Collection: Wato’s Affiliate Shipping Review

Wato’s Affiliate Shipping Review rules

• Variable supplier freight: send to review whenever supplier shipping changes by postcode, state, regional/remote zone, product size/weight, quantity, dangerous-goods class, oversized freight, or carrier quote.
• Unknown supplier shipping: send to review whenever the supplier freight charge cannot be confirmed before sale, is missing from the feed/Collective data, or depends on a manual quote.
• Multi-supplier order rule: send any product to Wato’s Affiliate Shipping Review whenever a typical customer order could reasonably include products from two or more suppliers that may each charge separate shipping, fulfilment, handling, or dispatch fees. Use the tests below.

How to decide whether a typical order is multi-supplier:

1. Bundle or kit test: Treat a bundle or kit as multi-supplier whenever it contains, can contain, or can be fulfilled using two or more separately sourced components where Wato’s could receive more than one supplier freight, fulfilment, handling, or dispatch charge. This includes fixed bundles, build-your-own bundles, starter packs, gift packs, recovery kits, camping kits, fishing kits and virtual/app-created bundles. Send it to Shipping Review if: (a) any included SKU comes from a different supplier or fulfilment service; (b) a customer-selectable bundle component or variant can switch the order to a second supplier; (c) stock substitution can cause one component to be sourced from another supplier; (d) the bundle is displayed as one offer but its components are dispatched separately and can attract separate charges; or (e) the supplier/freight source of any component is unknown. Do not treat it as multi-supplier solely because the bundle contains multiple SKUs or brands when every component is fulfilled by the same supplier under one confirmed freight/fulfilment charge. A multi-supplier bundle may leave review only when every supplier charge is known or confirmed free and the complete order still meets the Wato’s contribution threshold.
2. Variant supplier/warehouse/fulfilment change rule: Send the entire product to Wato’s Affiliate Shipping Review as soon as any live, customer-selectable variant differs from another live variant in a way that can change who fulfils it or what Wato’s is charged to fulfil it. A change is review-triggering when any of the following is true: (a) the supplier, Collective partner, dropshipper, vendor account, or purchase source is different; (b) the warehouse, dispatch origin, third-party logistics provider, print-on-demand service, or fulfilment service is different and that difference can create a separate or different freight, handling, pick/pack, dispatch, or fulfilment charge; (c) fulfilment can switch between suppliers or warehouses because of stock availability, postcode, state, regional/remote location, selected size/colour/model/capacity/pack, or supplier substitution; (d) one variant is free-shipping or fixed-freight while another is paid, quoted, oversized, regional, remote-area, weight-based, carrier-calculated, or unknown; (e) one variant contains extra separately sourced components, accessories, batteries, chargers, cases, mounts, hoses, cables, or kit parts that can create another supplier/fulfilment charge; (f) the same order could contain two variants of the product that are dispatched by different suppliers or fulfilment locations and Wato’s could be charged twice; or (g) the supplier, warehouse, fulfilment path, or freight terms for any live variant cannot be verified. Do not trigger review merely because variants have different prices, SKUs, colours, sizes, inventory quantities, or barcodes when every live variant is fulfilled by the same supplier from the same fulfilment path under the same confirmed freight policy. One triggering live variant is enough to place the whole product in Shipping Review. The product may leave review only when every live variant has a confirmed supplier/fulfilment path, all freight and fulfilment charges are known or confirmed free, no realistic variant combination can create an unaccounted second charge, and the lowest-contribution live variant still meets the Wato’s profit threshold after all costs.
3. Warehouse / dispatch-origin change trigger: Send the whole product to Wato’s Affiliate Shipping Review when any live variant can ship from a different warehouse, dispatch origin, stock location, 3PL, or fulfilment centre and that change can alter Wato’s all-in fulfilment cost or create an extra charge. Review is mandatory when: (a) the origin change can change freight price, handling, pick/pack, dispatch, carrier, regional/remote surcharge, oversized surcharge, or other fulfilment fee; (b) the warehouse used is selected dynamically by stock availability, customer postcode, state, quantity, or variant and Wato’s cannot know the final all-in charge before sale; (c) two variants bought in the same order can dispatch from different origins and may create two freight or fulfilment charges; (d) one origin offers free or fixed shipping while another uses paid, carrier-calculated, quoted, regional, remote-area, weight-based, or unknown shipping; (e) an origin change can cause split fulfilment, back-order fulfilment, supplier substitution, or a second parcel with an additional charge; or (f) the dispatch origin or its freight terms cannot be verified for any live variant. Do not trigger review solely because a supplier internally stocks variants in multiple warehouses when the supplier guarantees one identical, known all-in freight/fulfilment charge to Wato’s regardless of which warehouse dispatches, with no extra split-shipment or location fee. One live variant with an uncertain or potentially more expensive warehouse path sends the whole product to Shipping Review. Clear the product only after every live variant’s possible dispatch origins are known, the worst-case combined freight/fulfilment cost is covered, and the lowest-contribution variant still meets the Wato’s threshold after all costs.
4. Evidence required to prove identical all-in warehouse/dispatch charges: A product may avoid Shipping Review despite multiple warehouses or dispatch origins only when Wato’s has current, supplier-specific evidence showing that every possible live-variant origin produces the same known all-in fulfilment cost to Wato’s. Acceptable evidence must satisfy all of the following: (a) source: the evidence comes from the supplier, Collective partner, dropshipper, fulfilment provider, contract, rate card, supplier portal, API/feed documentation, invoice history, or written supplier confirmation—not an assumption based only on storefront pricing; (b) origin coverage: every warehouse, dispatch origin, 3PL, or fulfilment centre that can serve the product’s live variants is identified or explicitly covered by a supplier statement that the same charge applies regardless of origin; (c) charge coverage: the stated amount includes freight plus all applicable pick/pack, handling, dispatch, fulfilment, warehouse, carrier, split-shipment, fuel, regional/remote, oversized, residential, signature, and other routine fulfilment surcharges, or explicitly confirms that none apply; (d) destination coverage: the evidence applies to the Australian delivery zones Wato’s sells to, including regional and remote areas if those customers can purchase the product, or clearly states the excluded zones so those orders remain in review; (e) variant coverage: the evidence applies to every live variant, including size, weight, pack, capacity, model, colour, or kit differences that could affect shipping; (f) quantity/split-shipment coverage: it confirms whether multiple units or mixed variants can ship from different origins without creating an additional charge; (g) currency/GST clarity: the amount is stated in AUD and it is clear whether GST is included or excluded so the landed-cost calculation is consistent; (h) effective date: the evidence is current, with a stated effective date, current portal/rate-card date, or recent invoice/API result that still matches the supplier’s active policy; and (i) recheck trigger: the approval expires and returns to Shipping Review whenever the supplier changes warehouses, freight policy, carrier, surcharges, fulfilment terms, pricing structure, or Wato’s sees an invoice that does not match the approved charge. Strong proof is a written supplier statement or current rate card explicitly saying the same all-in charge applies regardless of warehouse, backed where practical by matching invoices or test quotes from at least two different origins. Weak proof such as one past order, one postcode quote, a generic 'free shipping' banner, or identical retail prices is not enough on its own.
5. Minimum evidence package before excluding a multi-warehouse product from Shipping Review: The product may be excluded from Wato’s Affiliate Shipping Review only when the file for that supplier/product contains all six items below. Missing any one item means the product stays in review. 1. Primary supplier proof: a current written supplier statement, contract, rate card, supplier-portal page, Collective/fulfilment terms, or API/feed documentation that explicitly states the freight/fulfilment charge or confirms that the same all-in charge applies regardless of warehouse or dispatch origin. 2. Origin and variant coverage: a record identifying every warehouse/dispatch origin that can fulfil the product and confirming that every live variant is covered by the same rule; if the supplier will not disclose warehouse names, written confirmation that the rule applies to every origin used for the listed variants is acceptable. 3. All-in charge definition: proof of the exact AUD amount or confirmed free-shipping basis, including whether GST is included and confirming that routine pick/pack, handling, dispatch, fulfilment, fuel, carrier, split-shipment, regional/remote, oversized and other applicable surcharges are either included or separately identified. 4. Split-order confirmation: evidence stating what happens when multiple units or mixed variants are fulfilled from different warehouses, including whether Wato’s can be charged more than once. If a second charge is possible, the product remains in review unless the worst-case combined charge is known and covered. 5. Transactional verification: at least two recent matching invoices, test quotes, checkout/portal quotes, or API freight results covering two different warehouses/origins or fulfilment paths where practical. If Wato’s cannot select or observe the origin, one recent transaction/API result plus explicit written supplier confirmation that origin does not affect the charge is the minimum substitute. 6. Freshness record: record the evidence date and supplier policy effective date where available; evidence must still match the supplier’s current policy. Any later mismatch, surcharge, warehouse-policy change, carrier change, or fulfilment-term change immediately returns the product to Shipping Review. A generic free-shipping banner, one old invoice, one postcode quote, identical retail prices, or an unsupported assumption never satisfies this minimum package.
6. Valid transactional proof standard: Transactional proof is valid only when it is supplier- or fulfilment-generated, attributable to the relevant product/variant, recent enough to reflect the current freight policy, and detailed enough to calculate Wato’s actual all-in fulfilment cost. Unless a supplier policy changed more recently, use evidence dated within the last 90 days. Valid evidence types are: (1) Supplier invoice: an invoice, order confirmation, fulfilment invoice, Collective charge record, or supplier statement issued to Wato’s that identifies the supplier, order date, SKU/variant or clearly matching product, quantity, delivery postcode/zone, freight/handling/fulfilment charge, GST treatment, and—where the supplier exposes it—the warehouse or dispatch origin. To prove equal warehouse cost, use at least two matching transactions from different known origins/fulfilment paths while keeping the destination class and order profile reasonably comparable. (2) Supplier test quote: a quote generated directly by the supplier, supplier sales team, official freight calculator, order draft, or fulfilment provider that records the date, SKU/variant, quantity, destination postcode, quoted freight/fulfilment amount, GST treatment, and the warehouse/origin or confirmation that warehouse selection does not change the charge. Quotes must be reproducible or retained as a dated email/PDF/portal record; an informal verbal estimate does not count. (3) Authenticated supplier-portal record: a logged-in supplier/Collective/dropship/3PL portal screen or exported order/rate record that shows the relevant SKU/variant, destination, quantity, charge amount, charge components or all-in total, timestamp/current rate basis, and warehouse/fulfilment source where available. A screenshot counts only if these identifying details are visible or can be tied to a retained portal record; a cropped freight number with no supplier, product, destination, or date does not count. (4) Supplier API result: a response from the supplier’s official API/feed or fulfilment-rate endpoint that can be tied to a saved request containing the SKU/variant, quantity, destination postcode/zone and, where supported, warehouse/origin. The saved response must include the returned freight/fulfilment amount, currency, GST/tax treatment if provided, timestamp or retrieval date, and enough request/response identifiers to reproduce or audit the result. Cached values with unknown age do not count. Minimum comparison: where warehouse origin is observable, retain two valid records representing at least two different origins/fulfilment paths and showing the same all-in charge under a comparable order scenario. If the supplier controls origin dynamically and Wato’s cannot observe or select it, one recent valid transaction/API/portal result is acceptable only when paired with current written supplier confirmation that the same all-in charge applies regardless of origin and that split fulfilment does not add a second charge. Destination check: if the supplier claims the same charge across metro and regional/remote zones, retain evidence covering each materially different zone that Wato’s serves; otherwise only the verified zones may be excluded from review. Invalid proof: consumer-facing retail checkout estimates, generic website banners, unlogged screenshots, Wato’s own spreadsheet calculations, supplier catalogue RRPs, freight assumptions copied from another SKU, verbal assurances with no written record, quotes missing destination or SKU, invoices older than 90 days where no current policy confirmation exists, and any record that omits a possible handling/fulfilment surcharge. Any conflicting invoice, quote, portal result, or API response overrides prior approval and sends the product back to Shipping Review immediately.
7. Common add-on test: Review if the product has an obvious accessory, consumable, spare, attachment, replacement part, case, cover, cable, battery, charger, hose, mounting kit, lure/tackle add-on, recovery accessory, or other item that customers would reasonably buy in the same order and that add-on comes from a different supplier that may charge separate freight.
8. Merchandising test: Treat an add-on as 'common' when it appears in a bundle, product recommendation, related-products section, cart upsell, frequently-bought-together offer, promotional set, or staff-created pairing. If order history later shows a different-supplier item is bought with the product regularly, that also counts as common.
9. Supplier substitution test: Review if the same product or equivalent stock can be fulfilled by more than one supplier and the supplying vendor can change depending on stock availability, postcode, or variant.
10. Split-fulfilment test: Review if one customer order can be split into two supplier shipments even when the storefront shows one product or one bundle. Separate warehouse or fulfilment charges count the same as separate suppliers if Wato’s can be charged twice.
11. Multiple quantity test: Buying two or more of the same item is not automatically multi-supplier risk. It becomes review only if stock can be split across suppliers or fulfilment locations with separate freight charges.
12. Free-shipping exception: A multi-supplier combination may leave review only when every involved supplier’s freight is confirmed free or fixed, the combined charge is known before sale, and the full order still meets the Wato’s contribution threshold.
13. Default rule: If there is a realistic same-cart path to a second supplier and the second freight charge is unknown or not fully covered, send the product to Shipping Review. If uncertain, review rather than auto-approve.

• Flat-rate shortfall: send to review when expected supplier freight exceeds the shipping amount collected from the customer and the product margin must absorb the difference.
• Free/fixed freight: products may bypass shipping review only when supplier freight is confirmed free or fixed and the full contribution calculation is known.
• Contribution threshold: after product cost, supplier freight, customer shipping collected, 5% creator commission and payment fees, $15+ may be approved; $10–$14.99 stays manual review; under $10 is hold/reprice/drop.
• Uncertainty rule: if any shipping or fulfilment input is uncertain, do not auto-approve the product for the affiliate collection.