How many next shipments can one spare cable miss?

Done. They want us to pay separate postage. Spare was included in the agreed package, with no note saying we had to buy more later.

Put that original agreement beside the missing-item line and ask purchasing to handle the postage discussion. Keep maintenance's record simple: spare not received, installed cable present.

Purchasing has it. Maintenance's bin was already marked complete from the main receipt, so I've corrected that. No spare hiding in there, unfortunately.

Good catch on the bin. An imaginary spare is worse than an empty labelled space.

I might pay a small postage charge to get a genuinely needed spare here, then argue the order separately. But only after they confirm they actually have the right cable. Paying to accelerate another vague promise is pointless.

I wouldn't split the dispute casually. Make any agreement explicit with purchasing, especially whether that payment settles anything else. Cheap postage can make an expensive muddle if everyone means something different.

All accessory cartons checked against the unpacking pictures. Seller acknowledges the spare wasn't packed. We are past that bit, thankfully.

Is the exact cable reference confirmed in their proposed parcel? Had a 'spare cable' offered to us that was for the wrong connection. Very spare indeed.

Their postage offer doesn't name the cable. Asking for its reference and stock status before purchasing chooses anything.

That's what I meant by genuinely needed, Aisha: correct item, available, known total. I wouldn't pay for an undefined cable or accept the rest of the order by accident.

Could purchasing request credit instead, if the correct spare is readily available elsewhere?

Compare the actual replacement cost and availability first. A credit looks neat in accounts while maintenance still has no cable. It may be worthwhile, but not from the seller's number alone.

Local source hasn't confirmed the exact reference yet. Seller says theirs is in stock and has now named the ordered reference. Purchasing is comparing separate dispatch with credit.

Thanks for clarifying the unpacking check, Maya. Does the seller's stock answer include a dispatch date, or only that the item is on a shelf somewhere?

And get that reference onto the parcel paperwork if you choose dispatch. The receiving person might not have followed this whole exchange.

No date yet. Purchasing requested one and kept the spare claim open. I haven't told maintenance to expect it this week.

The handover can name purchasing as the contact now, so each shift doesn't start its own chase against the same order.

Seller agreed separate dispatch without extra postage. Still waiting for collection confirmation. Thanks, Aisha, for making the 'no next order' point concrete.