# Understanding Adjustments Sometimes after an order is placed, corrections need to be made to shipping costs, tax amounts, or discounts. Violet handles these corrections through **Order Adjustments** - immutable audit records that track changes without modifying the original order. ## What Are Adjustments? Adjustments are financial corrections applied to an order after it has been submitted. They create a transparent audit trail of any changes made to: * **Shipping costs**: When the estimated shipping at checkout differs from actual carrier rates * **Tax amounts**: When tax calculations need correction due to jurisdiction issues * **Discounts**: When promotional credits are applied post-order {% hint style="info" %} Adjustments are different from refunds. A refund returns money for returned or cancelled products. An adjustment corrects a billing error without affecting the products in the order. {% endhint %} ## When Do Adjustments Happen? ### Automatic Shipping Reconciliation Violet can automatically monitor for shipping cost discrepancies before transferring funds to your payout account. If the shipping amount charged at checkout differs significantly from the actual rate (by more than $3.00), Violet creates an adjustment to correct the difference. **Example**: A customer was charged $12.00 for shipping at checkout, but the actual carrier rate was $8.50. Violet detects this $3.50 discrepancy and creates an adjustment so the correct amount flows to your payout. {% hint style="info" %} Your app must be configured for automatic shipping reconciliation for this feature to be enabled. Please contact the Violet Support team to learn more. {% endhint %} ### Manual Corrections In some cases, Violet support may create adjustments to correct billing discrepancies identified after an order was placed. You'll see these reflected in your distributions. ## How Adjustments Affect Your Payouts When an adjustment is created, it generates a new **ADJUSTMENT distribution** that appears alongside your regular payment distributions. This adjustment amount is included in your next payout transfer. ### Key Points About Adjustment Distributions | Aspect | How It Works | | ------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Commission** | Adjustments do NOT recalculate commission. Your commission rate was applied to the original transaction. | | **Payout timing** | Adjustment distributions are batched with your regular payouts on the standard 2-day rolling schedule. | | **Visibility** | You can see adjustment distributions in your Merchant Dashboard under the Distributions view. | | **Reconciliation** | Adjustment distributions have the same Order ID as the original payment, making them easy to match. | ### Example Adjustment Flow 1. **Original Order**: Customer places a $100 order with $10 shipping 2. **Payment Distribution**: You receive a PAYMENT distribution for your portion (e.g., $95 after commission) 3. **Shipping Correction**: Actual shipping was $7, not $10 4. **Adjustment Created**: A $3 SHIPPING\_TOTAL adjustment is created 5. **Adjustment Distribution**: A new ADJUSTMENT distribution for $3 is added to your next payout ## Viewing Adjustments in the Dashboard To see adjustments affecting your orders: 1. Navigate to the **Merchant Dashboard** 2. Go to the **Distributions** section 3. Look for distributions with type **ADJUSTMENT** 4. Click on a distribution to see details including the `adjustment_id` You can also view adjustments in the **Transfer Details** page, which shows a breakdown of all distributions (PAYMENT, REFUND, and ADJUSTMENT) included in each transfer to your bank. ## Adjustments vs. Refunds | Scenario | Use Adjustment | Use Refund | | ------------------------------------ | -------------- | ---------- | | Shipping was overcharged at checkout | Yes | No | | Tax was calculated incorrectly | Yes | No | | Customer wants to return a product | No | Yes | | Order needs to be cancelled | No | Yes | | Post-order promotional credit | Yes | No | If a customer contacts you about returning products or cancelling an order, follow the standard [refund process](/interacting-with-violet/refunding-an-order.md) in your ecommerce platform. Adjustments are handled automatically by Violet for billing corrections. ## Common Questions ### Will I be notified when an adjustment is created? Adjustment distributions appear in your Merchant Dashboard and are included in your regular payout transfers. Currently, there is no separate notification for adjustments - they flow through with your normal distributions. ### Can I dispute an adjustment? If you believe an adjustment was created in error, contact Violet support with the order ID and adjustment details. Our team will review the adjustment and work with you to resolve any discrepancies. ### Do adjustments affect my commission rate? No. Commission is calculated on the original transaction at the time of payment. Adjustments correct billing errors but do not trigger commission recalculation. ### How do I reconcile adjustments with my records? Adjustment distributions include the same `order_id` and `external_order_id` as the original payment. In your Stripe Dashboard, you'll see the adjustment as a separate transfer line item associated with the same order. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://merchant-help.violet.io/interacting-with-violet/understanding-adjustments.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.