Incorrect beginning balance in Begin Reconciliation window

Legacy KB ID: 534

Question

Why is the beginning balance incorrect in the Begin Reconciliation window?

Answer

The beginning balance in the Begin Reconciliation window may be incorrect if any of the following have occurred:

1.    A transaction was cleared directly in the account register, causing the transaction to be excluded from the   beginning balance in the Begin Reconciliation window.

To include the transaction in the beginning balance, you must clear it in the Reconcile [Account] window.

Note: transactions cleared directly in the register are not used to calculate the beginning balance for reconciliation.  Only versions 2002 and earlier did allow ticking in the register to reflect in the opening balance. 

2.    A previously cleared transaction was modified since the last reconciliation. This includes:

a.    Voiding or deleting a cleared transaction.

b.    Changing the amount of a cleared transaction. 

3.    There may be data damage in the company data file.

 

Solutions:

Where the discrepancy is due to transactions cleared in the account register, choose one of the following options:

1.    Complete the reconciliation with the beginning balance discrepancy:

If you ignore the discrepancy in the Begin Reconciliation window and click Continue to proceed to the Reconcile [Account] window, any transactions cleared through the register will appear and will already have checkmarks next to them. Use your bank statement to select all other cleared transactions for the period. Assuming there are no other issues, the reconciliation should balance correctly.

 

2.    Complete the reconciliation of the transactions cleared in the register before reconciling to the bank statement:

Because the sum of transactions cleared in the register is causing the variance between the QuickBooks and the bank statement beginning balances, if you complete the reconciliation of these items, you should then be able to reconcile properly to the bank statement:

                                          i.    Enter the beginning balance from the bank statement in the Ending Balance field of the Begin Reconciliation window, and then click Continue to proceed to the Reconcile [Account] window.

                                         ii.    The transactions cleared in the register will already have checkmarks next to them, and the Difference amount in the lower right corner should be 0.00.

                                        iii.    Click Reconcile Now to finish reconciling these transactions only, and then begin the reconciliation process again. The QuickBooks beginning balance will now match the bank statement beginning balance.

 

If you suspect that any transactions have been altered or deleted, choose one of the following options:

1.    Run a reconciliation detail report:

a.    With this report, you may be able to find transactions that have been changed or deleted since your last reconciliation.

                                          i.    From the QuickBooks Reports menu, choose Banking, and then choose Reconciliation Detail.

                                         ii.    Select the appropriate account, and then click Display. Compare this report to reports printed for past reconciliations to look for differences.

 

2.    Locate the discrepancy amount:

(This option will work only if the discrepancy was caused by a single transaction.)

a.    From the QuickBooks Edit menu, choose Advanced Find.

b.    Select Amount in the Filter list, select the equals (=) option, and then enter the discrepancy amount in the field to the right.

c.    Click Find. If a transaction is found, determine whether it is the transaction causing the discrepancy, and correct it as needed.

Note: If the transaction was previously reconciled but is now uncleared, correct the status through the account register by clicking in the checkmark column, and then clicking Record to save the change. If the transaction has been marked cleared but has not been reconciled, see the solutions above regarding how to handle transactions cleared in a register.

 

3.    Run an account QuickReport.  Use this report to determine if transactions have an incorrect cleared status:

a.    From the QuickBooks Lists menu, choose Chart of Accounts.

b.    Select the account you want to reconcile.

c.    Click the Reports button at the bottom of the list, and then choose QuickReport.

d.    Click Modify Report, and then click the Display tab.

e.    Select Clr in the Columns list.

f.     Click the Filters tab.

g.    In the Filter list, select Cleared.

h.    To the right of the Filter list, select either Yes (to filter for cleared transactions) or No (to filter for uncleared transactions), and then click OK to return to the report.

i.      Look at recent transactions. If you see transactions incorrectly cleared or uncleared, update them in the account register by clicking in the checkmark column, and then clicking Record to save the change. (See the solutions above regarding how to handle transactions cleared in a register.)

4.    Run an audit trail report.

This report can help identify transactions that have been deleted, changed, or added since the last reconciliation. A close examination of this report can often help locate a problem, however, if the audit trail feature has not been active, you will not be able to see changes or deletions that occurred while the audit trail was inactive.

a.    To activate the audit trail feature:

                                          i.    From the QuickBooks Edit menu, choose Preferences.

                                         ii.    Click the Accounting icon on the left.

                                        iii.    Click the Company Preferences tab.

                                       iv.    Select the Use audit trail option, and then click OK.

b.    To run the report, from the QuickBooks Reports menu, choose Accountant & Taxes, and then choose Audit Trail. You may need to adjust the report dates to see modifications for the appropriate time period.

 


Need more help?

Ask the Reckon Community at: https://community.reckon.com/categories/reckonaccounts

Or Log a Support Ticket: https://www.reckon.com/au/support/

 

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