“The truck arrived” and “the customer received the goods” are different statements. A proof of delivery, or POD, connects the second statement to a named recipient, a specific load and a clear record of what actually changed hands.
For a transport team moving goods between Nairobi, Juja and upcountry branches, a signature without context is a weak handover record. Which branch signed? Were all the cartons accepted? Did the warehouse reject two damaged units? The useful record answers those questions without requiring dispatch to reconstruct a phone call.
Separate the instruction from the outcome
A delivery note describes the goods accompanying a delivery. The completed POD records the receiving outcome. They can be parts of the same document, but the planned quantity must remain distinguishable from the quantity actually accepted. Likewise, the person releasing goods at pickup is not automatically the person authorised to receive them at the destination.
This distinction also appears in logistics standards: GS1 separates advance despatch information from receiving advice, including notices about missing or damaged goods. Its Logistics Interoperability Model, sections 3.5.5 and 3.6.3 describes delivery status and discrepancies as information to communicate after the physical handover. Your fleet does not need a full EDI integration to apply that basic discipline.
A practical eight-part POD checklist
- Job identity. Record the trip and consignment references, plus the customer order or delivery-note number. Keep a separate reference for every customer load on a shared truck.
- Correct parties and site. Name the shipping company, receiving company and exact receiving branch. Include the warehouse or gate where goods were handed over, not just “Nairobi”.
- Cargo and units. Identify the goods, packaging and quantities. “20” is not enough: 20 cartons, pallets and tonnes describe very different deliveries.
- Actual outcome. Separate quantities presented and accepted. Record shortages, visible damage and rejected goods with a reason. Do not use a generic “delivered” tick to hide an exception.
- Handover time. Capture the date and local time of receipt. Keep vehicle arrival, unloading completion and customer acknowledgement distinct when those events happen at different times.
- Recipient acknowledgement. Record the recipient’s name and role, then the signature or acknowledgement agreed for the job. Confirm the correct receiving person before unloading.
- Supporting evidence. Attach the relevant delivery note, cargo-condition photo or seal reference where appropriate. Make images legible and specific to the load; avoid unnecessary faces, identity documents or other customers’ paperwork.
- Follow-up owner. If anything is unresolved, record the action, responsible person and next update. A discrepancy with no owner is an unfinished delivery disguised as a completed form.
Agree the checklist with the customer before the truck leaves. Some receivers use their own goods-received reference or require an original paper document. Confirm that requirement at booking, along with receiving hours and the contact at the gate. This is an operating checklist, not a claim that one template satisfies every contract.
Worked example: 100 cartons arrive, 98 are accepted
Suppose a truck presents 100 cartons at the customer’s Moyale branch. The receiver accepts 98 and rejects two with crushed packaging. Record 100 presented, 98 accepted and two rejected as visibly damaged. Attach evidence of the two affected cartons and record the recipient’s acknowledgement of that outcome.
The two cartons are still an operational responsibility. Dispatch must obtain instructions: return them, hold them securely, or deliver them elsewhere after approval. Do not silently replace the original order quantity with 98, and do not label all 100 as successfully delivered. Keep the original instruction and the actual outcome together so the next person can understand the difference.
One truck, several customers: keep each handover separate
A driver may unload Client A at one branch and continue with Client B’s cargo. Client A’s receipt should close A’s handover only. The truck’s journey and Client B’s delivery remain open. Even when two customers share a receiving warehouse, their quantities, acknowledgements and exceptions need separate identification.
If one business ships between its own branches, the company may be the same on both sides while the sites and receiving contacts differ. Store the business once, then name the exact pickup and delivery locations for the job. Our guide to part-load trucking in Kenya explains why a vehicle movement and its individual consignments should not be collapsed into one status.
When the recipient refuses to sign—or the phone is offline
Never sign on behalf of a receiver or invent their name to finish the trip. Record the refusal and reason, preserve the available evidence and contact the dispatcher for an agreed exception process. A driver’s account of the event is useful evidence, but it must not be presented as the customer’s acknowledgement.
With weak connectivity, distinguish “saved on the device” from “received by the office”. Preserve the original event time and show whether evidence has synced. If your tool cannot reliably store signatures and attachments offline, use a numbered paper fallback and reconcile it once connected. Check that the document reached the correct job before discarding any temporary copy under your retention procedure.
Review the record before sharing it
Give one person responsibility for checking incomplete PODs each working day. Start with missing recipients, unreadable attachments, quantity differences and records still awaiting sync. Send the customer only their own receipt and relevant evidence—not a screenshot of the whole dispatch board or a mixed-customer manifest.
A clean POD supports follow-up and invoice preparation; it does not prove payment has arrived or remove every commercial dispute. Keep delivery acceptance, billing review and payment status as separate records. For location-data boundaries, see our driver privacy guide.
Editorial review: September 14, 2026. The checklist and example are Kora Fleet’s operational guidance; the GS1 source supports the distinction between despatch, receipt and discrepancy reporting. They do not describe a GS1 certification or integration in Kora.