Your accountant charges to correct work: what should you ask?

Ask the provider to describe the correction and why it is required. Compare the original instruction, records supplied at the time, agreed work and delivered result. New evidence can require legitimate additional work. A failure to perform an agreed check raises a different issue. You need that chronology before evaluating the invoice.

Keep the discussion factual. Record when management supplied the document, what the provider acknowledged and which version of the report was issued. Avoid labeling every difference an error before a qualified person reviews it. Different accounting treatments, changed assumptions and incomplete source records can produce disagreements without establishing negligence.

Locate clauses covering rework, client information, scope changes and disputes. Ask the provider which clause supports the charge and what part of the work it covers. A fee for additional analysis may differ from a fee for correcting entries or reissuing reports. Request that breakdown when several activities appear on one line.

AICPA Member Insurance Programs recommends documenting responsibilities and payment terms. Those documents are the starting point for the commercial discussion. They do not let a general article determine your legal entitlement to a free correction or compensation. Obtain professional advice if the amount or consequences justify it.

If a deadline or external report is affected, decide who will perform the immediate work while the fee question is reviewed. Agree the temporary authorization in writing and avoid ambiguous instructions to do whatever is necessary. Identify which amounts are accepted and which remain disputed under the contract's process.

Ask for an impact list covering records changed, reports affected and parties who received the prior version. A correction to one balance may require coordinated follow-up elsewhere. Assign that work explicitly and seek appropriate advice before communicating disputed professional conclusions to third parties.

Preserve the earlier records and the reason for the change. Do not ask the provider to remove the history to make the issue disappear. A clear record helps the company assess both the accounting consequence and the commercial responsibility without relying on conflicting recollections.

Request descriptions that distinguish investigation, correction, reviewer time and new work. Check whether the charge duplicates a fee already paid for the same deliverable. For hourly work, compare the authorized estimate or cap with the final amount. For fixed fees, identify the agreed deliverable and any accepted amendment.

AICPA billing guidance emphasizes clear payment expectations. Use the agreed dispute route and deadlines rather than silently withholding unrelated payments. The company may choose to pay an undisputed portion while seeking resolution of another, but the appropriate approach depends on the contract and advice on the actual circumstances.

Document the accepted adjustment, credit, shared cost or other resolution without implying an admission neither party made. Identify the operational fix, such as a clearer input deadline, added review or approved instruction log. A discount alone leaves the cause of repeated correction work intact.

If the explanation remains unsupported, commission a bounded independent review of the disputed work. Give the reviewer the same evidence and a precise question. Keep the resulting findings private and use them to decide the next commercial or professional step, rather than turning an unresolved billing disagreement into a public allegation.