TransTec decision due in a fortnight
Former auditors and directors of TransTec will know within the next 14 days whether they face disciplinary action from accountancy's main watchdog.
Link: TransTec: Timeline – 1991 to 1999
The Accountants Joint Disciplinary Scheme is due to finalise its action next week in meetings with senior counsel.
The JDS has been considering the evidence produced by the DTI report on TransTec published two weeks ago and the heavy criticism it levelled at the chief executive Richard Carr, a chartered accountant, and the auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The auditors came in for scathing criticism from the inspectors.
The audit of 1998, led by partner Jonathan Lander, was described as ‘inadequate’ and ‘failed’ to follow audit guidance in force at the time.
Much of the criticism centered on an agreement to pay Ford Motor Company £11m in compensation for defaulting on a contract. Of that sum, £5.8m was booked as a write-off on tooling, while £1.9m was capitalised as tooling.
The remaining £3.6m was not provided for at all.
PwC has rejected the criticisms.
TransTec CEO Richard Carr was said to have been responsible for ‘serious errors of misconduct’ and a ‘lack of leadership and ethical management’.