Blackfly Ltd$.$ had sales of $$500,000$ in $2007,$ all made on credit terms. The company collected $$25,000$ from credit sales made in $2006,$ and at the end of $2007$ its customers owed the company $$50,000.$ If its accounting policy is to provide for bad debts on the basis of $1\%$ of sales, the bad debt expense would be

$*$

a$.$ $$10,000$

b$.$ $$7,500$

c$.$ $$5,500$

d$.$ $$5,000$

e$.$ none of the above