Stock Audit Services
Independent physical verification of inventory, fixed assets and warehouse operations — conducted by our Mumbai-based CA team for lenders, statutory auditors, insurers and management. Signed certificates, reconciled registers and actionable gap reports, delivered to a fixed fee.
A stock audit is an independent, physical verification of a business's tangible assets — inventory held in warehouses and stores, or fixed assets such as plant, machinery and equipment — matched against books of account, the Fixed Asset Register or an ERP system. Lenders require it as a condition of CC/OD and term loan facilities. Statutory auditors rely on it to satisfy CARO 2020 reporting requirements on inventory (Para 2(ii)) and property, plant & equipment (Para 1(ii)). Insurers use it to establish the correct sum insured before policy renewal. The Classic Partners LLP conducts all three types — Inventory Stock Audit, Fixed Asset Audit & Verification and Warehouse Audit — from a single, senior-led team.
Your books say one thing. Your warehouse may say another.
Shrinkage, pilferage, ghost assets, unrecorded disposals, coached stock counts, ERP errors and cut-off failures — the gap between what your books show and what physically exists is almost always larger than management expects. That gap has real consequences: inflated borrowing limits, overstated net worth, mispriced insurance, and statutory audit qualifications.
An independent stock audit by a CA firm closes that gap. It gives lenders assurance that the assets securing their credit actually exist. It gives statutory auditors the documentation they need to tick the CARO 2020 boxes. It gives management a variance report with root causes, not just a count. And it gives insurers a verified replacement-value schedule so the sum insured is neither too high nor dangerously too low.
- Required by most banks as a condition of CC/OD and term loan facilities
- Satisfies CARO 2020 Para 1 (PPE) and Para 2(ii) (inventory) requirements
- Supports insurance valuation and pre-renewal asset verification
- Identifies ghost assets, shrinkage, pilferage and process failures
- Delivers a signed certificate acceptable to lenders and auditors
- Provides an actionable gap report — not just numbers, but root causes
Three specialised services under one senior team
Each service is scoped to a specific type of physical verification — choose the one that matches your requirement, or combine them in a single engagement.
Inventory Stock Audit
Independent physical count of raw materials, WIP and finished goods — reconciled against your ERP or Tally, with cut-off verification, variance analysis and a signed certificate for banks, insurers and statutory auditors.
Best for: companies with CC/OD limits, CARO 2020 compliance, year-end stock verification, pre-insurance renewal.
Learn moreFixed Asset Audit & Verification
Physical verification and barcode tagging of plant, machinery, IT equipment and property — matched to your Fixed Asset Register, ghost assets identified, depreciation reviewed and a signed certificate issued.
Best for: CARO 2020 Para 1 compliance, term loan conditions, insurance renewal, pre-M&A due diligence, FAR clean-up.
Learn moreWarehouse Audit
Operational audit of warehouse processes — FIFO/FEFO compliance, inbound/outbound documentation, physical security, 3PL contract adherence and inventory accuracy — with a risk-rated gap report and corrective action log.
Best for: FMCG, pharma, e-commerce, logistics operators, 3PL verification and internal control improvement.
Learn moreWhich audit type does your requirement map to?
Use this table to identify the right service — or contact us and we'll recommend the appropriate scope after a brief call.
| Your requirement | Recommended service | Key deliverable |
|---|---|---|
| Bank CC / OD stock audit condition | Inventory Stock Audit | Signed stock audit certificate |
| CARO 2020 inventory verification (Para 2(ii)) | Inventory Stock Audit | Documented physical verification with discrepancy statement |
| CARO 2020 PPE verification (Para 1(ii)) | Fixed Asset Audit & Verification | Signed verification certificate + reconciled FAR |
| Bank term loan — asset verification condition | Fixed Asset Audit & Verification | Verified asset list with replacement values |
| Fire / property insurance renewal valuation | Fixed Asset Audit & Verification | Replacement value schedule per asset category |
| Shrinkage, pilferage or process gap investigation | Warehouse Audit | Risk-rated gap report with root causes |
| 3PL / logistics provider SLA verification | Warehouse Audit | 3PL adherence scorecard + gap log |
| FIFO / FEFO compliance (pharma / food / FMCG) | Warehouse Audit | Compliance assessment + corrective action log |
| Pre-M&A / due diligence asset and stock verification | Inventory Stock Audit + Fixed Asset Audit | Verified net working capital & gross block schedule |
Not sure which service fits? Tell us your situation — we'll confirm the scope in one call at no charge.
Every stock audit engagement follows the same four stages
Regardless of which service you engage, the process is structured, documented and delivered to a fixed fee agreed upfront.
Scope & planning
Scoping call to understand locations, asset types, ERP system, lender or auditor requirements — then a fixed-fee proposal and engagement letter within one working day.
On-site verification
Independent count or survey teams on site — photo documentation, asset tagging or cycle count sheets completed systematically, zone by zone, with supervisory sign-off.
Reconciliation & analysis
Physical data matched to books, ERP or FAR — variances classified by root cause, materiality assessed, management response captured before the final report is issued.
Report & certificate
Signed CA certificate for lenders and insurers; management report with findings, gap log and recommendations — delivered within the agreed timeline.
Signed by a CA. Accepted by your bank, auditor and insurer.
Partner-led, independently conducted and documented to withstand scrutiny.
CA-signed certificates
Every stock audit certificate is signed by an ICAI-registered CA — the format required by PSU and private banks, insurance surveyors and statutory auditors.
Truly independent teams
Count and verification staff are ours, not your employees — eliminating coached or guided counts that undermine the independence of the exercise.
Digital, timestamped evidence
Photo documentation with GPS and timestamps stored in a secure cloud archive — a complete, defensible trail if the lender, auditor or insurer asks a question later.
Fixed fee, agreed upfront
One scoping call, then a written quote per location. No open-ended hourly billing and no surprises on the final invoice.
Multi-location & pan-India
Single engagement covering multiple warehouses, factories and offices — Maharashtra-headquartered with pan-India count team coordination.
Integrated with statutory audit
When we are also your statutory auditor, stock audit findings feed directly into the CARO 2020 working papers — no duplicate effort, no conflicting figures.
Stock audit questions business owners and CFOs ask us
Straight answers before you engage an audit firm.
Need a stock audit? Tell us your requirement.
Share your industry, number of locations, type of asset (inventory or fixed assets) and whether the audit is for a bank, insurer or statutory audit purpose. You'll get a fixed quote within one working day.
