Why every void and refund should need a second person
Most shrinkage at the till doesn't look like theft. It looks like an ordinary void, or an ordinary refund.
A customer pays cash, the cashier voids the line after the customer has left, and the cash drawer is now "over" by exactly the amount someone can pocket. Or a refund is rung up for a sale that was never returned. On the day, nothing looks wrong: the drawer balances against the till report.
That's why the strongest control for a till isn't a camera. It's making sure no one can take money out of the system on their own.
The rule: above a limit, a second person approves
In StockGuard you set a limit for your shop. Below it, a cashier can remove an item or refund a small amount without waiting for anyone, so a mis-scan doesn't hold up the queue.
Above that limit, the till asks for a supervisor's or manager's own PIN before it will remove items or refund a sale. It has to be their PIN, typed by them. The cashier can't approve their own void.
That changes the maths of till fraud. A cashier working alone can no longer void a cash sale and keep the difference. Doing it now takes two people, and every approval leaves a name on the record.
Every approval in one place
Each approval is recorded: who asked, who approved, when, and how much. On the Growth and Ultimate plans, the Voids & Refunds page lists them all in one place, and you can export the list.
A few minutes a week on that page tells you a lot:
- Which cashiers void most often. A high count isn't proof of anything, but it's where to start asking questions.
- Which supervisors approve the most. If one person approves almost everything, the second check may have become a rubber stamp.
- When it happens. Voids that cluster at closing time or on one shift are worth a closer look.
It works when the internet drops, too
A control that switches off when the connection drops isn't much of a control. If the till is offline, a supervisor can still approve with their PIN and the sale carries on. The PIN is checked as soon as the till is back online, and a wrong PIN is flagged to managers.
Setting it up
- Decide your limit. Pick an amount large enough that small corrections don't need a supervisor, and small enough that a missing note from the drawer would.
- Give your supervisors and managers their own PINs, and make sure they know never to share them.
- Look at the Voids & Refunds page every week, not just when something seems wrong.
Honest cashiers barely notice the change. The only people it slows down are the ones the rule is meant for.