Credit Application: Review Cheat Sheet for Controllers

Created by Amy Sara Price, Modified on Mon, 8 Jun at 1:31 PM by Amy Sara Price

Trade Shield | Knowledge Centre CREDIT APPLICATIONS

Credit Application: Review Cheat Sheet for Controllers

Quick reference • Approval Level 1 • 7 check areas

How to use this guide: Use this cheat sheet to scan the application pack quickly and confirm nothing obvious is wrong before approving. Work through each section in order. If you hit a red flag — stop and act on it before proceeding.

In this article

1. Entity Details	2. Authorisation
3. Banking Information	4. Request vs Reality
5. Required Documents	6. Delivery & Order Red Flags
7. Before You Click Approve	General Common Sense Check

Entity Details — confirm consistency

☐ Company name is consistent across all pages

☐ Registration number is present and matches all documents

☐ VAT number included where applicable

⚠ Red Flag: Different names or registration numbers across documents = stop and query before proceeding.

↓

Authorisation — verify signing authority

☐ Application has been signed

☐ Name of the signatory is clearly visible

☐ Capacity of the signer is clear (director / owner / authorised person)

⚠ Red Flag: Missing signature or unclear signing authority = do not approve.

↓

Banking Information — confirm account ownership

☐ Account name matches the legal entity name on the application

☐ All bank details are present and complete

⚠ Red Flag: Third-party or unrelated account name = escalate before approving.

↓

Request vs Reality — does the amount make sense?

☐ Requested credit limit is clearly visible on the application

☐ Requested payment terms are visible

☐ The requested amount seems reasonable for this type of business

⚠ Red Flag: Amount looks unusually high for the business profile = confirm before approving.

↓

Required Documents — is the pack complete?

☐ All documents required by your company policy are present

☐ Nothing appears cut off, altered, or incomplete

⚠ Red Flag: Required items are missing → return the application before any approval action.

↓

Warning: Delivery & Order Red Flags

☐ Delivery address looks legitimate and matches the client's premises

☐ Order behaviour aligns with the client's normal procedures

☐ Order numbers are present and consistent

⚠ Red Flag: Delivery address looks suspicious (e.g. unrelated location, residential address for a commercial client, empty lot) = stop and confirm.

⚠ Red Flag: Client urgently wants to collect goods and this is unusual for them = escalate.

⚠ Red Flag: Order numbers are missing, duplicated, or inconsistent = do not approve.

↓

✓

General Common Sense Check — trust your instincts

Before you approve, ask yourself:

✓ Does this application look legitimate?

✓ Would I be comfortable defending this approval later?

✓ Would an auditor understand why we said yes?

⚠ If unsure → Escalate. It is always better to ask than to approve something you are not comfortable with.

↓

Before You Click Approve

☐ Trade Shield recommendation has been reviewed

☐ Insurance position confirmed

☐ Approval is within your mandate

ⓘ Tip: If you are changing the approved amount from what was requested → record your reason before submitting.

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