Answer:
The journals to be recorded are as follows:
Debit Bad debt expense ($19,400 - $12,000) $7,400
Credit Allowance for Doubtful Accounts $7,400
<em>(To recognize bad debt expense during the period)</em>
Debit Allowance for Doubtful Accounts $1,200
Credit Accounts Receivable $1,200
<em>(To recognize write-off of accounts receivable during the period)</em>
Explanation:
The aging method for accounting for accounts receivable is a technique for estimating the amount of accounts receivable that is deemed as uncollectible. It is usually arrived at by assigning different credit risk percentage to the aged accounts receivable. The buckets are usually: Not Due, 1 - 30 days, 31 - 60 days, and over 60 days.
(a) The bad debt expense above was arrived at by deducting the unadjusted credit balance of $12,000 from what the allowance account should be ($19,400).
(b) The write-off of $1,200 is a write-off of the accounts receivable against the allowance for doubtful accounts.