Frequently asked questions relating to the 7bridges Audit product
Read an introduction to Audit here
What happens if a PDF invoice is received in the 7bridges software mid month and then a CSV/XLS with a report for the same invoice is received at the end of the month?
Files are ingested as they are received into the software. So in this case, the PDF invoice will be ingested in the middle of the month with the PDF file attached to the invoice. The PDF ingestion includes the following meta data: provider, account number, invoice number, invoice total, currency, invoice issue date, invoice due date. You will also be able to download the PDF file from the invoice detail page in the 7bridges software.
At the end of the month, or whenever the CSV/XLS is received, the data will be ingested and consolidated versus the initial data from the PDF. If there are any discrepancies then these will be investigated. Any extra data covering the associated shipments and charges will be added to the software. Multiple CSV/XLS files can be ingested relating to the same invoice or shipment. Each additional file will add to any existing information in the software.
What happens if a provider splits the charges for a shipment across invoices?
It can regularly happen that a provider puts some charges for a shipment on one invoice and then other charges on another invoice. This is totally fine for these invoices and charges being ingested into the 7bridges system and Audit will still analyse these charges for anomalies. However, there are a number of principles and associated outcomes you should be aware of:
- The Audit product works on a per invoice basis and doesn't combine charges across multiple invoices
- Each charge is audited as a 'standalone' charge - as if it is the only charge for that shipment
- Only the Duplicate Charge Audit check looks at a charge across multiple invoices (to see if it is a repeated charge).
- Negative charges are ignored by Audit
What this all means in practical terms is:
- If a provider splits a charge type (e.g. the base charge) across 2 invoices, then the second occurrence will result in a Duplicate Charge spend alert that will be disputed with the provider; even if the sum of the 2 occurrences is the correct amount.
- If a charge is split between 2 invoices and the total of those 2 invoices exceeds what should be charges from the rate card then the Incorrect Rate Audit check will not catch this as it is assessing each individual charge as a standalone charge.
- If a provider applies a discount for a charge on a separate invoice then only the positive charge amount on the first invoice will be analysed and this may result in an Incorrect Rate spend alert as the negative (discount) will be ignored.