Under FRS 102 a loan is only derecognised (written off) when the contractual rights are settled or expire or where all the risks and rewards are substantially transferred to another party or where control is transferred over the asset. This date can vary but may be the date that bankruptcy means it is no longer enforceable. I have seen one high street bank’s financial statements where they tool the view that loans are written off after 5 years of falling into arrears as they would no longer be recoverable at this point. If it has been “written off” by the Board but not in the accounts it should normally be 100% provided. It should therefore be more of an issue of presentation that impacting your surplus or assets.