An organization can expect that a certain percentage of its sales will be returned. This
occurs for a number of reasons, some of which may be:
• The company shipped the customer the wrong merchandise.
• The goods were defective.
• The product was damaged in shipment.
• The buyer refused delivery because the seller shipped the goods too late or they were
delayed in transit.
When a return is necessary, the buyer requests credit for the unwanted products. This
involves reversing the previous transaction in the sales order procedure. Using the DFD
in Figure 9.18, let’s now review the procedures for approving and processing returned
items.