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Step 5.3 — Short-Pay Investigation

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Step 5.3 — Short-Pay Investigation

Triggered from: Step 5.2 when a Shipper pays less than the invoiced amount. Returns to: Step 5.2 after resolution; write-offs proceed to Step 7.3 month-end.

Note

A short-pay is not automatically a chargeback or a rejection. It may be a disputed accessorial, a reference number issue, a rate disagreement, or an arithmetic error on the Shipper’s side.

🎯 Ideal State

Short-Pay Causes and Resolution Paths

Short-Pay CauseTypical Resolution
Disputed accessorialInvestigate with Shipper, provide documentation, recover or credit
Missing reference number on invoiceRe-submit corrected invoice, recover full amount
Rate disagreementCheck signed rate confirmation vs. what Shipper paid — usually Shipper error, Forza recovers
Deducted damage claimCargo claim process initiated (Appendix A when documented)
Deducted detention offsetShipper disputes detention charge — negotiate or write off
Invoice sent to wrong Shipper entityRecover via corrected invoice to correct Shipper
Arithmetic error on Shipper sideRecover via follow-up
Partial payment against termsChase remainder per terms

Investigation Workflow

  1. Detect. Step 5.2 matching flags the short-pay. Concetta logs it in the short-pay tracker.
  2. Diagnose. Review the Shipper’s remittance detail (or reach out to Shipper AP) to identify the reason.
  3. Resolve by type. Apply the appropriate resolution path from the table above.
  4. Document. Capture the reason, resolution, and financial impact in EZ-Loader load notes and the short-pay tracker.
  5. Escalate if material. Short-pays above a threshold (to be defined by Nick) require James or Nick escalation — may indicate process issues or deteriorating Shipper relationship.

HaulPay vs. Path B Differences

Factored and Path A (HaulPay routed): The short-pay shows up in HaulPay’s remittance. Concetta diagnoses using HaulPay’s detail or by calling the Shipper AP directly. For Tier 2 recourse factored loads, an unresolved short-pay can become a chargeback (Step 5.4).

Path B (direct): The short-pay shows in the deposit amount vs. invoice amount. Accounting works directly with the Shipper — no HaulPay intermediary.

Recovery vs. Write-Off Decision

When a short-pay can’t be recovered (Shipper refuses, legitimate dispute, uneconomic to pursue), Concetta writes it off with Nick’s approval. Write-offs are tracked separately from chargebacks and reserves — they represent margin loss that should be monitored for patterns.

Metrics to Track

  • Short-pay rate (% of invoices short-paid)
  • Short-pay causes (distribution by reason)
  • Recovery rate (% of short-paid amount recovered)
  • Average time-to-resolve
  • Write-off rate (% and dollars)

Patterns point to upstream fixes — repeated accessorial disputes mean Step 3.6 in-transit capture needs tightening; repeated reference number issues mean Step 1.6 / Step 3.1 enforcement needs tightening.

Owner: Concetta (primary). James (if operational/rate dispute). Nick (material or write-off decisions).

🤖 SYSTEM AUTOMATION:

Detection is driven by matching quality (Step 5.2). Diagnosis and resolution are human — too much judgment required for automation. Tracking and metrics are tooling work.

🛑 HARD GATE:

Unresolved short-pays past 14 days escalate to Nick. Accumulating unresolved short-pays are a margin leak — same underlying risk profile as the CBCG Report findings about chargebacks.

📍 Current State

  • Short-pays surface as part of payment matching but without a documented investigation workflow.
  • No short-pay tracker — handled case-by-case.
  • No tracked metrics.
  • No defined material-threshold for escalation.
  • No documented write-off protocol with Nick’s approval.

🚧 Gap

  1. No short-pay SOP or tracker.
  2. No metrics — short-pay rate and causes invisible at the business level.
  3. No material-threshold definition for escalation.
  4. No write-off protocol with formal Nick approval.
  5. Pattern detection missing — recurring causes don’t bubble up for upstream process fix.

🛠️ Gap Closure Actions

  • Document short-pay investigation SOP with the 8 causes and resolution table, 5-step investigation workflow Owner: Casey + Concetta | Effort: Low
  • Build short-pay tracker (extends remittance tracker from Step 5.1 — can be columns in the same tool) Owner: Casey + Concetta | Effort: Low
  • Define material-short-pay threshold (dollar amount or % of invoice) for James / Nick escalation Owner: Casey + Concetta + Nick | Effort: Policy
  • Document write-off protocol with Nick approval mechanics Owner: Casey + Concetta + Nick | Effort: Policy
  • Add short-pay metrics to Phase 7 monitoring cadence Owner: Casey + Concetta | Effort: Low

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