Unauthorized discounts
An unauthorized discount is a markdown applied at the POS to a customer who is not entitled to it. It includes manual discounts without approval, someone else's partner discount, the cashier's own loyalty account and employee pricing used on purchases for friends. The sale goes through, but for less than it should.
How it happens
The cashier keys in a manual discount, enters their own loyalty number to collect points or applies a corporate partner discount to purchases by friends and family. Each discount is small and has a plausible reason in the system. Added up across the chain and the month, they reduce margin and do not show up as theft.
Warning signs
Discount with no eligible customer
A partner rate or employee price is applied to a purchase by someone with no link to it.
Same loyalty account on many sales
One loyalty account earns points on different purchases at the same register and on the same shift.
Recurring manual discounts
One POS concentrates manual discounts above the store average.
Approval with no manager present
The override code is used while the person responsible is not at the register.
Where it shows up
It shows up wherever the discount is decided at the register: pharmacies with partner plans and loyalty programs, retail with employee pricing and restaurants with comps.
How the Bewacher agent is designed for it
The agent is designed around your chain's commercial rules: which discounts exist, who can apply them and when. Every manual, partner or loyalty discount the POS records is matched with register video, to check whether a customer was being served and whether approval was given on the spot. Only the validated exception goes to the responsible team, with the transaction and the video in the same case.
Terms in the glossaryFrequently asked questions
How does the AI know a discount was unauthorized?
It does not decide on its own. The agent applies the chain's commercial rule to the POS entry and checks the service context on video: whether a customer was there, whether approval was given at the register and whether the discount repeats. The case that does not add up goes to the team for validation.
Are pharmacy partner plans and loyalty programs the most common case?
They are among the most common, because partner plans and loyalty programs generate many legitimate discounts every day. The agent separates the store's normal pattern from use outside the rule, such as the same loyalty account showing up on different purchases throughout a shift.
Do unauthorized discounts show up in inventory?
No. The product leaves with a receipt and inventory matches. The loss is in the price, because the sale came in lower than it should. Matching the discount entry with what happened at the register shows that gap.
Next step
See what the reading finds in your chain.