FRS 11 fails to justify criticism

The controversial impairment standard FRS 11 is failing to live up to its critics’ apocalyptic predictions, according to early users identified by Edinburgh-based accounts monitor Company Reporting.

Marylebone Warwick Balfour was one of few companies to adopt FRS 11 before the mandatory start date of 28 December. The property company has already carried out annual impairment reviews, and found few transition problems and no significant impact on its annual results.

The standard required companies to assess whether fixed assets or acquired goodwill have been impaired. If impairment has occurred, companies must value assets according to discounted estimates of future cashflows for separate ‘income generating units’.

David Dannhauser, financial director of engineering holding company Eleco, ‘went through the motions’ of adopting FRS 11 early, but did not apply it to accounts for its latest financial year. ‘We wouldn’t think there are any individual assets which would be problematic,’ said Dannhauser.

Engineering and manufacturing firms are likely to have written down or written off operating fixed assets, so variations resulting from FRS 11 should be sustainable, he said.