Checkout Returns, Store Credit and Gift Cards

Background
Returns
Store Credit
Gift Cards

Background

Checkout has the ability to do Returns, but does not have a true method built-in for Store Credits and Gift Cards. Work arounds to accomplish this are listed below.

Returns

To Process a Return where you are paying the customer back:

1. 
   
2. Find and open the original sale
   
3. On the bottom of the Sale, click the Return button
   
4. In the newly-created Sale, verify the quantity of the item(s) being returned (returned items have negative quantity numbers)
   
5. Enter a quantity of zero to remove unwanted line items from the Sale
   
6. Click the Checkout button
   
7. If items require serial numbers, enter the numbers when prompted
   
8. Click the Pay button with the appropriate payment method selected
   

As a result of this process, the product will be placed back in inventory, and you'll have refunded the customer by the payment indicated.

Store Credit

To create a Store Credit you can create a negative Invoice (typically from a Return) and leave it as unpaid. This negative Invoice will not cause Checkout to notify the user if the Customer is added to an Order in the future, and there is no direct way to apply a Negative Invoice to a Positive Invoice. You cannot pay back a partial store credit - the entire amount must be used up - the rest will default to being paid back as cash.

Creating a Store Credit from a Return
Creating a Store Credit with a New Sale
Creating a Store Credit without Returning Any Inventorys Items
Using a Store Credit

Creating a Store Credit from a Return

1. Find and open the original sale
2. On the bottom of the Sale, click the Return button
3. In the newly-created Sale, verify the quantity of the item(s) being returned (returned items have negative quantity numbers)
4. Enter a quantity of zero to remove unwanted line items from the Sale
5. Click the Allocate button.
6. If items require serial numbers, enter the numbers when prompted
7. Click the Invoice button

Creating a Store Credit with a New Sale

1. Create a new order
2. Add the customer to the order
3. Enter the items being returned as negative quantities
4. Click the Allocate button
5. Click leave.

Creating a Store Credit without Returning Any Actual Inventory Items

1. Create a new item - "Credit". Set this item up as not being inventoried
2. Create a new order
3. Enter the "Credit" item with the price of the credit being created
4. Click the Allocate button
5. Click leave

Using a Store Credit

1. Bring up the Credit Invoice
2. Pay it and use the Payment method "Wire Transfer" (if you do not use this method normally)
3. Create a "Store Credit" item. This item should not be inventoried
4. Bring up the positive Invoice
5. You will pay it by using the "Store Credit" item. To do this, enter the amount as a negative, this way it washes out (or reduces) the total owed.
6. Inform the customer of any remaining balance (if necessary) and accept payment (if necessary)

Checkout can be used to sell serialized gift cards, but does not have the ability to track balances of each card at this time. This is high on the user Wish List and will be addressed in a future update/upgrade.

Some CO users do track balances in an Excel spreadsheet or by creating a Gift Card customer and including the balances under Extra Info.

To accept the Gift Card as a payment, they are using a payment method that they don't accept (such as a debit card or wire transfer).