Troubleshooting - Accounting

Debtor Interest

Q - Why can't I put interest into new accounts?

A - There are a few user data entry (or import map omissions) that can impede or delay interest being calculated from the date desired to current as new accounts are input.

1. The Mode field on the Debtor screen has to be set to Active. When the Mode field is blank, the system thinks that the debtor is closed and doesn't calculate interest on that debtor. Set this field manually, by Import or by Contact Plan on the day the account is entered.


2. If both the Charge Date and Delinquency Date are left blank and your "Calculate Interest From Date" you have entered is BEFORE the listed date on the account, THEN the system will NOT start calculating interest on the account until 1 day after the listed date. To prevent this, make sure to: (i) input a date to calculate Interest FROM in the Debtor Record, Interest Tab (or the Interest Date field in the Debtor record type if using an Import Map); (ii) input the SAME DATE to charge interest from into the Transaction Type 196, specifically the Payment Date and Posted Date fields so that the system views the date of debt as being your Interest From Date and not the CURRENT date. If using an Import Map, you would set these dates to read your Interest From date column in your target data source to be the date used in your Transaction record that reads in your balance; (iii) make sure to input an Interest Type (most often "Simple", and an Annual Interest Rate. It is not necessary to set the Period for Simple Interest (this field is for Compound Interest calculations); (iv) if your client provides you with balances current to the listing date, together with interest calculated up-to-date, then your Interest From date IS current and step (i) does not need to be taken; (v) If your client provides you with an Original Principal and Original Interest portion of the debt which combined, add up to the Listed Balance, you would use the data entry field for this amount in the Financial Detail screen manually OR with a Transaction Financial Type that inputs directly to the Interest figure bucket. See Transaction Type, Financial Detail and Simple Interest in the Help pages.


3. If your interest still hasn't started charging, check to see if the Interest Type and Annual Rate fields were properly completed in the Interest Tab.

Judgement Amount And Original Principal

Q - I need to keep track of the original principal after a Judgement is awarded.

A - When you enter a Judgement Date in the Financial Detail screen accessible by clicking into the Debtor's Principal field, additional fields are displayed for entering a Judgement Principal and Judgement Interest. The Original Principal amount doesn't display on the main debtor screen anymore but it is an accessible field which can be retrieved in report or viewed live on a per debtor screen basis. See Judgement Information, and Financial Detail in the Help pages.

Judgement And Debtor's Owing

Q - If I enter a Judgement and an amount has already been paid on the account, entering the Judgement takes away the amount in the Paid field, along with all of the charges and interest that were showing before. Is this right?

For example:

The debtor owed $2900 and had paid $1300. I entered a Judgement for $3500 and did a Recalc. The Principal field label changed to Judgement and became $3500 and the Principal, with nothing showing as owed anymore in any of the Paid, Interest, Fees and Legal fields on the main debtor screen.

A - This is exactly right. When you update a debtor's file after Judgement has been entered, it has to reflect the amount awarded by the Court which INCLUDES already all the Pre-Judgement payments, costs and interest. The Judgement amount awarded becomes a NEW total amount owed on which post- Judgement interest, new fees or disbursements and payments will be applied. The pre-Judgement financials will still show in the Transaction Tab, but they are there for historical purposes only.

Only transactions AFTER the Judgement Date are calculated and appear on the main debtor screen from the date of Judgement forward.

Remember to enter your post-Judgement awarded Interest Rate and the Judgement Date as the date to charge Interest From so that a reset of the terms is computed. See Reset Interest in the Help pages for more details.