What is a Control Account? Definition Meaning Example

The balance of the control account should always be equal to the balance in the subsidiary ledger accounts. Accounts payable and accounts receivable control accounts are the most frequently used control accounts, although inventory and fixed asset control accounts can also be used. A creditors control account is also called a payable control account or purchases ledger control account because the account is created to indicate the sum of the business creditors. This setup also supports a clear separation of duties, as different individuals can be responsible for recording transactions in the subsidiary ledger and maintaining the control account in the general ledger. Control accounts also shorten the time it takes to produce management account data since the control account balance may be utilized instead of waiting for individual balances to be reconciled and extracted. Because of their enormous transaction volume, control accounts are most often used by large businesses.

Therefore, this account enables individuals to reconcile the total balance of the subsidiary ledger with the aggregate balance to be applied within the trial balance. A control account is created as a tool for reconciling the journal entries and the general ledger. Reconciliation is an operation that ensures that entries within purchase and sales ledgers agree with the control accounts entries. Hence, this account ensures the aggregate amount is similar, and if there is no similarity, it indicates the error-promoting correction and investigation of all discrepancies. A control account is a summary-level account within the general ledger of a business that assists in streamlining detailed transactions in a balance. Also, the control account denotes the general ledger account involved in the summary of lower-level activity within a single balance.

Unit 8: Accounting Information Systems

The subsidiary ledger allows for tracking transactions within the control account in further detail. Individual transactions appear in both accounts, but only as an ending balance in the control account. More details such as where the money came from, who it came from and the date it was paid appear in the subsidiary ledger. These transactions are recorded in the debtors’ control account to avoid voluminous handling of these documents within the accounting period. The transactions recorded in this account are categorized using identity numbers or alphabetic letters to distinguish the individual debtors.

• Accounts receivable are created when a business extends credit to its customers.
• The balance of the control account should always be equal to the balance in the subsidiary ledger accounts.
• The debtors control account contains the sales journal and the total amount of payment owed by the debtors in the company.
• The transactions recorded in this account are categorized using identity numbers or alphabetic letters to distinguish the individual debtors.
• If more information is needed for a specific customer, the subsidiary accounts and records can always be reviewed.

With current accounts receivable balances, a corporation can have hundreds or thousands of clients. All of these balances are kept in their own accounts receivable subsidiary accounts. All of these accounts’ totals are carried forward to the accounts receivable control account, which reflects in the GL and financial statements. A control account’s final balance should match the linked subsidiary ledger’s ending total. It’s highly likely that a journal entry was made to the control account but not to the subsidiary ledger if the balances don’t match. A control account, also known as a summary account, is a general ledger account that summarizes and consolidates the balances of multiple related subsidiary ledger accounts.

Debtors Control Accounts

Since both are zero and match, it would not be necessary to prepare a schedule of accounts payable. If there is a balance, a schedule of accounts payable would be prepared in the same manner as accounts receivable. Using a control account can guard against fraud, particularly if you have someone else maintain the control account.

At the end of an accounting period the accounts are balanced off and a trial balance prepared to check the accuracy of the book keeping entries. If a trial balance fails to balance this usually indicates that an error or errors may have been made and needs to be identified. As the business expands the accounting requirements increase which may lead to more errors occurring which are very difficult to find.

Definition and Examples of Control Account

The subsidiary ledger contains both the creditor and debit account used to enter separate entries. A subsidiary ledger deals with the storage of the information for the general ledger account, so it provides a tool for reconciliation between the general ledger and the journal entries. There are various advantages of control accounts, including preventing fraud, eliminating clutter, and quick identification of accounting errors. A control account is a general ledger account that contains the summarized amounts of transactions made within the business. Also, this account is called a controlling account since it promotes the performance of reconciliation control concerning the ending balance.

Doing this allows you to produce a trial balance and balance sheet without all of the transactions displayed. For example, a company that extends credit to its customers will usually have an accounts receivable control account as well as an accounts receivable subsidiary ledger. In accounting, the controlling account (also known as an adjustment or control account[1]) is an account in the general ledger for which a corresponding subsidiary ledger has been created.

A debtors control account denotes an account within the master ledger that illustrates transactions owed by debtors. Debtors control accounts are also termed receivable control accounts or sales ledger control accounts because transactions among debtors are conducted daily, monthly, or within a specified financial period. Those subledgers are totaled for each reporting period, and the totals make up the balance of the accounts receivable control account. In other words, the accounts receivable control account reflects the total amount that a company is owed, while the its subledger shows how much each individual customer owes. A control account integrates and summarizes a particular type of subsidiary account.

Free Bookkeeping Accounting

A general ledger refers to a master accounting document that provides a comprehensive record of all of the financial transactions in the business. A subsidiary ledger is the custodian of the details for the general ledger control account. A control account is mainly used in larger corporations that have hundreds of transactions, and it is also part of double-entry accounting. the definition and formula of social security tax However, it is an account that consists of the total amount of transactions that are stored individually within the subsidiary accounts. This account contains aggregated totals for transactions that are individually stored in subsidiary-level ledger accounts. The ending balance in a control account should match the ending total for the related subsidiary ledger.

If Jim had any returns or customer discounts, he would also post them in the control account to make sure that the subsidiary accounts and the control account remain in balance. The general ledger can have hundreds of accounts from asset and liability accounts to income and expense accounts. More over, each account type can have hundreds of smaller accounts called subsidiary accounts. If every single account was included in the general ledger, it would be very large, unorganized, and difficult to use. That is why control accounts are used to summary data from large numbers of related accounts. The minor debit and credit balances brought down as indicated in the information (eg question) given should be indicated in the respective control account below the total values.

If the discrepancy is significant, then actions such as stock counts can be triggered in order to validate stock and correct the balance sheet and clear the control account. Control accounts are most commonly used to summarize accounts payable and accounts receivable as these tend to contain a lot of transactions. Therefore they are separated into subsidiary ledgers rather than clutter up the general ledger with too much detailed information.

The benefit of not posting all of the detail entries to these accounts is that it keeps the general ledger from becoming too cluttered to manage. If the totals do not agree, then a reconciliation of the control accounts must be made. Accounting software posts transactions to the control accounts in either summary or detail modes. The benefit of posting in detail is that it is easier to reconcile the subsidiary ledgers to these accounts. In summary, a control account is a general ledger account that summarizes and consolidates the balances of multiple related subsidiary ledger accounts. Control accounts are used to simplify financial reporting, ensure the accuracy of financial records, and enhance internal control within an organization.

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Factoring of accounts receivable, or receivables factoring, is a form of financing where a business sells it’s unpaid receivables to a factoring company (known as “Factor”). As mentioned earlier, accounts receivable (or AR) refers to the amount of money owed to your company by your clients. In case an entrepreneur buys another business with incomplete accounts, he or she should follow the number 1 and 2 steps above to determine the missing control account item. Instead, further information will be stored in the Accounts Receivable subsidiary ledger. A control account can keep a general ledger from becoming choked with transactional detail.

Control accounts are typically used in larger organizations that have hundreds or even thousands of transactions. Control accounts are part of double-entry accounting, which states that any debit posted to the general ledger will have a corresponding credit posted to the general ledger as well. In accounting, a control account is an account within the general ledger whereby a corresponding subsidiary ledger is generated. Subsidiary plays a crucial role in the control account by enabling detailed tracking of transactions. Control accounts are needed to assist in the identification of errors that occur within the subsidiary ledgers. Transactions are entered daily, monthly, or within a particular duration in the individual creditors’ account.