# Track and Deliver

Pending is not In Transit and In Transit is not delivered. Closing the last step settles a receipt dispute.

A shipment moves through states because a box in a van is in a real condition of its own: gone from you, not yet the customer's.

## The states

![The Shipments list showing a mix of statuses, with several rows marked Pending and several marked In Transit, each against a carrier and a tracking number.](https://www.sorviai.com/help/inventory/shipments/shipments-list.png)

*Filtering this column is the weekly read: Pending too long means nobody collected it.*

- **Pending** (packed and waiting): The shipment exists and the carrier has not taken it. The stock has already left your count.
- **In Transit** (with the carrier): On its way. Yours to chase if it does not arrive.
- **Delivered** (closed): The customer has it. The outbound chain for that box is finished.

## Close the last step

- **Open the shipment**

  From the shipments list, or from the sales order it belongs to.

  ![A shipment record showing the carrier, the tracking number, the dates and the current status, with an activity panel at the right.](https://www.sorviai.com/help/inventory/shipments/shipment-detail.png)
- **Move it on as the carrier does**

  Pending to In Transit when it is collected, and delivered when the carrier confirms it landed.
- **Attach the proof of delivery**

  A signature or a carrier confirmation attached here is what answers a dispute months later.

> **Note:**
>
> **Changing the status moves no stock**
>
> The units left when the shipment was created. The states after that are a record of where the box has got to, which is why a late update costs nothing but clarity.

## When a delivery goes wrong

| What happened | What to raise |
| --- | --- |
| The carrier lost the box | A stock adjustment, because the goods are gone and no customer has them |
| The customer refused it and it came back | A sales return, so the units go back on the shelf |
| It arrived damaged and they kept it | A credit note, because no stock is coming back |
| It was never actually sent | Delete the shipment, and only then |

> **Tip:**
>
> **Filter for Pending weekly**
>
> It is a short list and it catches the box that was packed, marked shipped and then left on the bench, which is the failure your stock figures cannot see.