Reply to: Overpaid by agency? :-)

[psychocandy]

Just one credit now.

Considering I had this discussion on Friday with them, and they've obviously since noticed they were wrong all along, would have thought they'd have phoned me. I guess they're lucky I hadn't already taken it out (which I sometimes do because I transfer it to sterling account)

[ASB]

Just checked my account and its gone. No record of the money ever having been there. Thats a bit naughty - surely they should have phoned me to tell me!

It might have been polite. Your description implies that it's just gone and now shows only one credit, nothing else.

But it sounds more like it was the bank who had somehow managed to do the payment twice. If the agent had genuinely paid twice then the debit and the credit for the erroneous payment should still show on your account.

[psychocandy]

I would leave it alone and see what happens when they contact you again. I guess it could be a bank error as well. We've had a bank error in our favour since February. I think it'll just go into the accounts as a creditor when our accountant does this year's accounts. When/if the bank ask for it back we have it available.

Just checked my account and its gone. No record of the money ever having been there. Thats a bit naughty - surely they should have phoned me to tell me!

[Hex]

Hmmm. According to agency they only paid me once. According to bank they've had two separate payments arrive in.

See what happens I guess....

I would leave it alone and see what happens when they contact you again. I guess it could be a bank error as well. We've had a bank error in our favour since February. I think it'll just go into the accounts as a creditor when our accountant does this year's accounts. When/if the bank ask for it back we have it available.

[psychocandy]

Hmmm. According to agency they only paid me once. According to bank they've had two separate payments arrive in.

See what happens I guess....

[Optimus Prime]

It gets worse (or better for me I should day). They've paid me twice this month now.

Better tell them I suppose. :-)

I need to switch to your agency. Such nice chaps.

[psychocandy]

It gets worse (or better for me I should day). They've paid me twice this month now.

Better tell them I suppose. :-)

[psychocandy]

Well, agency planned to sort it out in this months payment (i.e. pay me one less day this time). But even though I reminded them, they still paid me the full amount for my last invoice.

Oh well, if they dont want they're money back its up to them....

[psychocandy]

Not sure you are right, if you issue a credit note, you will have total invoicing of only £4500 instead of £5000.

p.s. I am an accountant so am very aware about accrued and actual, you seem to be mixing up accrued with cash.

Cheers guys. When the agency get back to me, I think I will ask my accountants advice on how to sort this.

[craig1]

Not sure you are right, if you issue a credit note, you will have total invoicing of only £4500 instead of £5000.

p.s. I am an accountant so am very aware about accrued and actual, you seem to be mixing up accrued with cash.

Thinking about it you may be right on that point The commute to this place seems to be playing tricks with my mind on what should be a simple concept! I blame the tuliping awful central line.

[psychocandy]

If you did try to hold onto it you then have to falsify an invoice and then you're on dodgy ground.

An agency overpaid me £5,500 once. It took them nine months to realise !



I don't think you should credit it, the invoice is still valid, just the payment against that invoice is incorrect. If you credit it you'll be out of step with payments and invoices.

So you didnt tell them up front? I emailed the accounts person at the agency yesterday (the one who sent me the remittance advice) but aint heard anything yet.

[JamJarST]

You're mixing up accrued and actual balances there. Using your example, you owe them £500 for the overpayment but this isn't reflected against anything in your books giving a mismatch of £500 when you reconcile accrued against actual. If you issue them a credit note for £500 then this formally reflects that you owe them £500 against the accrued books meaning you can reconcile these transactions.

If the next invoice is £2500 then they simply pay £2000 using the credit note for the other £500 meaning that your actual balance equals the genuine value of the invoices. Also makes their accounting easier.

If you're doing cash accounting and don't want to start going into accrued balances then you refund them the £500, hope they get it, credit it to your account and then pay the full invoice next time. Far simpler to do a credit note for both yours and their books.

Not sure you are right, if you issue a credit note, you will have total invoicing of only £4500 instead of £5000.

p.s. I am an accountant so am very aware about accrued and actual, you seem to be mixing up accrued with cash.

[lje]

What I did was to issue the next invoice and mark a payment against it, which was the extra payment from the previous invoice. This makes your accounts correct.

So overpayment of x00 : next invoice y000 : next invoice says y000 but shows a payment already made of x00 leaving a balance of y000-x00

[craig1]

Absolutely agree, a credit note will not solve the problem and will actually increase the difference. For example lets say the invoice is for £2500 and the payment is £3000. The account is sitting with a credit balance of £500. If you issue a credit note it will increase that credit balance to £1000, meaning you owe them £1000. You should issue a statement showing the invoice of £2500 and the payment of £3000 and reflecting the account balance of £500 credit.

You're mixing up accrued and actual balances there. Using your example, you owe them £500 for the overpayment but this isn't reflected against anything in your books giving a mismatch of £500 when you reconcile accrued against actual. If you issue them a credit note for £500 then this formally reflects that you owe them £500 against the accrued books meaning you can reconcile these transactions.

If the next invoice is £2500 then they simply pay £2000 using the credit note for the other £500 meaning that your actual balance equals the genuine value of the invoices. Also makes their accounting easier.

If you're doing cash accounting and don't want to start going into accrued balances then you refund them the £500, hope they get it, credit it to your account and then pay the full invoice next time. Far simpler to do a credit note for both yours and their books.

[JamJarST]

I don't think you should credit it, the invoice is still valid, just the payment against that invoice is incorrect. If you credit it you'll be out of step with payments and invoices.

Absolutely agree, a credit note will not solve the problem and will actually increase the difference. For example lets say the invoice is for £2500 and the payment is £3000. The account is sitting with a credit balance of £500. If you issue a credit note it will increase that credit balance to £1000, meaning you owe them £1000. You should issue a statement showing the invoice of £2500 and the payment of £3000 and reflecting the account balance of £500 credit.