What a delivery note is
A delivery note travels with the goods and lists what is on that drop. The customer checks the goods against it, signs it, and keeps a copy. The signed copy that comes back to you is the record of what the customer accepted.
It sits between three other documents, and the differences matter when something is disputed.
| Document | Raised | What it records |
|---|---|---|
| Despatch note | When goods leave your warehouse | What was sent |
| Delivery note | With the delivery, signed at the door | What arrived, and who accepted it |
| Proof of delivery | Once the delivery note is signed, or captured electronically | Evidence the customer received the goods |
| Invoice | After or at delivery | What the customer owes |
Many businesses use “despatch note” and “delivery note” for the same document. The despatch note and proof of delivery entries in our glossary cover the distinction.
What to put on a delivery note
Every field earns its place by answering a question someone will ask later.
| Field | Why it is there |
|---|---|
| Delivery note number | So a query can point at one document. Number them in sequence so a missing one shows. |
| Order reference and customer PO number | The customer’s accounts team matches your invoice to their purchase order. Without their PO number, payment often waits. |
| Delivery date | Ties the note to the round, and to any temperature or route record for that day. |
| Customer, account number and delivery address | The delivery address can differ from the billing address. Name the site, not just the company. |
| Ordered and delivered, per line | Two columns, not one. The gap between them is every short, and it is what the invoice must match. |
| Unit | Cases or singles. “10” means nothing without it. |
| Batch and best before | Lets you trace which customers received a batch if it is ever recalled. |
| Notes per line | Shorts, substitutions and damage, each with its reason, written while the customer is there. |
| Returns collected | Goods coming back on the van. They need their own record, or stock and credits drift. |
| Received by, signature, date and time | A printed name, because signatures are often unreadable. The time matters when the drop is queried. |
For food, the record of who you supplied, what, how much and when is a legal requirement, and government traceability guidance calls keeping batch codes where available best practice for every business. The law sets no format, so a delivery note that carries the batch is a simple way to hold that record.
Prices are optional. Some businesses leave them off so the note can be handed to anyone at the door. Others print them because their trade customers check the delivery against the price as well as the quantity.
Delivery note
Keep one copy with the customer. Bring the signed copy back.
From
Delivery
Deliver to
Goods
Write any short, substitution or damage in Notes, with the reason.
| Code | Description | Unit | Ordered | Delivered | Batch / best before | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total cases or packages |
Returns collected
| Code | Description | Quantity | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
Received
Signing confirms the goods above were received in the quantities shown under Delivered, except where a note says otherwise. Shortages or damage not noted here must be reported within the time set in our terms of trade.
Delivery docket
Keep one copy with the customer. Bring the signed copy back.
From
Delivery
Deliver to
Goods
Write any short, substitution or damage in Notes, with the reason.
| Code | Description | Unit | Ordered | Delivered | Batch / best before | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total cases or packages |
Returns collected
| Code | Description | Quantity | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
Received
Signing confirms the goods above were received in the quantities shown under Delivered, except where a note says otherwise. Shortages or damage not noted here must be reported within the time set in our terms of trade.
When the delivery note becomes proof of delivery
A signed delivery note is your proof of delivery, but only as good as what is on it. Three things make it hold up: a printed name beside the signature, the date and time, and every short, refusal or damage written on the note itself rather than agreed verbally. A signature on a note that still says “delivered: 10” when the customer took 8 proves the wrong thing.
Some customers sign “unchecked” when there is no time to count. That signature confirms the delivery arrived, not what was in it, so your terms of trade should say how long the customer has to report a shortage. The receipt wording on the template points to them.
In Ireland: the delivery docket
Irish businesses usually call the same document a delivery docket. Nothing about its job changes: the fields are the same, the address carries an Eircode, and any prices are in euro. The docket version of the template uses that wording, so it reads naturally to an Irish customer.
Where paper runs out
- The signed copy reaches the office only when the van does, and sometimes not at all.
- Shorts written on the note still have to be keyed into the invoice by hand.
- Finding the note for a query weeks later means finding the right page in the right box.
Our comparison of digital and paper proof of delivery covers the trade-off in more depth.
