As the full-time bookkeeper, your job is to make any corrections to the general ledger accounts. Each correction needs the reason for the change and the effect on each account, whether it is an increase or decrease.

For the third time this month, a co-worker has recorded a cash receipt twice and wants you to record a correcting entry that will reverse the mistakes. The correcting entry will record a credit to the Cash account and a debit to the Sales account. Your co-worker has offered to buy you dinner for fixing this mistake.

What should you investigate before making a decision about the correcting entry?

For our final variation of the scenario posted, the person requesting the correcting entries is your spouse (parent or child). You have been with your spouse for a longtime, your spouse is well-liked by those you work with and your spouse is respected within the company. Would this change your earlier responses, and if so, how?