Glossary
Write-Off
The accounting removal of a receivable judged uncollectible, recognising the loss and clearing the balance from the ledger.
Writing off acknowledges that a balance will not be collected. It is a deliberate decision with a threshold and an approval, not something that should happen by drift as old items are quietly ignored.
Unwritten-off bad debt distorts everything downstream: receivables look larger than they are, aging reports fill with noise, and genuine collection problems get lost among balances nobody intends to pursue.
See also
- Accounts Receivable Aging — A report grouping outstanding client balances by how long they have been unpaid, typically in 30, 60, 90 and 120-day buc…
- Bad Debt — Premium or fees an agency has billed but does not expect to collect.
- Days Sales Outstanding — The average number of days it takes an agency to collect premium after invoicing, used as a single-number measure of col…