PricewaterhouseCoopers was fined almost £5 million pounds ($6.22 million) for a series of poor audits of two U.K. construction companies, as the regulator continued to crack down on audit failings by the Big Four.
PwC will pay £3 million in relation to its audits of Galliford Try Plc, and £1.96 million over a review of Kier Group Plc, the Financial Reporting Council said Tuesday. It was also ordered to report on its most modern audits that considered long-term contracts, the FRC said.
The U.K. is bringing in sweeping audit reforms aimed at reining in the dominance of the largest accountancy firms and cleaning up the industry following a string of high-profile scandals.
The breaches “concern failures to properly audit revenue recognised under specific complex long-term contracts,” said Claudia Mortimore, the FRC’s deputy executive counsel.
“We are sorry that aspects of our work were not of the required standard,” PwC said in a statement. The auditor said it’s “invested heavily” in a program to strengthen audit quality, including those on long-term contracts and has “seen the positive impact of the actions we’ve taken.”
