The box under the bench
A screen goes in, and the touch does not work on one edge. A battery swells after a few weeks. A charging port is dead out of the packet. Each faulty part goes into a box under the bench with a sticky note. The plan is to send them back to the supplier at the end of the month.
At the end of the month, nobody can remember which supplier each part came from, which order it was on, or which customer's repair it failed in. Some suppliers want a return request first, with photos. Some only accept returns within a short time of delivery. The box gets sent back half-sorted, or not at all.
Returns are an afterthought
A repair shop's focus is the customer in front of it. When a part fails, the priority is fitting another one and getting the customer on their way. The return to the supplier is admin for later, and later rarely comes. Suppliers each have their own returns process, which makes it harder.
- Faulty parts are not linked to the supplier order they came from.
- The fault is not recorded with photos or a description.
- Supplier return windows pass before anyone acts.
- Return references and postage are not tracked.
- Credits arriving are not matched to the parts returned.
Money in a box
Every faulty part not claimed back is a cost you absorb. It is also information lost: if one supplier's screens for one model keep failing, you want to know, and a box of unsorted parts will not tell you. Parts that fail after fitting can also mean a second repair for the customer, which costs time as well as the part.
Whether a supplier accepts a return is their decision under their terms. The process makes sure your returns are complete and on time.
A returns process that starts at the bench
We build supplier returns alongside your parts stock and repair tickets.
- When a part is found faulty, the technician scans it out as faulty against the ticket, chooses a reason and takes a photo. Because the part was scanned in at delivery, its supplier, order and date are already known.
- The part goes into a returns bin by supplier, with a label printed from the record.
- The system shows each supplier's return window and flags parts that are close to it.
- Return requests are sent to each supplier in the form they ask for, with the evidence attached, and the return reference is recorded.
- When the parcel goes, the tracking number is recorded against the parts inside.
- Credits and replacement parts are matched to the returned parts, and anything outstanding is chased.
| Part | Supplier | Status | Window |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screen, touch fault | Supplier A | Return requested, reference recorded | Inside window |
| Battery, swelling | Supplier B | In returns bin | Closing soon, flagged |
| Charging port, dead | Supplier A | Credit received | Closed |
Faulty parts that turn back into credit
Returns go out on time with the evidence suppliers ask for. Credits are matched, so you know what you are owed and what has been paid. You see failure rates by supplier and model, which feeds back into what you buy. And the customer's ticket shows that a part was replaced because it was faulty, which matters if the device comes back.
Swollen or damaged batteries need careful storage and handling; how you store and ship them is for your own safety procedures and the supplier's instructions, and the record simply shows where each one is.
Is there a box of faulty parts under your bench?
- Faulty parts are kept in a box to deal with later.
- You cannot say which order a faulty part came from.
- Supplier return windows have passed before you sent parts back.
- Credits arrive and are not matched to returns.
- You do not know which supplier's parts fail most.