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Where to find it: Dashboard → Shipper Settings → Freight Audit and Pay Owlery can handle clear invoice decisions automatically. You set one default policy, then add carrier-specific rules only where your agreements differ.
Invoice Auto Decision Rules require Bill Pay. If you cannot edit the Freight Audit and Pay settings, contact support@owlery.ai.
If your Enterprise account has subsidiary organizations, configure these rules separately for each subsidiary.

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Set Up Default Rules

1

Open Freight Audit and Pay

Go to Dashboard → Shipper Settings. Select Freight Audit and Pay.
2

Turn On Invoice Auto Decision

Turn on the switch next to Invoice Auto Decision. Owlery saves this setting immediately.
3

Open the Rule Editor

Find Invoice Auto Decision Rules and click Manage rules. The editor shows an Approve rule and a Dispute rule under Default for all carriers.
4

Configure the Approve Rule

Turn on the Approve rule. Add a Threshold or select one or more conditions. Owlery only auto-approves an invoice when every configured approve check passes.
5

Configure the Dispute Rule

Turn on the Dispute rule. Add a Threshold or select one or more conditions. Any configured dispute check can trigger an auto-dispute.
6

Review and Save

Read the summary below each rule to confirm its behavior. Click Save invoice auto decision settings.
Turning on a rule without a threshold or condition does not automate any decisions. Configure at least one check for each enabled rule.

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Choose Your Checks

You can configure the approve and dispute rules independently. For Threshold, choose how Owlery compares the invoice total with the awarded rate:
  • Overage: Counts only the amount billed above the awarded rate. An invoice billed below the awarded rate does not exceed this threshold.
  • Absolute difference: Counts the full difference, whether the invoice is above or below the awarded rate.
If Owlery cannot verify the ERP rate or order link because the required data is unavailable, it keeps the invoice in Needs Review instead of auto-disputing it.

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Understand the Decision Order

Owlery evaluates the rules in this order:
  1. If any dispute check matches, Owlery moves the invoice to Disputing.
  2. Otherwise, if every approve check passes, Owlery moves the invoice to Approved.
  3. If neither rule applies, the invoice stays in Needs Review.
The dispute rule wins when both rules match. Avoid overlapping thresholds unless that is the result you want. For example, an invoice 50overtheawardedratematchesbothanapprovethresholdof50 over the awarded rate matches both an approve threshold of 100 and a dispute threshold of $25, so Owlery disputes it.
To create a manual-review range, use a lower approve threshold and a higher dispute threshold. For example, approve differences up to 25anddisputedifferencesover25 and dispute differences over 100. Invoices between those amounts stay in Needs Review.

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Add Carrier Overrides

Use an override when one carrier has different audit requirements. You can replace its approve rule, dispute rule, or both.
1

Select a Carrier

Under Carrier overrides, select a Carrier integration and click Add override.
2

Choose Which Rules to Replace

Turn on Override approve rule, Override dispute rule, or both. A rule you do not select continues to use the default.
3

Configure and Save the Override

Enable and configure each selected rule. Click Save invoice auto decision settings.
Each override replaces the entire selected rule for that carrier. It does not add individual checks to the default rule.

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What Happens After You Save

Owlery evaluates new and updated invoices automatically. It also periodically rechecks eligible recent invoices.
  • Invoices that match the dispute rule move to Disputing with labels that explain the failed checks.
  • Invoices that pass every approve check move to Approved.
  • Auto-disputed invoices can move to Approved or back to Needs Review after the carrier corrects and resubmits them.
  • Owlery does not override a dispute made by someone on your team.
  • Owlery does not re-evaluate invoices that are already Approved, Payment Created, or Paid.
See Invoices to review statuses, decision reasons, and carrier resubmissions. To pause all automatic decisions without deleting your rules, turn off Invoice Auto Decision under Freight Audit and Pay.