Returns without the blame game

By Harriet Sloane · 2026-09-13 · Operations

A returned pallet loses useful context each time someone describes it as simply damaged. In the Hull desk's recent review of returns, the useful question was which decision the next shift could make with the information already available. We started with a small group of routine journeys rather than changing the entire weekly plan.

Separate packaging damage, quantity differences and specification questions at intake, with one named owner for each next step. The duty planner owns the initial entry, while the receiving shift confirms the handover. Any correction stays beside the original reference so that the office and the yard can work from the same account of the journey.

Track elapsed time to a disposition rather than assigning fault; unresolved stock ties up both floor space and customer credit. We keep a short exception note for each sampled job, with a clear date and an owner. This makes the review a practical conversation about tomorrow's work instead of an argument over whose spreadsheet was most recently updated.

The change is ready to keep only after two full handovers work without extra explanation. Harriet Sloane recommends reviewing the routine after a quiet week as well as a busy one: a process that depends on one experienced dispatcher being present will not survive an ordinary holiday rota.

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