Lesson 3 of 5
Credit exposure and credit checks
11 min
A credit check answers one question: if we accept this document, will the customer's credit exposure exceed what we allow? To understand the answer you need to know what exposure contains and how the check is configured.
Credit exposure
Credit exposure is the total value the customer owes or will soon owe in a credit segment. SAP Credit Management builds it from several categories, each updated by sales or finance as documents move through the process:
| Category | What it contains | Moves when |
|---|---|---|
| Open orders | Value of confirmed order quantities not yet delivered | Order saved with confirmed quantities; reduced at delivery |
| Open deliveries | Value of deliveries not yet billed | Delivery created; reduced at billing |
| Open billing documents | Billing documents not yet posted to accounting | Billing saved without posting; reduced at posting |
| Open items | Receivables in accounts receivable | Billing posted; reduced when the customer pays |
Credit exposure categories. Exact labels vary by release.
- Order savedOpen orders +$12,190
- Delivery createdOpen orders -$12,190; open deliveries +$12,190
- Invoice postedOpen deliveries -$12,190; open items +$12,190
- Customer paysOpen items -$12,190; exposure back where it started
Two details catch people out. First, open orders count confirmed quantities. An order blocked by credit typically has no confirmed quantity, so it does not add to exposure while blocked. Second, a check can be static (all open values count) or dynamic (open orders count only within a horizon, for example the next 30 days), depending on the check step.
When the check runs
The link to sales is configured in two places. The sales document type has a credit limit check setting: D means SAP Credit Management, blank means no check. Then the combination of the document credit group (from the sales document type or delivery type) and the customer credit group (from the credit profile) decides at which points checks run: order entry, delivery creation, goods issue, or several.
What the check does: check rules
The customer's check rule lists the check steps. Typical steps are a static credit limit check against segment and main segment, a dynamic check with a horizon, a check of the highest dunning level, a check of the oldest open item, and a check on the date of the last payment. Each step can produce a warning or an error. In sales, an error usually means the document is saved but blocked; it gets a credit status and cannot be delivered.
- Does the sales document type have check type D?Yes → continue · No → no credit check
- Do document credit group and customer credit group call for a check at this point?Yes → run the check rule · No → no check now
- Would exposure plus this document exceed the segment or main segment limit?Yes → limit step fails · No → continue with other steps
- Do other steps fail (oldest open item, dunning level, expired limit)?Yes → warning or block per configuration · No → document passes
Example: Great Lakes Fleet Services has a $250,000 segment limit and $240,000 exposure. Maria enters an order worth $12,190. Exposure would reach $252,190, above the limit. The static limit step fails, the order is saved with a credit block, and a documented credit decision is created for the credit analyst. The order shows a credit status of not approved, and the delivery due list will skip it.
Deliveries can be checked too. If the credit groups call for a check at delivery creation or goods issue, an order that passed on Monday can be blocked on Friday because exposure grew in between, for example after another large order or an overdue invoice. That is the point of a later check: it uses the exposure at the moment the goods are about to leave. Warehouse staff need to know what a credit-blocked delivery looks like and whom to call.
What would you do?
An order for Great Lakes Fleet Services was blocked. The customer is well under its limit. Which check should Maria look at next?
- Exposure = open orders + open deliveries + open billing documents + open items, per segment.
- Open orders count confirmed values; a blocked order does not add to exposure while blocked.
- Check type D on the document type and the credit groups decide whether and when checks run.
- The check rule's steps (limit, horizon, oldest open item, dunning level) decide the result.
Check your understanding · not graded
Lesson check
1. Which exposure category does a posted but unpaid invoice belong to?
2. What does check type D on a sales document type mean?
3. Why does a credit-blocked order usually not increase open order exposure?
4. What decides at which process points (order, delivery, goods issue) a check runs?