Deduction type
Promotional billback / scan-down deductions
Deductions that recover promotional discounts — billbacks, scan-downs, off-invoice and temporary price reductions. Recoverable when unauthorized, mis-keyed to the wrong dates or SKUs, or billed more than once.
Mihir Naik · Founder, OverDeduct — deduction recovery for emerging & mid-market CPG brands
Last reviewed: August 4, 2026
Educational content — not legal, tax, or accounting advice. Verify deadlines and fee details against your current distributor agreement before disputing.
A promotional deduction recovers the cost of a trade promotion from you, the manufacturer. It takes several forms: a billback (the buyer bills you after the fact for a promoted discount), a scan-down or scan-back (funded per unit scanned at retail), off-invoice (OI) discounts, and temporary price reductions (TPR). All of them reduce your net payment to fund a deal.
Authorized promotions billed correctly are a legitimate cost of doing business. The recoverable ones are the promotions billed with no authorization on file, billed outside the agreed dates or for the wrong SKUs, billed at the wrong rate, or billed more than once — a scan-down and a billback for the same promotion, for example.
Defending against invalid promotional deductions comes down to one habit: a signed authorization for every deal, capturing the dates, SKUs, and rate, matched line-by-line against what's actually billed back. Without that, a promotional deduction is impossible to verify — which is how over-billing hides.
Selling through KeHE? See how promotional billback / scan-down deductions work at KeHE, including the specifics and how to dispute them in K-Solve.
Wondering how many promotional billback / scan-down deductions you're actually being charged? Run a real remittance through the free deduction recovery analyzer to see every line categorized and what's realistically recoverable.
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Use the free deduction recovery analyzer →Frequently asked questions
What is a promotional billback?
A promotional billback is a deduction where the buyer bills you after the fact to recover a promotional discount it funded — as a billback, scan-down, off-invoice discount, or TPR. It reduces your net payment to pay for the deal.
When is a promotional deduction invalid?
When it's billed with no authorization on file, applied outside the agreed dates or to the wrong SKUs, billed at the wrong rate, or billed twice for the same promotion (for example a scan-down and a billback for one deal).
How do I defend against promotional over-billing?
Keep a signed authorization for every promotion — dates, SKUs and rate — and reconcile every billback against it. A promotion with no authorization on file can't be verified, which is where over-billing hides.
Other deduction types
- Shortage deductionsA charge for units the buyer says it didn't receive against your invoice — one of the most recoverable deduction types because it turns on delivery documentation.
- Manufacturer chargebacks (MCB)A promotional discount a distributor gives a retailer and bills back to the manufacturer — often with a processing fee on top.
- Pricing & deal discrepanciesShort-pays where the buyer paid a different price than invoiced, or applied a deal you didn't agree to — among the most recoverable deduction types.
- Fill-rate / service-level penaltiesA penalty for shipping fewer units than were ordered — distinct from a shortage at receiving, and typically a percentage of the shorted value.
- Co-op advertising (co-op) deductionsA deduction taken to recover advertising or marketing spend the buyer claims to have run on your behalf — recoverable when the spend wasn't approved, documented, or was billed twice.
- Returns / RTV deductionsA deduction for product the buyer returned — unsold, damaged, or non-conforming. Usually legitimate; recoverable mainly when the return wasn't authorized or was double-counted.
- Duplicate deductionsThe same deduction taken more than once — on one invoice, across invoices, or as both a chargeback and a short-pay. Highly recoverable because it's a pure paperwork error.
- Post-audit deductionsCharges raised by an auditor reviewing past invoices — often months after the transaction. Recoverable when the audit's claim is wrong, undocumented, or falls outside the dispute window.
- Unearned / unauthorized cash discount deductionsA prompt-payment (terms) discount the buyer took without actually earning it — paying late but still deducting the discount, or taking a rate it wasn't entitled to. Among the most recoverable deductions.
- Slotting / new-item / free-fill deductionsFees charged to place a new item — slotting, new-item, placement, and free-fill (free initial cases). Often contractual, but recoverable when duplicated, charged beyond the agreement, or taken for items never stocked.
- Spoilage / swell / unsaleables deductionsDeductions for damaged, expired, or unsellable product — spoilage, swell, and unsaleables. Usually valid within an agreed allowance; recoverable when they exceed the allowance, aren't documented, or are duplicated.
- Freight / backhaul / detention deductionsShipping-related deductions — backhaul allowances, detention, lumper fees, fuel, and freight-audit charges. Recoverable when applied on the wrong freight terms, at the wrong rate, or duplicated.