Matching the Invoice, Packing List and Bill of Lading to the Cargo

Most receiving problems start on paper. The invoice says one thing, the packing list says another, the bill of lading says a third, and the cargo on the floor says something else again. If you only discover this after the driver has left, you have nothing to argue with. A short, orderly comparison before and during unloading turns three stacks of paper into a clear list of what agrees and what does not.

What each document actually tells you

The three documents describe the same shipment from different angles, so do not expect them to be identical.

• The commercial invoice says what you are paying for: item names or codes, quantities, unit prices, the total and the currency.
• The packing list says how the goods were packed: the number of cartons and pallets, what each carton holds, gross and net weight, and dimensions.
• The bill of lading says what the carrier accepted: the number of packages, the gross weight, the container and seal numbers, and a general description of the goods.

The invoice speaks in units sold, the packing list in packages, and the carrier in packages and kilograms. The first job is to translate between them.

Check the documents against each other first

Do this before the shipment arrives, working from scans. Start with the header: the names of the shipper and the consignee, the purchase order or contract number, and the dates. Then compare the totals: the number of cartons and pallets, and the gross weight. Then go through the lines: codes, descriptions and the quantity per carton multiplied by the number of cartons. A difference between two papers is much cheaper to correct before the container is unloaded than after. Send any difference to the supplier at once, and ask for corrected papers rather than a verbal assurance.

Then match the papers to the cargo

At the site, work in a fixed order:

1. Container and seal numbers against the bill of lading.
2. The count of pallets and cartons against the packing list.
3. The shipping marks and item codes printed on the cartons against the lines of the packing list.
4. The contents of a sample of cartons against the quantity per carton.
5. Gross weight, if a scale is available, against the bill of lading.

Keep a log of mismatches with five columns: the document and field, the value on paper, the value found, the difference and the photograph number. If something agrees, write that down too. A report that lists only problems makes the reader wonder what was never checked.

Item names often differ between documents: the invoice may use a trade name where the packing list uses a model code. Keep a short table that maps one to the other, agreed with the supplier, and use it in your report so that nobody has to guess that two names mean the same item.

A conditional example

The invoice shows 2,400 units. The packing list shows 100 cartons of 24 units, which is 2,400. The bill of lading shows 100 packages and 1,850 kg. At the site you count 100 cartons, so the count agrees. But you open 10 sample cartons and two of them hold 12 units instead of 24. If that pattern held across the whole shipment the shortage would be large, so you widen the sample, and you record exactly how many cartons you opened and what each one held. Suppose that in the end 4 cartons turn out to hold 12 units: the shortage is 4 × 12 = 48 units, and the carton count alone would never have shown it.

Common mistakes

• Trusting a neat packing list because it looks professional.
• Counting cartons but never opening any, so that the quantity inside is only assumed.
• Mixing units in one column: pieces, sets, dozens and boxes.
• Comparing the invoice with the cargo directly and skipping the packing list, which is the only paper that lists the packages.
• Forgetting to note which version of each document was used when the supplier sends amended copies.

In short

Three papers and one pile of cargo make four versions of the truth, and the job is to reconcile them while the goods are still on site. CargoChek sets the invoice, the packing list and the bill of lading against what is actually on the ground, counts the packages and writes down for you what agreed and what did not.