The Hidden Errors General Bookkeepers Miss — And We Fix Every Month

What happens:
Lab invoices arrive late and get recorded incorrectly—either deducted from both the associate AND the clinic, or not assigned to anyone at all.

Real scenario:
A crown procedure is completed. Lab invoice arrives 3 weeks later. The bookkeeper:

• Records it as a clinic expense
• Also deducts it from the associate’s production
• Now the lab cost is counted twice

OR the opposite:

• Invoice sits on desk
• Never gets entered
• Associate gets paid for full production
• Clinic absorbs the lab cost

The cost:
Profit appears lower than reality (if double-counted), or associates are overpaid without anyone noticing (if not counted).

Why general bookkeepers miss this:
They don’t reconcile total lab payments against lab costs assigned to each provider. They enter invoices when they arrive, but never verify the totals match.

How we prevent it:
We reconcile total lab payments against lab costs assigned to each provider monthly.

Our process:

1. Track all lab invoices received
2. Match to procedures and providers
3. Verify total lab payments = total lab allocations
4. Flag any discrepancies immediately
5. Ensure accurate associate payouts

Late labs = overpaid associates = lost profit.

What happens:
Sun Life pays $4,200. Money hits the bank. But it never gets posted to the patient ledger or assigned to the provider.

The cost:

• Associates wonder why their collections are short
• A/R looks inflated (claims appear unpaid)
• Cash flow feels tight despite receiving payments
• No one can track which claims were actually paid

Real example:
We found a practice with $12,000 in insurance payments sitting unposted over 3 months. The money was in the bank, but the books showed it as outstanding A/R.

Why general bookkeepers miss this:
Insurance EFTs hit the bank with minimal detail. General bookkeepers see the deposit but don’t know how to allocate it by patient, procedure, or provider. So they leave it unposted or post it incorrectly.

How we prevent it:
We post and reconcile insurance payments by provider every month.

Our system:

• Track every insurance EFT
• Match to outstanding claims
• Post to correct patient accounts
• Assign to correct provider
• Reconcile monthly

Money in bank, not in ledger = impossible to track associate collections.

What happens:
Early payments for future treatments get posted under “No Provider” and never get reassigned.

Real scenario:
Patient pays $2,500 deposit for future crown work. Bookkeeper posts it to the clinic under “No Provider” because the procedure hasn’t been completed yet. The deposit sits there forever, never assigned to the dentist who will do the work

The cost:

• Money is in the bank, but the ledger doesn’t show it
• Associates’ payouts are short
• Production reports are inaccurate
• Patient accounts show incorrect balances

One practice we audited had $2,525 sitting in “No Provider” collections with no idea who earned that money.

Why general bookkeepers miss this:
They don’t go back and reassign prepayments once treatment is completed. They post the deposit and move on.

How we prevent it:
We track and reassign all “No Provider” collections to the correct dentist monthly.

Unassigned revenue = impossible to track provider performance.

What happens:

General bookkeepers NEVER analyze or flag:

• Unbooked hygiene hours
• Gaps between appointments
• Cancellations not refilled
• Low utilization rates

Real example:
Just 2 unbooked hours per week at $325/hour = $650/day loss
× 4 days/week = $2,600/week
× 4 weeks/month = $10,400/month lost

Monthly loss range: $3K-$15K depending on gaps, cancellations, and schedule utilization.

Why general bookkeepers miss this:
They never look at hygiene schedules. They only record what happened—not what should have happened.

How we prevent it:

We calculate unbooked hours, hidden gaps, and productivity losses—and show you EXACTLY where the revenue is leaking.

Every empty hour = $325 gone forever.

The problem:
Clinic is busy. Production is high. So why does the bank balance feel wrong?

Because revenue ≠ deposits unless someone tracks:

• Delay timing (insurance takes 30-60 days)
• Merchant fees (3% off every card payment)
• Short payments (insurance paid less than expected)
• Prepayments (counted as income before received)
• EFT delays (banking cutoff rules)
• Banking cutoff rules (weekend deposits post Monday)

Real scenario:
Production report shows: $118,400 earned this month
Bank account shows: $71,900 deposited

Where’s the missing $46,500?

• Uncollected A/R: Outstanding patient balances not yet paid
• Pending insurance claims: Work done but insurance hasn’t paid yet
• Write-offs & adjustments: PPO discounts and courtesy adjustments
• Credit card processing delays: Payments in transit, not yet deposited
• Unposted payments: Money received but not entered in system

Why general bookkeepers miss this:
They don’t reconcile production to deposits. They assume if you’re busy, money should be there.

What happens:
Small ignored items grow into thousands in lost revenue.

General bookkeepers almost never catch:

• Short insurance payments ($189 short)
• Rejected claims ($1,240 denied)
• Voids & adjustments ($450 void)
• Refunds not tracked ($385 refund)
• NSF/returned payments ($620 bounced)
• Assumed paid balances ($2,450 assumed but not posted)

Real example:
Total monthly leakage: $5,334
Annual loss: $64,012.80 just disappearing into the cracks.

Why general bookkeepers miss this:
They never perform full A/R + EFT + deposit matching. They don’t follow up on short payments, rejections, or errors.

How we prevent it:
We perform full A/R + EFT + deposit matching every single month, tracing every short payment, every error, every adjustment—so nothing falls through the cracks.

Your collections become clean, accurate, and predictable.

Without proper A/R follow-up, your numbers lie to you all year.