Accounting glossary

What is write-off?

Removing value from the books because it is gone: expired stock, damaged goods, uncollectable receivables. A write-off with a reason and an author is housekeeping; one without either is how shrinkage hides.

Example

Three units break in the stockroom. Writing them off removes them from stock and records the loss with a reason and an author.

The reason matters more than the amount: 'broken on floor' repeated weekly is a handling problem, and only a recorded reason makes that pattern visible.

In SeroBooks

Stock adjustments force the reason and keep the author — permission-gated, audited. Stock adjustments

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