RMA -Part 1

RMA is Return Material Authorization ,sometimes referred as RGA(Returns Goods Authorization) is about the returns good management in a company .

Why would goods be returned ?

Goods can be returned for various reasons like quality issues ,failures ,for exchanges ,for wrong shipment etc . RMA policies could vary significantly with the industry ,for example in retail industry any consumer goods in US are subjected to a standard 30 day return policy and a telecommunication industry in europe has a standard return policy of 14days money back policy .
　
I was just browsing the web and found a company's return policy and this would help in understanding the return policy in a company,See my comments in italic


Return Policy

Policy No 1 Company's written approval must be obtained prior to the return of any merchandise. Returns without an RGA Number will be refused and returned at the shipper’s expense.
Most of companies(a typical large scale manufacturing industry) would have a standard RGA form and many companies would need to have RMA approved before the customer returns the goods ,This would reduce the inflow of unwanted returns .

Policy No 2 This written approval will be in the form of a RGA Form and a copy must be returned with the
merchandise and All packages must be clearly marked with the RGA number.
Why is this been asked ,This is one of the easiest way for the receiving clerk to know that this package is a returned goods froma customer against the many shipements he receives.It also facilitates him to receive against the specific RMA document number in the system

Policy No 3 All merchandise must be returned no later than 45 days from the RGA date. No credit will be
issued for items returned more that 45 days after the RGA date. If items are returned
more that 45 days after RGA date, delivery will be refused at our receiving dock
Returns cannot be delayed ,mainly becoz of the credit terms would be in a such a way the goods needs to be returned within a specific no of days for the customer to be eligible for the return

Policy No 4 No credit will be issued for items returned in excess of RGA quantities or not on RGA.
Generally ,The approved quantity on the RGA form and the actual receipt quantity needs to be the same ,Unless the company has a policy of taking over return quantities

Policy No 5 Freight Policy ?
This is slightly tricky ,Generally if the return is becoz of mistake from the organization like wrong item shipped ,or order entry error ,damage during shipment ,the freight is provided by the sellling organization or the freight is also paid by the customer where the customer damaged the goods ,or requesting a repair etc

Policy No 6 Restocking fee ??
Sometimes companies can charge a restocking fee to store the goods .lets say the company has a public warehouse where they pay to store the goods .any returned goods is a additional expense to the company to store the inventory ,Hence typically a restocking fee is levied on the customer

Hope this gives a good idea of a RMA Policy in a company .I will continue the RMA on RMA Part 2,Part 3 ...and start discussing on the oracle solution .