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← Accounting notes
Cambridge A-Level·Accounting·Cambridge AS & A Level Accounting

Correction of Errors & Suspense Accounts

16 min read

Errors that do and do not affect the trial balance, journal entries to correct them, the suspense account, and the effect of corrections on profit.

Two families of error

Errors that do NOT affect the trial balanceErrors that DO affect the trial balance
Omission, commission, principleOne-sided entry
Complete reversalDifferent figures on each side
Original entry (transposition)Posting to the wrong side
Compensating errorsArithmetic / addition errors

Errors in the first column leave the trial balance balanced; those in the second make it disagree, so the difference is parked in a suspense account.

TB still balances Omission Commission / Principle Complete reversal Original entry Compensating TB disagrees → suspense One-sided entry Different figures each side Wrong side Addition error
Only single-sided / unequal errors disturb the trial balance and need a suspense account.

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