How to Fix 4 Common Accounting Mistakes

They can come in handy when you find an accounting discrepancy or have an audit. The last thing a small business owner wants to go through is a tax audit. But if you do have to, the more paperwork you have, the better off you’ll be.

At the same time we can help your company find more opportunities for growth by creating concise reports packed with valuable insight. Errors can either be small mistakes that don’t affect the overall figures or ones that snowball into greater miscalculations and need more time and resources to identify and repair. Accounting mistakes can keep your small business from running smoothly and hurt growth so it’s important to learn the common types of accounting errors and how to correct them. One reason you might be overlooking accounting mistakes is because of the mix-up of transactions between personal and business spending.

Changing a closed period

When an entry is debited instead of being credited, or vice versa, this is an error of reversal. One of the problems with forgetting to enter data goes back to data integrity. That entry could’ve been an employee’s salary or a budgeting item used to make an important financial decision. Practical and real-world advice on how to run your business — from managing employees to keeping the books. And make sure there’s someone knowledgeable in accounting entries who can answer questions when they arise. Here’s what you need to know to reduce the number of errors that can creep into accounting systems.

Over time, poor accounting practices can distort the reality of your company’s fiscal health. In severe cases, repeated accounting mistakes and bad accounting practices can lead your business toward insolvency or company administration. If you use accounting software, it will keep you on track with closed periods. You can set a password on your books that seal each accounting period. The number one rule of business is to separate your business accounts from your personal accounts.

Errors of Principle

For example, a company’s payment to an independent contractor for $500 was not entered in the books. Some corrections in expense classification may trigger a change in accounting method for tax purposes, requiring you to file a request for a change in accounting method. Other errors may have ripple effects (e.g., you may need to restate previous financial statements). Put practices in place that can help to detect and correct accounting errors. For example, conduct bank reconciliations every month so you can catch a problem and the error doesn’t linger on your books. Review them monthly to ensure charges have been entered correctly in your accounting system.

For example, you might compare bank statements with the numbers showing in your accounting software. Filing your taxes can be time-consuming, even if you are organized accounting errors and ready to go. While 93% of small business owners say they’re confident in their ability to file their own taxes, a third are convinced they have overpaid.

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For example, you erroneously overstate income by $1,000, but you also overstate an expense by a like amount so it all evens out even though both entries are wrong. Error of transposition is the incorrect recording of the amount of an item by reversing numbers. This can cause overstating or understanding the amount of an item, which is the result of transposing a number. For example, instead of entering an expense as $946, you erroneously enter it as $496.

• You may think a quick review of financial statements is enough with lack of time as an excuse.
• When clients wait longer to pay, and invoices are delayed, your company is forced to work overtime just to pay the bills.
• We suggest creating a standardized form or checklist for each accounting procedure to avoid data entry errors for accounting entries.
• While daily updates are ideal, you should at least enter your transactions on a weekly basis.
• Keep your receipts and paperwork and set up a regular time each week to enter the data.

In other cases, you may need to notify others of the mistake as you’re correcting it. For example, if a significant error was reported on an official financial statement, you must reissue those documents with the errors corrected. An error of subsidiary entry occurs when an error is made when entering a transaction. For example, if you loan a customer $5,000 but enter only $500 as a loan and $500 withdrawal from your cash account, then you will find that this error is carried to your trial balance.

Error of Entry Reversal

Omitting data affects the balance sheet and can make a company look like it’s doing better than it actually is. Duplications are another common accounting error that is the result of double-entering an income or expense entry. If you’re keeping track https://www.bookstime.com/ of your business finances in an Excel spreadsheet or a paper ledger, you may want to consider upgrading to software. Investing in the right accounting software can help you avoid mistakes and ultimately make it easier to handle your finances.

These issues can arise at any time, and you need to be prepared to restore your books. Fortunately, there are many backup options available that will enable you to keep an extra, up-to-date copy of your business financials. Understand accounting standards, so they are incorporated into your accounting system. Updating entries, with a side note outlining the date and nature of the error, are often enough to get your accounting back on track with the necessary due diligence. Whether you manage your accounts software in-house or outsource to an accountancy firm, it goes without saying that your balance sheet should, erm, balance. Failure to resolve errors of principle before submitting your financial statement report can lead to costly repercussions.

Not reconciling loan accounts

If you change the information in a period for which a tax return has been filed, you might also have to file an amended tax return. These mistakes in your books are easy to avoid but can be costly to fix. Make sure to record your financial transactions right away and reconcile your books regularly to avoid committing errors. If your cash account and bank statement are showing different figures, it’s time to check each transaction on both sides.