Resource
AP Leakage
AP leakage is value lost when vendor billing errors, missing credits, duplicate payments, and pricing mismatches are paid before anyone reconciles the evidence.
- Leakage often appears after payment, when statements, credits, contracts, invoices, and exports are reviewed together.
- Recovery depends on claim quality, vendor response, customer authorization, and the terms governing the account.
- A good review queue shows amount, issue type, evidence, status, owner, and next action.
Why leakage survives normal AP controls
- Vendor names, account numbers, and invoice references change across systems or entities.
- Credits and rebates appear on statements but are not tied back to the original payment population.
- Contracts live outside AP, so invoice line rates are paid without checking the current agreement.
- Month-end urgency closes the payment cycle before someone reviews low-priority exceptions.
How to report leakage without inflating it
- Report claim-ready recoveries separately from items that need validation.
- Keep savings leads out of recovery totals until a vendor confirms a correction, credit, refund, offset, or balance reduction.
- Show source documents and status so finance leadership can see which findings are real, disputed, rejected, recovered, or still open.