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Disclaimer of opinion

The auditor declines to say whether the accounts are reliable: there was not enough evidence to assert anything either way.

How to read the number

Not a bad verdict and not a good one — it is the absence of a verdict. The accounts remain unconfirmed, and anyone relying on them does so at their own risk.

When the metric lies

A disclaimer is often about access rather than bookkeeping: a closed perimeter, lost documents, restricted procedures. The reason sits in the wording, not in the figures.

Also known as: disclaimer of audit opinion

Related terms