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As a business owner, you’re bound to encounter a non-sufficient funds (NSF) transaction at some point in time. When a customer attempts to pay and he or she doesn’t have the necessary amount of funds in their account, the transaction will be declined while showing as “NSF.” So, what’s the correct way to deal with a NSF when using the Quickbooks accounting software? Keep reading for a step-by-step walkthrough.

Assuming you use single-user mode for Quickbooks, you can record NSF manually by logging into your account and choosing Customers > Customer Center > Transaction > Received Payments, at which point you should double-click the failed payment. Next, on the “Receive Payments” window, click the option titled “Record Bounced Check” to match the main ribbon tab.

There are a few steps left in the process, however. After checking the option to “Record Bounced Check,” go to the “Manage Bounced Check” window and enter the bank fee (e.g. how much the bank charged for the NSF), as well as the date of the failed transaction, class and customer fee (how much you charge the customer). Keep in mind that these fields are optional — you can record NSF transactions without entering this information. By including this information, however, you’ll have an easier time finding and tracking all of your NSF transactions. Therefore, it’s recommended that you fill it in.

When you are finished, click “Next.” This should reveal a new window for the “Bounced Check Summary,” including all of your respective information such as unpaid invoices, the fees associated with those invoices, and the new invoice for the customer who submitted the failed transaction. Double-check the information listed here, and assuming it’s correct,” click “Finish” to complete the process. This will reveal a “Bounced Check” indicator on the customer’s payment, indicating that you just used the feature for the customer’s payment.

It’s important to note that Quickbooks automatically creates a journal entry for debiting your accounts receivable and crediting your bank account. It will be marked as “unpaid,” so re-invoice the customer later.

Hopefully, this gives you a better understanding of how to record NSF transactions in Quickbooks. It’s not someone most business owners want to deal with, but NSFs do occur. When it does, you can follow these steps to properly record and manage it in your Quickbooks account.

Did this tutorial work for you? Let us know in the comments section below!