Recommended accounting routines

Summary

This article explains some of the "best practices" you can follow throughout using Platinum software to give the best results in your accounts system.

More Information

Within any business, there a number of routine daily, weekly and monthly tasks that need to be carried out in order for the business to operate smoothly and efficiently, and to enable any errors to be picked up at an early stage. The following article sets out the preferred routines for accounts purposes.

Virtually everything that happens in the dealership impacts back on accounts in some way.

Daily Routines

Daily Takings

Print the Sales Daily Takings report and balance this against the actual takings.
Take a Z-read of the credit card machine. This should provide a summary printout of the credit card takings.
Attach the credit card slips and the Z-read to the takings report, remove the cash taken in excess of the fixed float in the till and any cheques taken that day, and pass this to accounts or the person deemed responsible for the banking.
If there are any errors on the daily takings report, for example an item is shown as paid by cash when it should be credit card, the responsible person should adjust the transaction appropriately and re-print the takings report such that it reflects the correct takings for the day.

Banking

The takings are posted to suspense accounts in the nominal ledger for cash, cheque and credit/debit card transactions so that the daily takings can be produced and keep non-accounts staff away from the bank account. This simplifies the reconciliation of the bank account considerably from a receipts point of view. It does mean though that the suspense accounts must be “cleared out” into the bank account by journal at the appropriate intervals.

For cash and cheques, this should be done whenever a paying-in slip is filled out.
For credit/debit cards, this should be done either from the Z-read of the credit card machine or from seeing the card amounts appearing on the bank statement. Choose one of the two methods and stick to it.

Other Receipts

Any other receipts should be posted by the accounts department, or a responsible person in the dealership. These will include receipts from finance companies, insurance companies and trade accounts if you have any.

Purchase Invoices

Purchase invoices should be posted as they are received, matched either to purchase orders or to vehicles, if relevant, and then filed immediately.

Weekly Routines

Debtors

Review the aged debtors list. Deal with any queries and ask questions about any of the balances that seem odd. Check the deposits that are shown are still relevant, i.e. that they have not been retained or refunded.

Creditors

Review the aged creditors list and decide if there are any suppliers to pay. If so, make the payments and print remittances as you go if you want them.

Bank, Cash and Receipts Accounts

Reconcile any nominal accounts that you see fit. These should include at least the bank account, petty cash account and the receipt suspense accounts (Z900 - Cash, Z901 - Cheque, Z902 – Credit/Debit Cards). Other accounts to review might include Stock Accruals, Work in Progress and Stock Value.

Monthly Routines

Month End

Update the Nominal Ledger with any outstanding information from the Sales or Purchase ledgers. (you may choose to do this more frequently).
The bank reconciliation should be done to the actual month end date, as should all the other reconciliations of nominal codes.
Review the debtors and creditors as per weekly routine.
Print reports to provide support for trial balance figures, e.g. stock valuation of parts and clothing.
Post vehicle cost of sales journal to move the cost of bikes sold from balance sheet to profit and loss.
Post any journals required, e.g. prepayments and accruals, depreciation, wages and so forth.
Follow the Platinum Month End procedure.