When articles are returned, problems occur in settlement (refund) transaction. For example, as in the case of the apparel industry, in the case where commission sale of articles is admitted, and the price such as the wholesale price changes depending on the time of year, from the beginning to the latter half of the season, in the absence of objective information as to the time and the price of the article, when the article is returned, the settlement transaction is complicated. For example, in the case where articles were sold to the same buyer a plurality of times, at different prices in one season, even if shipment slips are presented, it is dubious that the articles were sold at the prices indicated on the slips. Further, if a third person who bought articles from a reseller returns the articles for requesting a refund, the situation is further complicated. In the industry where commission sale is widely admitted, the seller may accept return of articles from a person other than the direct buyer. Under the circumstances, unique IDs may be assigned to the articles. In this approach, database searches are conducted using the IDs to determine the sales prices. However, in the environment where connection to the database is not available, such an approach cannot be adopted.
The similar problems may occur, e.g., in the industry of nonlife insurance. If an article of which the acquisition price is not certain is damaged, a trouble may occur. For example, in the case of a relatively expensive article, if the price of the article differs depending on the place, the time, or the route of the sale, it is difficult to compensate for the damage of the article in a manner reasonable to both of the insurance company and the client of the insurance company.