Definition
A void cancels a sale, or one line of a sale, as though it never happened. It is used for mistakes caught at the till, before the customer leaves.
Void or refund?
The two are often confused. A void undoes a transaction that should not have been rung up, usually within minutes and with the customer still at the counter. A refund gives money back for a sale that was completed and where the customer has since decided to return the item.
| Void | Refund | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Same transaction, usually at once | After the sale is complete |
| Typical cause | Wrong item, wrong quantity, customer changed their mind | Faulty or unwanted item brought back |
| Goods come back? | Never left the counter | Yes, in most cases |
A worked example
A cashier scans 3 bottles of water at $5.00 instead of 2. The total shows $15.00 and the customer says they only wanted two. The cashier voids one line of $5.00, the total becomes $10.00, and the customer pays. Nothing was refunded, because no money had changed hands. If the same mistake were noticed ten minutes later, after the customer had left, it would be a refund instead.
Why voids need a record
Voids are an easy way to hide theft. A cashier takes the customer's cash, voids the sale and keeps the money. That is why voids should never silently disappear. A shop that reviews its voids weekly will quickly notice if one person has far more than the others, or if voids cluster late in the day.
- Keep every void on record with who, when and which items.
- Let owners, not cashiers, review them.
- Count the voided stock as unsold: it was never taken, so stock should not change.
In Shopkeepa, refunds and voids are kept on record in the point of sale history rather than deleted, and cashiers do not see cost or profit. Shopkeepa is not yet available.
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