Rebate audit: Northfield Plumbing Supply
Owed per agreements$244,000
Accrued on the books$222,000
Actually collected$185,900
Still recoverable$58,100
Owed vs. accrued vs. collected
| Vendor | Purchases | Owed | Accrued | Collected | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harlow Valve Co. | $4,200,000 | $126,000 | $126,000 | $98,400 | $27,600 |
| Crestline Pipe & Fitting | $2,800,000 | $70,000 | $56,000 | $56,000 | $14,000 |
| Bayard Water Heaters | $1,600,000 | $48,000 | $40,000 | $31,500 | $16,500 |
| Total | $8,600,000 | $244,000 | $222,000 | $185,900 | $58,100 |
Gap = owed − collected.
What's behind each gap
- Harlow, $27,600. The Q4 rebate was accrued correctly, but the credit memo arrived in February bundled with a price-protection credit. Only the price-protection part was applied. The rebate portion is still open on Harlow's side.
- Crestline, $14,000. Purchases crossed the $2.5M tier (2.5%) in November. Northfield kept accruing at 2%, and Crestline paid at 2%. Nobody flagged the tier change.
- Bayard, $16,500. Two things. A growth bonus of $8,000 for beating last year by 10% was never claimed or accrued. The Q3 rebate check came in $8,500 short with no explanation.
One tier push that didn't pay
In December, purchasing bought an extra $350,000 from Harlow to move from the 2.5% tier to 3% at $4M. Harlow's tiers are retroactive, so the higher rate applied to the full year.
| Purchases before the push | $3,850,000 |
| Extra purchase | $350,000 |
| Extra rebate earned (3% × $4.2M − 2.5% × $3.85M) | $29,750 |
| Carrying cost per month (25% / yr) | $7,292 |
| Months to sell through | 9 |
| Total carrying cost | $65,625 |
| Net | −$35,875 |
The push would have paid if the stock sold within 4.1 months. It took 9. Check your own tier pushes.
Next steps
- Send Harlow the February credit memo breakdown and claim the $27,600 rebate balance.
- Claim the Crestline tier difference ($14,000) and update the accrual rate.
- Submit the Bayard growth bonus claim and ask for the Q3 reconciliation.
- Before the next year-end push, run each one through the break-even check.