[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":18060},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-list":3},[4,606,1046,1469,1842,2178,2536,2872,3079,3359,3590,3981,4251,4467,4687,4980,5259,5464,5662,5874,6060,6351,6641,6838,7105,7403,7604,7842,8046,8242,8503,8705,8910,9201,9463,9664,9973,10180,10408,10567,10753,11077,11259,11468,11679,11904,12198,12582,12900,13200,13490,13729,14067,14360,14637,14870,15050,15289,15481,15704,15926,16128,16350,16578,16882,17157,17384,17623,17856],{"id":5,"title":6,"author":7,"body":8,"category":587,"date":588,"description":589,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":592,"imageAlt":593,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":596,"navigation":595,"path":597,"readTime":598,"seo":599,"stem":600,"tags":601,"__hash__":605},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fhmrc-mileage-rates-explained.md","HMRC mileage rates explained: 55p, 25p and the 10,000-mile line","The Milesheet Team",{"type":9,"value":10,"toc":574},"minimark",[11,15,23,28,105,112,116,123,126,130,133,136,155,158,165,169,172,299,302,306,309,380,384,391,395,398,498,505,509,512,515,519,565,568],[12,13,14],"p",{},"If you use your own car for work, HMRC lets you be paid a set amount per mile without any of it counting as taxable pay. These are the Approved Mileage Allowance Payments, and they have not changed since 2011.",[12,16,17,18,22],{},"The car and van rate rose to ",[19,20,21],"strong",{},"55p"," on 6 April 2026, the first change since 2011. Anything you read quoting 45p was written before that.",[24,25,27],"h2",{"id":26},"the-rates","The rates",[29,30,31,50],"table",{},[32,33,34],"thead",{},[35,36,37,41,44,47],"tr",{},[38,39,40],"th",{},"Vehicle",[38,42,43],{},"First 10,000 business miles",[38,45,46],{},"Above 10,000",[38,48,49],{},"Banded?",[51,52,53,68,81,93],"tbody",{},[35,54,55,59,62,65],{},[56,57,58],"td",{},"Cars and vans",[56,60,61],{},"55p per mile",[56,63,64],{},"25p per mile",[56,66,67],{},"Yes",[35,69,70,73,76,78],{},[56,71,72],{},"Motorcycles",[56,74,75],{},"24p per mile",[56,77,75],{},[56,79,80],{},"No",[35,82,83,86,89,91],{},[56,84,85],{},"Bicycles",[56,87,88],{},"20p per mile",[56,90,88],{},[56,92,80],{},[35,94,95,98,101,103],{},[56,96,97],{},"Each passenger carried",[56,99,100],{},"5p per mile",[56,102,100],{},[56,104,80],{},[12,106,107,108,111],{},"There is also a ",[19,109,110],{},"passenger rate",": 5p per mile for each colleague you carry on the same business journey. It is one of the most commonly missed parts of a claim, partly because you have to be able to say who was in the car and where you went.",[24,113,115],{"id":114},"the-10000-mile-line-is-per-tax-year-not-per-car","The 10,000-mile line is per tax year, not per car",[12,117,118,119,122],{},"This is where people slip up. The threshold resets on 6 April each year, and it counts ",[19,120,121],{},"all your business miles across every car and van you use",", not each vehicle separately. Two cars doing 6,000 business miles each is 12,000 miles: the first 10,000 at 45p, the last 2,000 at 25p.",[12,124,125],{},"The other subtlety: a single journey can straddle the line. If you hit 10,000 miles halfway through a 40-mile drive, the first 20 miles are worth 55p and the rest 25p. Any log worth keeping should split that trip rather than round the whole thing one way or the other.",[24,127,129],{"id":128},"what-if-your-employer-pays-less-than-55p","What if your employer pays less than 55p?",[12,131,132],{},"Very common, and worth money. If your employer pays you 25p a mile, you can claim tax relief on the difference between what you were paid and the approved rate. That is Mileage Allowance Relief, and you claim it through your Self Assessment return or a P87 if you do not file one.",[12,134,135],{},"Say you drove 4,000 business miles and were paid 25p:",[137,138,139,146,149],"ul",{},[140,141,142,143],"li",{},"Approved amount: 4,000 × 55p = ",[19,144,145],{},"£2,200",[140,147,148],{},"Actually paid: 4,000 × 25p = £1,000",[140,150,151,152],{},"Relief due on: ",[19,153,154],{},"£1,200",[12,156,157],{},"You do not get £1,200 back. You get tax relief on £1,200, so a basic-rate taxpayer sees around £240. Still worth the ten minutes it takes to claim, and considerably more if your mileage is higher.",[12,159,160,161,164],{},"If your employer pays you ",[19,162,163],{},"more"," than the approved rate, the excess is taxable and should appear on your P11D.",[24,166,168],{"id":167},"what-a-year-is-worth-by-mileage","What a year is worth, by mileage",[12,170,171],{},"Assuming the car rate and no employer reimbursement:",[29,173,174,193],{},[32,175,176],{},[35,177,178,181,184,187,190],{},[38,179,180],{},"Business miles",[38,182,183],{},"At 55p",[38,185,186],{},"At 25p",[38,188,189],{},"Total allowance",[38,191,192],{},"Blended rate",[51,194,195,213,229,245,263,281],{},[35,196,197,200,203,206,210],{},[56,198,199],{},"2,000",[56,201,202],{},"£1,100",[56,204,205],{},"n\u002Fa",[56,207,208],{},[19,209,202],{},[56,211,212],{},"55.0p",[35,214,215,218,221,223,227],{},[56,216,217],{},"5,000",[56,219,220],{},"£2,750",[56,222,205],{},[56,224,225],{},[19,226,220],{},[56,228,212],{},[35,230,231,234,237,239,243],{},[56,232,233],{},"10,000",[56,235,236],{},"£5,500",[56,238,205],{},[56,240,241],{},[19,242,236],{},[56,244,212],{},[35,246,247,250,252,255,260],{},[56,248,249],{},"15,000",[56,251,236],{},[56,253,254],{},"£1,250",[56,256,257],{},[19,258,259],{},"£6,750",[56,261,262],{},"45.0p",[35,264,265,268,270,273,278],{},[56,266,267],{},"20,000",[56,269,236],{},[56,271,272],{},"£2,500",[56,274,275],{},[19,276,277],{},"£8,000",[56,279,280],{},"40.0p",[35,282,283,286,288,291,296],{},[56,284,285],{},"30,000",[56,287,236],{},[56,289,290],{},"£5,000",[56,292,293],{},[19,294,295],{},"£10,500",[56,297,298],{},"35.0p",[12,300,301],{},"The blended rate is the column worth looking at. The more you drive, the less each mile is worth on\naverage, which is the opposite of how most people assume it works, and it matters when deciding\nbetween a company car and your own.",[24,303,305],{"id":304},"what-relief-is-actually-worth-to-you","What relief is actually worth to you",[12,307,308],{},"Relief is not a refund. It reduces your taxable income, so what you receive depends on your rate:",[29,310,311,327],{},[32,312,313],{},[35,314,315,318,321,324],{},[38,316,317],{},"Shortfall claimed",[38,319,320],{},"Basic rate (20%)",[38,322,323],{},"Higher rate (40%)",[38,325,326],{},"Additional rate (45%)",[51,328,329,343,356,369],{},[35,330,331,334,337,340],{},[56,332,333],{},"£200",[56,335,336],{},"£40",[56,338,339],{},"£80",[56,341,342],{},"£90",[35,344,345,347,350,353],{},[56,346,154],{},[56,348,349],{},"£240",[56,351,352],{},"£480",[56,354,355],{},"£540",[35,357,358,360,363,366],{},[56,359,145],{},[56,361,362],{},"£440",[56,364,365],{},"£880",[56,367,368],{},"£990",[35,370,371,373,375,377],{},[56,372,236],{},[56,374,202],{},[56,376,145],{},[56,378,379],{},"£2,475",[24,381,383],{"id":382},"if-you-drive-a-company-car-these-rates-are-not-yours","If you drive a company car, these rates are not yours",[12,385,386,387,390],{},"Approved mileage rates apply to your own vehicle. If the car belongs to the company, fuel is handled through ",[19,388,389],{},"Advisory Fuel Rates"," instead, which are lower, vary by engine size and fuel type, and are revised quarterly. Mixing the two up is the single most expensive mistake we see people make on a claim.",[24,392,394],{"id":393},"what-different-employer-rates-leave-on-the-table","What different employer rates leave on the table",[12,396,397],{},"On 6,000 business miles in a tax year, where the approved amount is £3,300:",[29,399,400,419],{},[32,401,402],{},[35,403,404,407,410,413,416],{},[38,405,406],{},"Employer pays",[38,408,409],{},"You receive",[38,411,412],{},"Shortfall",[38,414,415],{},"Relief at 20%",[38,417,418],{},"Relief at 40%",[51,420,421,436,452,468,483],{},[35,422,423,426,429,432,434],{},[56,424,425],{},"55p (the approved rate)",[56,427,428],{},"£3,300",[56,430,431],{},"£0",[56,433,205],{},[56,435,205],{},[35,437,438,441,444,447,450],{},[56,439,440],{},"45p (the old approved rate)",[56,442,443],{},"£2,700",[56,445,446],{},"£600",[56,448,449],{},"£120",[56,451,349],{},[35,453,454,457,460,463,466],{},[56,455,456],{},"30p",[56,458,459],{},"£1,800",[56,461,462],{},"£1,500",[56,464,465],{},"£300",[56,467,446],{},[35,469,470,473,475,477,480],{},[56,471,472],{},"25p",[56,474,462],{},[56,476,459],{},[56,478,479],{},"£360",[56,481,482],{},"£720",[35,484,485,488,490,492,495],{},[56,486,487],{},"Nothing",[56,489,431],{},[56,491,428],{},[56,493,494],{},"£660",[56,496,497],{},"£1,320",[12,499,500,501,504],{},"You can generally claim for the ",[19,502,503],{},"current tax year and the previous four",", so someone who has\nnever claimed and is paid 25p on this mileage is looking at four figures.",[24,506,508],{"id":507},"what-actually-needs-recording","What actually needs recording",[12,510,511],{},"For each business journey: the date, where you went and where from, why it was business, and how far it was. Keep the running total for the tax year so the banding is right, and hold on to the records for at least 22 months after the end of the tax year if you are employed, or five years after the filing deadline if you are self-employed.",[12,513,514],{},"That is precisely the job Milesheet does in the background: it records the journey as you drive, bands each trip against your running total for the year, and keeps the whole lot exportable as a PDF or CSV.",[24,516,518],{"id":517},"sources","Sources",[137,520,521,530,537,544,551,558],{},[140,522,523],{},[524,525,529],"a",{"href":526,"rel":527},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fgovernment\u002Fpublications\u002Frates-and-allowances-travel-mileage-and-fuel-allowances\u002Ftravel-mileage-and-fuel-rates-and-allowances",[528],"nofollow","Travel, mileage and fuel rates and allowances (HMRC)",[140,531,532],{},[524,533,536],{"href":534,"rel":535},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fexpenses-and-benefits-business-travel-mileage",[528],"Business travel mileage for employees' own vehicles (HMRC)",[140,538,539],{},[524,540,543],{"href":541,"rel":542},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Ftax-relief-for-employees\u002Fvehicles-you-use-for-work",[528],"Claim tax relief for your job expenses: vehicles you use for work (HMRC)",[140,545,546],{},[524,547,550],{"href":548,"rel":549},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fguidance\u002Fclaim-income-tax-relief-for-your-employment-expenses-p87",[528],"Claim Income Tax relief for employment expenses (P87) (HMRC)",[140,552,553],{},[524,554,557],{"href":555,"rel":556},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fguidance\u002Fadvisory-fuel-rates",[528],"Advisory fuel rates (company cars) (HMRC)",[140,559,560],{},[524,561,564],{"href":562,"rel":563},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fself-assessment-tax-returns\u002Fkeeping-records",[528],"Self Assessment: keeping your records (HMRC)",[566,567],"hr",{},[12,569,570],{},[571,572,573],"em",{},"Rates and thresholds are correct at the time of writing and apply to the UK. This is general information, not tax advice: check with HMRC or your accountant before you file.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":577},"",2,[578,579,580,581,582,583,584,585,586],{"id":26,"depth":576,"text":27},{"id":114,"depth":576,"text":115},{"id":128,"depth":576,"text":129},{"id":167,"depth":576,"text":168},{"id":304,"depth":576,"text":305},{"id":382,"depth":576,"text":383},{"id":393,"depth":576,"text":394},{"id":507,"depth":576,"text":508},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"HMRC & tax","2026-08-12","What the approved mileage rates actually are, how the 10,000-mile threshold works across a tax year, and the bit almost everyone gets wrong.",false,"md","\u002Fshots\u002Finsights.png","The HMRC claim for the tax year in Milesheet, with progress towards the 10,000-mile threshold",null,true,{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fhmrc-mileage-rates-explained",4,{"title":6,"description":589},"blog\u002Fhmrc-mileage-rates-explained",[602,603,604],"hmrc","rates","claims","kCe-9ro2lWf93CAs0a0XbY1Xdrzo-fNYmg2BgeJ82vI",{"id":607,"title":608,"author":7,"body":609,"category":587,"date":1034,"description":1035,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1036,"imageAlt":1037,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":1038,"navigation":595,"path":1039,"readTime":598,"seo":1040,"stem":1041,"tags":1042,"__hash__":1045},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-counts-as-a-business-mile.md","What actually counts as a business mile?",{"type":9,"value":610,"toc":1022},[611,614,618,625,628,632,639,650,654,671,675,689,693,696,700,703,706,710,867,871,874,898,902,984,987,989,1015,1017],[12,612,613],{},"Most underclaimed mileage is not fraud in reverse, it is uncertainty. People are not sure which drives count, so they leave off the ones they could have claimed and add up the rest badly. Here is the line, in plain terms.",[24,615,617],{"id":616},"the-commute-does-not-count","The commute does not count",[12,619,620,621,624],{},"Travel between your home and your ",[19,622,623],{},"permanent workplace"," is ordinary commuting, and it is never business travel. It does not matter that you left at six in the morning, or that you carried equipment, or that you went in on a Sunday.",[12,626,627],{},"A permanent workplace is somewhere you attend regularly for your work, in a way that is not temporary or one-off.",[24,629,631],{"id":630},"temporary-workplaces-do-count","Temporary workplaces do count",[12,633,634,635,638],{},"Travel to a ",[19,636,637],{},"temporary workplace"," is business travel, and this is where the claims live. A workplace is temporary if you go there to do a task of limited duration, or for a temporary purpose.",[12,640,641,642,645,646,649],{},"The catch is the ",[19,643,644],{},"24-month rule",". If you expect to spend more than 40% of your working time at a site for more than 24 months, it stops being temporary. Importantly, it stops the moment you ",[571,647,648],{},"expect"," that to be true, not when the 24 months elapse. A contract extension can retrospectively change what you should have been claiming.",[24,651,653],{"id":652},"journeys-that-usually-count","Journeys that usually count",[137,655,656,659,662,665,668],{},[140,657,658],{},"Driving to a client, a customer, a supplier or a site",[140,660,661],{},"Travelling between two workplaces on the same day",[140,663,664],{},"Going from home directly to a temporary site, if you are not going via the office",[140,666,667],{},"Driving to a conference, training course or trade show your work requires",[140,669,670],{},"A trip to the bank, the post office or the wholesaler for the business, if you are self-employed",[24,672,674],{"id":673},"journeys-that-usually-do-not","Journeys that usually do not",[137,676,677,680,683,686],{},[140,678,679],{},"Home to your usual office, in any circumstances",[140,681,682],{},"A detour for something personal, for the personal part of the distance",[140,684,685],{},"Taking a colleague home after work, unless it is part of a business journey",[140,687,688],{},"Driving somewhere purely social, even with people from work",[24,690,692],{"id":691},"the-awkward-middle-home-as-a-workplace","The awkward middle: home as a workplace",[12,694,695],{},"If you genuinely work from home as a requirement of the job, journeys from home to a client can be business travel. But HMRC looks carefully at whether home is a workplace by objective necessity or just where you choose to sit. Working from home three days a week by preference does not turn your Thursday commute into a business mile.",[24,697,699],{"id":698},"why-the-recording-matters-more-than-the-rules","Why the recording matters more than the rules",[12,701,702],{},"Two people can drive identical routes and only one of them can claim, because only one of them can say what the journey was for. A date, a start, an end, a distance and a reason is what turns a drive into a claim. Reconstructing that from memory in April is where accuracy goes to die.",[12,704,705],{},"That is why Milesheet asks one question and only one: business or personal. It already knows the date, the route, the distance and how long you were stopped. You just tell it what the drive was for, ideally on the same day, when you can still remember.",[24,707,709],{"id":708},"the-quick-reference","The quick reference",[29,711,712,725],{},[32,713,714],{},[35,715,716,719,722],{},[38,717,718],{},"Journey",[38,720,721],{},"Claimable?",[38,723,724],{},"Why",[51,726,727,739,751,763,775,788,801,813,825,842,855],{},[35,728,729,732,736],{},[56,730,731],{},"Home → permanent workplace",[56,733,734],{},[19,735,80],{},[56,737,738],{},"Ordinary commuting",[35,740,741,744,748],{},[56,742,743],{},"Home → temporary workplace",[56,745,746],{},[19,747,67],{},[56,749,750],{},"Travel to a temporary workplace",[35,752,753,756,760],{},[56,754,755],{},"Home → client, direct",[56,757,758],{},[19,759,67],{},[56,761,762],{},"Business travel",[35,764,765,768,772],{},[56,766,767],{},"Office → client → office",[56,769,770],{},[19,771,67],{},[56,773,774],{},"Travel in the performance of duties",[35,776,777,780,785],{},[56,778,779],{},"Office → client → home",[56,781,782],{},[19,783,784],{},"Usually yes",[56,786,787],{},"Unless you detour somewhere personal",[35,789,790,793,798],{},[56,791,792],{},"Home → office → client",[56,794,795],{},[19,796,797],{},"Mixed",[56,799,800],{},"First leg commuting, second leg business",[35,802,803,806,810],{},[56,804,805],{},"Permanent workplace → second permanent workplace, same employer",[56,807,808],{},[19,809,67],{},[56,811,812],{},"Travel between workplaces",[35,814,815,818,822],{},[56,816,817],{},"Home → workplace of a second, unconnected employer",[56,819,820],{},[19,821,80],{},[56,823,824],{},"Commuting for that employment",[35,826,827,834,839],{},[56,828,829,830,833],{},"Home → workplace of a ",[19,831,832],{},"connected"," employer",[56,835,836],{},[19,837,838],{},"Often yes",[56,840,841],{},"Travel between connected employments",[35,843,844,847,852],{},[56,845,846],{},"Detour to the shops on the way back from a client",[56,848,849],{},[19,850,851],{},"Partly",[56,853,854],{},"The business element only",[35,856,857,860,864],{},[56,858,859],{},"Driving to a training course required by the job",[56,861,862],{},[19,863,784],{},[56,865,866],{},"If the workplace is temporary",[24,868,870],{"id":869},"the-three-tests-in-order","The three tests, in order",[12,872,873],{},"Work through these and most journeys resolve:",[875,876,877,883,892],"ol",{},[140,878,879,882],{},[19,880,881],{},"Is this a workplace you attend, or somewhere you are going for work?"," A client visit is\nstraightforwardly business travel.",[140,884,885,888,889,891],{},[19,886,887],{},"If it is a workplace, is it permanent or temporary?"," Apply the 24-month rule, remembering it\nturns on what you ",[571,890,648],{},", not what has happened so far.",[140,893,894,897],{},[19,895,896],{},"If it is permanent, is the journey between two workplaces rather than from home?"," Workplace to\nworkplace is business travel; home to workplace is not.",[24,899,901],{"id":900},"what-a-defensible-record-looks-like","What a defensible record looks like",[29,903,904,917],{},[32,905,906],{},[35,907,908,911,914],{},[38,909,910],{},"Field",[38,912,913],{},"Example",[38,915,916],{},"Why it matters",[51,918,919,930,941,952,963,974],{},[35,920,921,924,927],{},[56,922,923],{},"Date",[56,925,926],{},"14 August 2026",[56,928,929],{},"Ties to your calendar and invoices",[35,931,932,935,938],{},[56,933,934],{},"From",[56,936,937],{},"Home",[56,939,940],{},"Establishes the journey type",[35,942,943,946,949],{},[56,944,945],{},"To",[56,947,948],{},"Harrogate, Acme Ltd",[56,950,951],{},"Names the workplace, not just a town",[35,953,954,957,960],{},[56,955,956],{},"Purpose",[56,958,959],{},"Site survey",[56,961,962],{},"The business character, in a few words",[35,964,965,968,971],{},[56,966,967],{},"Distance",[56,969,970],{},"18.4 mi",[56,972,973],{},"Not a round number, because real drives are not round",[35,975,976,978,981],{},[56,977,40],{},[56,979,980],{},"Van (AB26 CDE)",[56,982,983],{},"Keeps multi-vehicle totals apart",[12,985,986],{},"The purpose column is the one people leave out and the one that turns a list of distances into a\nrecord. \"Site survey\" takes three seconds and answers the question HMRC would actually ask.",[24,988,518],{"id":517},[137,990,991,998,1005,1010],{},[140,992,993],{},[524,994,997],{"href":995,"rel":996},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fgovernment\u002Fpublications\u002F490-employee-travel-a-tax-and-nics-guide",[528],"490: Employee travel, a tax and NICs guide (HMRC)",[140,999,1000],{},[524,1001,1004],{"href":1002,"rel":1003},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fhmrc-internal-manuals\u002Femployment-income-manual\u002Feim31815",[528],"Employment Income Manual EIM31815: temporary workplace (HMRC)",[140,1006,1007],{},[524,1008,543],{"href":541,"rel":1009},[528],[140,1011,1012],{},[524,1013,536],{"href":534,"rel":1014},[528],[566,1016],{},[12,1018,1019],{},[571,1020,1021],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. If your situation is unusual, particularly around temporary workplaces, take proper advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":1023},[1024,1025,1026,1027,1028,1029,1030,1031,1032,1033],{"id":616,"depth":576,"text":617},{"id":630,"depth":576,"text":631},{"id":652,"depth":576,"text":653},{"id":673,"depth":576,"text":674},{"id":691,"depth":576,"text":692},{"id":698,"depth":576,"text":699},{"id":708,"depth":576,"text":709},{"id":869,"depth":576,"text":870},{"id":900,"depth":576,"text":901},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-08-05","The commute trap, the temporary workplace rule, and the everyday journeys people wrongly leave off their claim.","\u002Fshots\u002Flocations.png","Tagging places as home, workplace, business or personal in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-counts-as-a-business-mile",{"title":608,"description":1035},"blog\u002Fwhat-counts-as-a-business-mile",[602,1043,1044],"business travel","commuting","d2ZsJ7mzTRMKIZ7tC6BeYYqFiZFB0Tg9a_kiYzbdDww",{"id":1047,"title":1048,"author":7,"body":1049,"category":587,"date":1456,"description":1457,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":1459,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":1460,"navigation":595,"path":1461,"readTime":1462,"seo":1463,"stem":1464,"tags":1465,"__hash__":1468},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-log-that-stands-up.md","How to keep a mileage log that stands up",{"type":9,"value":1050,"toc":1445},[1051,1054,1058,1061,1091,1094,1098,1112,1115,1119,1122,1128,1134,1140,1144,1147,1150,1154,1157,1171,1174,1178,1295,1298,1346,1350,1412,1414,1438,1440],[12,1052,1053],{},"A mileage claim is only as good as the record behind it. If someone asks you to justify 8,400 business miles two years after the fact, you want a log that answers the question rather than a number you once believed.",[24,1055,1057],{"id":1056},"what-a-record-should-contain","What a record should contain",[12,1059,1060],{},"For every business journey:",[137,1062,1063,1069,1074,1080,1085],{},[140,1064,1065,1068],{},[19,1066,1067],{},"The date"," it happened",[140,1070,1071],{},[19,1072,1073],{},"Where you started and where you finished",[140,1075,1076,1079],{},[19,1077,1078],{},"Why it was business",", in enough words to jog a memory",[140,1081,1082],{},[19,1083,1084],{},"How far you went",[140,1086,1087,1090],{},[19,1088,1089],{},"Which vehicle"," you used, if you have more than one",[12,1092,1093],{},"Add a running total for the tax year and you can prove the 55p and 25p banding is right, which is the part reconstructed logs almost always get wrong.",[24,1095,1097],{"id":1096},"how-long-to-keep-it","How long to keep it",[137,1099,1100,1106],{},[140,1101,1102,1105],{},[19,1103,1104],{},"Employees"," claiming Mileage Allowance Relief: at least 22 months after the end of the tax year the claim relates to.",[140,1107,1108,1111],{},[19,1109,1110],{},"Self-employed",": at least five years after the 31 January filing deadline for that tax year.",[12,1113,1114],{},"Keep the record in a form you can still open. A note on a phone you no longer own is not a record.",[24,1116,1118],{"id":1117},"why-the-april-spreadsheet-is-the-weak-version","Why the April spreadsheet is the weak version",[12,1120,1121],{},"Three things go wrong when you write it all up at the end of the year.",[12,1123,1124,1127],{},[19,1125,1126],{},"Memory."," You remember the big trips and forget the twenty-mile round trip to a supplier in October. Those are the miles you paid for and never claimed.",[12,1129,1130,1133],{},[19,1131,1132],{},"Distance."," Postcode-to-postcode estimates are not the same as the route you drove. Sometimes that is in your favour, sometimes it is not, and either way it is not evidence.",[12,1135,1136,1139],{},[19,1137,1138],{},"Banding."," Fill in the mileage in one lump and the 10,000-mile threshold gets applied to the total rather than to journeys in date order. If your driving is at all seasonal, that number is wrong.",[24,1141,1143],{"id":1142},"the-habit-that-fixes-it","The habit that fixes it",[12,1145,1146],{},"Record as you go, and sort promptly. Anything that captures the drive at the time, an app, a notebook in the glovebox, a note dictated at the traffic lights, beats a perfect spreadsheet built from memory.",[12,1148,1149],{},"If you use Milesheet, this is the whole design: the journey is recorded while it happens, and the only question left is business or personal. It bands each trip against your running total for the tax year, keeps a per-trip and per-month record, and exports the lot as a PDF or CSV that reads like something you could hand to an accountant, because that is what it is for.",[24,1151,1153],{"id":1152},"a-quick-self-test","A quick self-test",[12,1155,1156],{},"Pick a random week from three months ago. Can you say, without guessing:",[875,1158,1159,1162,1165,1168],{},[140,1160,1161],{},"Which drives you made for work?",[140,1163,1164],{},"Where each one started and ended?",[140,1166,1167],{},"How far each one was?",[140,1169,1170],{},"Why it was business?",[12,1172,1173],{},"If the answer is no, your log is not a log yet. That is entirely fixable, and the fix takes about ten seconds a day.",[24,1175,1177],{"id":1176},"what-a-record-must-contain","What a record must contain",[29,1179,1180,1194],{},[32,1181,1182],{},[35,1183,1184,1186,1189,1191],{},[38,1185,910],{},[38,1187,1188],{},"Required?",[38,1190,913],{},[38,1192,1193],{},"What it proves",[51,1195,1196,1208,1220,1233,1244,1255,1268,1282],{},[35,1197,1198,1200,1202,1205],{},[56,1199,923],{},[56,1201,67],{},[56,1203,1204],{},"14 Aug 2026",[56,1206,1207],{},"Ties to calendar, invoices, fuel receipts",[35,1209,1210,1213,1215,1217],{},[56,1211,1212],{},"Start location",[56,1214,67],{},[56,1216,937],{},[56,1218,1219],{},"Establishes commuting or not",[35,1221,1222,1225,1227,1230],{},[56,1223,1224],{},"Destination",[56,1226,67],{},[56,1228,1229],{},"Acme Ltd, Harrogate",[56,1231,1232],{},"The workplace, not just a town",[35,1234,1235,1237,1239,1241],{},[56,1236,956],{},[56,1238,67],{},[56,1240,959],{},[56,1242,1243],{},"The business character",[35,1245,1246,1248,1250,1252],{},[56,1247,967],{},[56,1249,67],{},[56,1251,970],{},[56,1253,1254],{},"The claim itself",[35,1256,1257,1259,1262,1265],{},[56,1258,40],{},[56,1260,1261],{},"If more than one",[56,1263,1264],{},"Van, AB26 CDE",[56,1266,1267],{},"Keeps totals apart",[35,1269,1270,1273,1276,1279],{},[56,1271,1272],{},"Route",[56,1274,1275],{},"Helpful",[56,1277,1278],{},"Recorded",[56,1280,1281],{},"Answers \"why so far?\"",[35,1283,1284,1287,1289,1292],{},[56,1285,1286],{},"Running total",[56,1288,1275],{},[56,1290,1291],{},"4,210 mi YTD",[56,1293,1294],{},"Gets the banding right",[24,1296,1097],{"id":1297},"how-long-to-keep-it-1",[29,1299,1300,1310],{},[32,1301,1302],{},[35,1303,1304,1307],{},[38,1305,1306],{},"If you are",[38,1308,1309],{},"Keep records until",[51,1311,1312,1324,1334],{},[35,1313,1314,1317],{},[56,1315,1316],{},"Employed",[56,1318,1319,1320,1323],{},"At least ",[19,1321,1322],{},"22 months"," after the end of the tax year",[35,1325,1326,1328],{},[56,1327,1110],{},[56,1329,1319,1330,1333],{},[19,1331,1332],{},"5 years"," after the 31 January filing deadline",[35,1335,1336,1339],{},[56,1337,1338],{},"Running a company",[56,1340,1341,1342,1345],{},"Generally ",[19,1343,1344],{},"6 years"," from the end of the accounting period",[24,1347,1349],{"id":1348},"strong-record-versus-weak-record","Strong record versus weak record",[29,1351,1352,1362],{},[32,1353,1354],{},[35,1355,1356,1359],{},[38,1357,1358],{},"Weak",[38,1360,1361],{},"Strong",[51,1363,1364,1372,1380,1388,1396,1404],{},[35,1365,1366,1369],{},[56,1367,1368],{},"\"August: 340 business miles\"",[56,1370,1371],{},"22 individual journeys totalling 341.6 miles",[35,1373,1374,1377],{},[56,1375,1376],{},"Round numbers throughout",[56,1378,1379],{},"Distances that are obviously measured",[35,1381,1382,1385],{},[56,1383,1384],{},"Written up in April from memory",[56,1386,1387],{},"Recorded on the day",[35,1389,1390,1393],{},[56,1391,1392],{},"No purpose recorded",[56,1394,1395],{},"Client or job named on each trip",[35,1397,1398,1401],{},[56,1399,1400],{},"Commuting included",[56,1402,1403],{},"Home-to-workplace excluded and visibly so",[35,1405,1406,1409],{},[56,1407,1408],{},"One total across two vehicles",[56,1410,1411],{},"Each vehicle separately",[24,1413,518],{"id":517},[137,1415,1416,1421,1426,1431],{},[140,1417,1418],{},[524,1419,564],{"href":562,"rel":1420},[528],[140,1422,1423],{},[524,1424,529],{"href":526,"rel":1425},[528],[140,1427,1428],{},[524,1429,997],{"href":995,"rel":1430},[528],[140,1432,1433],{},[524,1434,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":1436},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fexpenses-if-youre-self-employed\u002Fvehicles",[528],"Expenses if you're self-employed: vehicles (HMRC)",[566,1439],{},[12,1441,1442],{},[571,1443,1444],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":1446},[1447,1448,1449,1450,1451,1452,1453,1454,1455],{"id":1056,"depth":576,"text":1057},{"id":1096,"depth":576,"text":1097},{"id":1117,"depth":576,"text":1118},{"id":1142,"depth":576,"text":1143},{"id":1152,"depth":576,"text":1153},{"id":1176,"depth":576,"text":1177},{"id":1297,"depth":576,"text":1097},{"id":1348,"depth":576,"text":1349},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-07-24","What HMRC expects a mileage record to contain, how long to keep it, and why the spreadsheet you fill in every April is the weakest version of it.","\u002Fshots\u002Ftrips.png","A month of journeys in Milesheet, each with date, route and distance",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-log-that-stands-up",3,{"title":1048,"description":1457},"blog\u002Fmileage-log-that-stands-up",[602,1466,1467],"records","self assessment","k6dVtS6u0kBSkv4wgdKZUe9X6sorHzyvAl-dSvLDKdo",{"id":1470,"title":1471,"author":7,"body":1472,"category":1828,"date":1829,"description":1830,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1831,"imageAlt":1832,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":1833,"navigation":595,"path":1834,"readTime":598,"seo":1835,"stem":1836,"tags":1837,"__hash__":1841},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Freal-mpg-vs-official-figures.md","Real MPG: why your car never matches the brochure",{"type":9,"value":1473,"toc":1818},[1474,1477,1481,1488,1491,1495,1527,1531,1534,1545,1548,1553,1556,1559,1563,1566,1569,1572,1576,1579,1650,1653,1657,1660,1724,1727,1731,1792,1795,1797],[12,1475,1476],{},"Almost nobody gets the fuel economy printed in the brochure. That is not because the manufacturer lied, it is because the figure was never a promise about your driving.",[24,1478,1480],{"id":1479},"where-the-number-comes-from","Where the number comes from",[12,1482,1483,1484,1487],{},"Official economy figures come from a standardised laboratory test. Since 2017 that has been ",[19,1485,1486],{},"WLTP",", which replaced the older and much more flattering NEDC cycle. WLTP is a great deal closer to reality than what came before, but it is still a controlled procedure: fixed temperature, a defined speed profile, no headwind, no roof box, no traffic, no you.",[12,1489,1490],{},"Its job is to let you compare two cars fairly. It was never designed to predict what your commute costs.",[24,1492,1494],{"id":1493},"why-your-number-is-lower","Why your number is lower",[137,1496,1497,1503,1509,1515,1521],{},[140,1498,1499,1502],{},[19,1500,1501],{},"Short trips."," A cold engine is a thirsty engine. Two miles to the station can return half what the same car does on a motorway run.",[140,1504,1505,1508],{},[19,1506,1507],{},"Speed."," Air resistance climbs with the square of speed. Seventy costs a lot more than sixty.",[140,1510,1511,1514],{},[19,1512,1513],{},"Weight and drag."," Roof bars, a boot full of tools, a bike rack you left on since June.",[140,1516,1517,1520],{},[19,1518,1519],{},"Winter."," Denser air, warm-up cycles, lights and heaters. A 10% seasonal swing is unremarkable.",[140,1522,1523,1526],{},[19,1524,1525],{},"How you drive."," Anticipation is worth more than any gadget you can buy.",[24,1528,1530],{"id":1529},"working-out-the-number-that-actually-matters","Working out the number that actually matters",[12,1532,1533],{},"You only need two things: a full tank, and the next full tank.",[875,1535,1536,1539,1542],{},[140,1537,1538],{},"Fill the tank completely and note the odometer.",[140,1540,1541],{},"Drive as you normally would.",[140,1543,1544],{},"Fill it completely again, note the odometer and the litres that went in.",[12,1546,1547],{},"Then:",[12,1549,1550],{},[19,1551,1552],{},"MPG = (miles driven ÷ litres) × 4.546",[12,1554,1555],{},"That 4.546 is the litres in an imperial gallon, which is what UK mpg is quoted in. Miss it and you will produce a US mpg figure that is 20% too low, which is a classic way to convince yourself something is wrong with the car.",[12,1557,1558],{},"One tank is a snapshot. Three or four gives you the number to plan with.",[24,1560,1562],{"id":1561},"what-it-is-worth-knowing","What it is worth knowing",[12,1564,1565],{},"Real economy is what turns a distance into a cost. At 145.9p a litre, a 40-mile round trip costs about £5.80 in a car doing 52 mpg, and about £8.60 in the same journey at 35 mpg. Over a working year that difference is a holiday.",[12,1567,1568],{},"It also decides whether the 55p a mile you can claim is generous or barely covers the fuel. For an efficient car it comfortably covers running costs. For a thirsty one towing a trailer, it is doing well to break even.",[12,1570,1571],{},"Milesheet works this out for you: log each fill-up with the litres, the cost and the odometer, and it derives your real MPG between full tanks, then prices every journey with your own number instead of the brochure's.",[24,1573,1575],{"id":1574},"what-the-gap-typically-looks-like","What the gap typically looks like",[12,1577,1578],{},"Real-world economy usually lands below the official figure. The size of the gap varies by\npowertrain more than by brand:",[29,1580,1581,1593],{},[32,1582,1583],{},[35,1584,1585,1588,1591],{},[38,1586,1587],{},"Powertrain",[38,1589,1590],{},"Typical shortfall against official",[38,1592,724],{},[51,1594,1595,1606,1617,1628,1639],{},[35,1596,1597,1600,1603],{},[56,1598,1599],{},"Petrol, non-turbo",[56,1601,1602],{},"5-15%",[56,1604,1605],{},"Closest to the test conditions",[35,1607,1608,1611,1614],{},[56,1609,1610],{},"Petrol, small turbo",[56,1612,1613],{},"15-25%",[56,1615,1616],{},"Test rewards low-load running the real world does not do",[35,1618,1619,1622,1625],{},[56,1620,1621],{},"Diesel",[56,1623,1624],{},"10-20%",[56,1626,1627],{},"Efficient on long runs, poor on short ones",[35,1629,1630,1633,1636],{},[56,1631,1632],{},"Hybrid",[56,1634,1635],{},"10-30%",[56,1637,1638],{},"Depends entirely on journey length and temperature",[35,1640,1641,1644,1647],{},[56,1642,1643],{},"Plug-in hybrid",[56,1645,1646],{},"Can be enormous",[56,1648,1649],{},"Official figure assumes you charge it",[12,1651,1652],{},"The plug-in case is the one that misleads most. A PHEV driven without charging returns something\nclose to a heavy petrol car, not the headline figure.",[24,1654,1656],{"id":1655},"working-out-your-own-properly","Working out your own, properly",[12,1658,1659],{},"You need two full-tank fills with odometer readings:",[29,1661,1662,1671],{},[32,1663,1664],{},[35,1665,1666,1669],{},[38,1667,1668],{},"Step",[38,1670,913],{},[51,1672,1673,1681,1688,1696,1704,1712],{},[35,1674,1675,1678],{},[56,1676,1677],{},"Fill to the brim, note odometer",[56,1679,1680],{},"44,120 mi",[35,1682,1683,1686],{},[56,1684,1685],{},"Drive normally",[56,1687,205],{},[35,1689,1690,1693],{},[56,1691,1692],{},"Fill to the brim again, note odometer and litres",[56,1694,1695],{},"44,472 mi, 38.6 L",[35,1697,1698,1701],{},[56,1699,1700],{},"Miles covered",[56,1702,1703],{},"352",[35,1705,1706,1709],{},[56,1707,1708],{},"Gallons used (litres ÷ 4.546)",[56,1710,1711],{},"8.49",[35,1713,1714,1719],{},[56,1715,1716],{},[19,1717,1718],{},"Real MPG",[56,1720,1721],{},[19,1722,1723],{},"41.5",[12,1725,1726],{},"The brim matters more than the arithmetic. Filling to the first click both times is what makes the\ntwo measurements comparable; a splash-and-dash in the middle is fine as long as you add its litres\nin.",[24,1728,1730],{"id":1729},"what-it-changes","What it changes",[29,1732,1733,1746],{},[32,1734,1735],{},[35,1736,1737,1740,1743],{},[38,1738,1739],{},"Figure",[38,1741,1742],{},"Using the brochure (52 mpg)",[38,1744,1745],{},"Using the real number (41.5 mpg)",[51,1747,1748,1759,1770,1781],{},[35,1749,1750,1753,1756],{},[56,1751,1752],{},"Cost per mile at 145p\u002FL",[56,1754,1755],{},"12.7p",[56,1757,1758],{},"15.9p",[35,1760,1761,1764,1767],{},[56,1762,1763],{},"Fuel for 10,000 miles",[56,1765,1766],{},"£1,268",[56,1768,1769],{},"£1,590",[35,1771,1772,1775,1778],{},[56,1773,1774],{},"Fuel on a 300-mile round trip",[56,1776,1777],{},"£38",[56,1779,1780],{},"£48",[35,1782,1783,1786,1789],{},[56,1784,1785],{},"Is 55p a mile generous?",[56,1787,1788],{},"Very",[56,1790,1791],{},"Comfortably, but less so",[12,1793,1794],{},"A 25% error in economy is a 25% error in every journey cost you calculate, including what you tell\nfriends they owe for petrol.",[24,1796,518],{"id":517},[137,1798,1799,1804,1811],{},[140,1800,1801],{},[524,1802,529],{"href":526,"rel":1803},[528],[140,1805,1806],{},[524,1807,1810],{"href":1808,"rel":1809},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fsimplified-expenses-checker",[528],"Simplified expenses checker (HMRC)",[140,1812,1813],{},[524,1814,1817],{"href":1815,"rel":1816},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fvehicle-tax-rate-tables",[528],"Vehicle tax rate tables (DVLA)",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":1819},[1820,1821,1822,1823,1824,1825,1826,1827],{"id":1479,"depth":576,"text":1480},{"id":1493,"depth":576,"text":1494},{"id":1529,"depth":576,"text":1530},{"id":1561,"depth":576,"text":1562},{"id":1574,"depth":576,"text":1575},{"id":1655,"depth":576,"text":1656},{"id":1729,"depth":576,"text":1730},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"Fuel & running costs","2026-07-15","Where official economy figures come from, why the gap is normal, and how two full tanks tell you the only number that matters.","\u002Fshots\u002Ffuel.png","Real-world economy worked out from fill-ups in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Freal-mpg-vs-official-figures",{"title":1471,"description":1830},"blog\u002Freal-mpg-vs-official-figures",[1838,1839,1840],"fuel","mpg","running costs","o6o5W2DTSCTwg0Xo_Qpwa9RTFoo64Qzwn6gs1ngT9GE",{"id":1843,"title":1844,"author":7,"body":1845,"category":587,"date":2167,"description":2168,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":2169,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":2170,"navigation":595,"path":2171,"readTime":1462,"seo":2172,"stem":2173,"tags":2174,"__hash__":2177},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fparking-tolls-and-charges.md","Parking, tolls and charges: what else you can claim",{"type":9,"value":1846,"toc":2158},[1847,1850,1854,1886,1889,1893,1923,1927,1930,1933,1936,1940,1951,1954,1958,1961,2082,2086,2132,2134,2151,2153],[12,1848,1849],{},"The approved mileage rate covers the cost of running the car: fuel, wear, servicing, insurance, depreciation. It does not cover what you spend on the way. Those are separate, claimable, and routinely forgotten.",[24,1851,1853],{"id":1852},"costs-that-usually-go-on-top","Costs that usually go on top",[137,1855,1856,1862,1868,1874,1880],{},[140,1857,1858,1861],{},[19,1859,1860],{},"Parking"," at the destination of a business journey",[140,1863,1864,1867],{},[19,1865,1866],{},"Tolls"," and bridge charges",[140,1869,1870,1873],{},[19,1871,1872],{},"Congestion charge",", where the journey was business",[140,1875,1876,1879],{},[19,1877,1878],{},"Clean-air and low-emission zone charges"," for a business trip",[140,1881,1882,1885],{},[19,1883,1884],{},"Ferry crossings"," where they form part of the journey",[12,1887,1888],{},"Each of these is claimable in its own right, in addition to the pence-per-mile. Keep the receipt and note which journey it belongs to.",[24,1890,1892],{"id":1891},"costs-that-do-not","Costs that do not",[137,1894,1895,1901,1907,1917],{},[140,1896,1897,1900],{},[19,1898,1899],{},"Parking fines and speeding tickets."," Never allowable, however the ticket came about.",[140,1902,1903,1906],{},[19,1904,1905],{},"Anything on your commute."," If the journey is not business travel, its parking is not either.",[140,1908,1909,1912,1913,1916],{},[19,1910,1911],{},"Fuel, on top of mileage."," You cannot claim the approved rate ",[571,1914,1915],{},"and"," the petrol. The rate already includes it. Claiming both is a genuine and expensive error.",[140,1918,1919,1922],{},[19,1920,1921],{},"Personal detours."," If you paid to park while doing something personal, that is yours.",[24,1924,1926],{"id":1925},"the-evidence-problem","The evidence problem",[12,1928,1929],{},"Parking is where records fall apart, because so much of it is now a card tap or an app payment with no paper at all. Three months later you have a bank line that says \"RingGo\" and no idea which site it was or why you were there.",[12,1931,1932],{},"The fix is to capture it at the moment of payment. A photo of the receipt or the machine, attached to the journey it belongs to, does the job. If there is no paper, note the amount and the reason while you are still standing there.",[12,1934,1935],{},"Milesheet keeps these against the trip itself: pick the type, enter the amount, and add a photo if you have one. The photo is copied into the app's own storage, so it survives you clearing out your camera roll. The totals then flow through into your monthly and tax-year statements, and appear as their own section in the exported PDF, clearly separated from the mileage claim.",[24,1937,1939],{"id":1938},"if-you-are-self-employed","If you are self-employed",[12,1941,1942,1943,1946,1947,1950],{},"You have a choice per vehicle: ",[19,1944,1945],{},"simplified expenses"," (the flat pence-per-mile) or ",[19,1948,1949],{},"actual costs"," (a business proportion of fuel, insurance, servicing, capital allowances and so on). You cannot mix the two for the same vehicle, and once you have chosen for a particular car you must keep to that method for as long as you have it.",[12,1952,1953],{},"Parking, tolls and charges sit outside that choice: they are claimable either way.",[24,1955,1957],{"id":1956},"what-is-claimable-alongside-mileage","What is claimable alongside mileage",[12,1959,1960],{},"The mileage rate covers running the vehicle. These are separate, and claimable when the journey was\nbusiness:",[29,1962,1963,1976],{},[32,1964,1965],{},[35,1966,1967,1970,1973],{},[38,1968,1969],{},"Cost",[38,1971,1972],{},"Claimable on a business journey?",[38,1974,1975],{},"Notes",[51,1977,1978,1989,2001,2012,2024,2036,2048,2060,2071],{},[35,1979,1980,1982,1986],{},[56,1981,1860],{},[56,1983,1984],{},[19,1985,67],{},[56,1987,1988],{},"Not at your permanent workplace",[35,1990,1991,1994,1998],{},[56,1992,1993],{},"Tolls and crossings",[56,1995,1996],{},[19,1997,67],{},[56,1999,2000],{},"Dartford, M6 Toll, estuarial crossings",[35,2002,2003,2005,2009],{},[56,2004,1872],{},[56,2006,2007],{},[19,2008,67],{},[56,2010,2011],{},"Journey must be business",[35,2013,2014,2017,2021],{},[56,2015,2016],{},"ULEZ \u002F clean air charges",[56,2018,2019],{},[19,2020,67],{},[56,2022,2023],{},"Same test",[35,2025,2026,2029,2033],{},[56,2027,2028],{},"Parking fine",[56,2030,2031],{},[19,2032,80],{},[56,2034,2035],{},"Penalties are never deductible",[35,2037,2038,2041,2045],{},[56,2039,2040],{},"Speeding fine",[56,2042,2043],{},[19,2044,80],{},[56,2046,2047],{},"Same",[35,2049,2050,2053,2057],{},[56,2051,2052],{},"Clamping release fee",[56,2054,2055],{},[19,2056,80],{},[56,2058,2059],{},"Consequence of a penalty",[35,2061,2062,2065,2068],{},[56,2063,2064],{},"Vehicle cleaning",[56,2066,2067],{},"Sometimes",[56,2069,2070],{},"If genuinely required for the business",[35,2072,2073,2076,2079],{},[56,2074,2075],{},"Breakdown cover",[56,2077,2078],{},"Apportioned",[56,2080,2081],{},"Business share only",[24,2083,2085],{"id":2084},"where-the-receipts-go-wrong","Where the receipts go wrong",[29,2087,2088,2098],{},[32,2089,2090],{},[35,2091,2092,2095],{},[38,2093,2094],{},"Problem",[38,2096,2097],{},"Fix",[51,2099,2100,2108,2116,2124],{},[35,2101,2102,2105],{},[56,2103,2104],{},"Thermal receipts fade to blank",[56,2106,2107],{},"Photograph at the time",[35,2109,2110,2113],{},[56,2111,2112],{},"Charges paid days later in a batch",[56,2114,2115],{},"Attach each to its journey when it happens",[35,2117,2118,2121],{},[56,2119,2120],{},"No record of which trip a charge belongs to",[56,2122,2123],{},"Log the cost against the trip, not the month",[35,2125,2126,2129],{},[56,2127,2128],{},"Personal and business charges mixed",[56,2130,2131],{},"Classify at the point of payment",[24,2133,518],{"id":517},[137,2135,2136,2141,2146],{},[140,2137,2138],{},[524,2139,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":2140},[528],[140,2142,2143],{},[524,2144,536],{"href":534,"rel":2145},[528],[140,2147,2148],{},[524,2149,543],{"href":541,"rel":2150},[528],[566,2152],{},[12,2154,2155],{},[571,2156,2157],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Check anything unusual with HMRC or your accountant.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":2159},[2160,2161,2162,2163,2164,2165,2166],{"id":1852,"depth":576,"text":1853},{"id":1891,"depth":576,"text":1892},{"id":1925,"depth":576,"text":1926},{"id":1938,"depth":576,"text":1939},{"id":1956,"depth":576,"text":1957},{"id":2084,"depth":576,"text":2085},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-07-02","Mileage is not the whole claim. The out-of-pocket costs that ride along with a business journey, and the ones that never qualify.","Journeys with their out-of-pocket costs attached in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fparking-tolls-and-charges",{"title":1844,"description":2168},"blog\u002Fparking-tolls-and-charges",[602,2175,2176],"expenses","receipts","s6uX9ZjWIfT_m6QwvbXza_xJdgCVaWmwNA8h0oSqjRc",{"id":2179,"title":2180,"author":7,"body":2181,"category":1828,"date":2525,"description":2526,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1831,"imageAlt":2527,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":2528,"navigation":595,"path":2529,"readTime":598,"seo":2530,"stem":2531,"tags":2532,"__hash__":2535},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fcutting-fuel-costs-same-commute.md","Nine ways to cut fuel costs on the same commute",{"type":9,"value":2182,"toc":2509},[2183,2186,2190,2193,2197,2200,2204,2207,2211,2214,2218,2221,2225,2228,2232,2235,2239,2242,2246,2249,2253,2256,2259,2263,2266,2384,2387,2391,2445,2449,2452,2483,2486,2488],[12,2184,2185],{},"You cannot always change the journey. You can change what it costs. Roughly in order of what they return:",[24,2187,2189],{"id":2188},"_1-ease-off-the-throttle","1. Ease off the throttle",[12,2191,2192],{},"Air resistance rises with the square of speed, so the last ten miles per hour are the expensive ones. Dropping from 75 to 65 on a motorway run typically saves in the region of 10 to 15% of the fuel, and costs you a couple of minutes an hour.",[24,2194,2196],{"id":2195},"_2-anticipate-instead-of-react","2. Anticipate instead of react",[12,2198,2199],{},"Lifting early for a red light rather than braking late is free. Every drop of fuel you spend building speed you then throw away as heat in the brakes. This is the single biggest difference between two people driving the same route in the same car.",[24,2201,2203],{"id":2202},"_3-check-your-tyre-pressures","3. Check your tyre pressures",[12,2205,2206],{},"Under-inflated tyres increase rolling resistance measurably, and most cars on the road are down a few PSI. It takes five minutes a month, helps the tyres last longer, and is a safety item anyway.",[24,2208,2210],{"id":2209},"_4-take-the-roof-bars-off","4. Take the roof bars off",[12,2212,2213],{},"A roof rack or box is a serious aerodynamic penalty at motorway speed, easily 10 to 20% on a small car. If it has been on since the summer holiday, that is expensive storage.",[24,2215,2217],{"id":2216},"_5-empty-the-boot","5. Empty the boot",[12,2219,2220],{},"Weight matters most in town, where you are accelerating repeatedly. The bag of sand from a job in March is not helping.",[24,2222,2224],{"id":2223},"_6-combine-trips","6. Combine trips",[12,2226,2227],{},"A cold engine is dramatically less efficient for the first few miles. Three short errands from cold cost far more than one loop that does all three.",[24,2229,2231],{"id":2230},"_7-buy-fuel-on-price-not-on-habit","7. Buy fuel on price, not on habit",[12,2233,2234],{},"Supermarket forecourts are usually cheaper than motorway services by a wide margin. Filling up before a long run rather than on it is often worth several pounds a tank for a two-minute detour.",[24,2236,2238],{"id":2237},"_8-service-it-when-it-asks","8. Service it when it asks",[12,2240,2241],{},"A clogged air filter, tired plugs or the wrong oil grade all cost economy. Servicing is not just about avoiding failure.",[24,2243,2245],{"id":2244},"_9-know-your-real-number","9. Know your real number",[12,2247,2248],{},"You cannot manage what you do not measure. Work out your actual MPG between two full tanks rather than trusting the trip computer, which is often optimistic by a few percent.",[24,2250,2252],{"id":2251},"the-one-that-pays-for-all-the-others","The one that pays for all the others",[12,2254,2255],{},"If any of your driving is for work, the mileage claim is worth more than every tip above combined. At 55p a mile, 200 business miles a month is £1,320 a year of allowance, and for an efficient car that is comfortably more than the fuel it burned.",[12,2257,2258],{},"The catch is that unclaimed miles are worth nothing. That is the entire reason Milesheet exists: record the journey while it happens, sort it in seconds, and let the claim add itself up.",[24,2260,2262],{"id":2261},"what-each-habit-is-actually-worth","What each habit is actually worth",[12,2264,2265],{},"Ranked by what it saves on 10,000 miles a year at 45 mpg and 145p a litre, roughly £1,460 of fuel:",[29,2267,2268,2284],{},[32,2269,2270],{},[35,2271,2272,2275,2278,2281],{},[38,2273,2274],{},"Change",[38,2276,2277],{},"Typical saving",[38,2279,2280],{},"Per year",[38,2282,2283],{},"Effort",[51,2285,2286,2300,2314,2328,2342,2356,2370],{},[35,2287,2288,2291,2294,2297],{},[56,2289,2290],{},"Take the roof box or bars off",[56,2292,2293],{},"5-20% when fitted",[56,2295,2296],{},"up to £290",[56,2298,2299],{},"Ten minutes",[35,2301,2302,2305,2308,2311],{},[56,2303,2304],{},"Keep tyres at the right pressure",[56,2306,2307],{},"2-4%",[56,2309,2310],{},"£30-£60",[56,2312,2313],{},"Five minutes a month",[35,2315,2316,2319,2322,2325],{},[56,2317,2318],{},"Ease off from 80 to 70 on motorways",[56,2320,2321],{},"10-15% of motorway miles",[56,2323,2324],{},"varies",[56,2326,2327],{},"Free",[35,2329,2330,2333,2336,2339],{},[56,2331,2332],{},"Combine short trips into one",[56,2334,2335],{},"5-10% for short-trip drivers",[56,2337,2338],{},"£70-£145",[56,2340,2341],{},"Planning",[35,2343,2344,2347,2350,2353],{},[56,2345,2346],{},"Lose 50 kg of junk from the boot",[56,2348,2349],{},"1-2%",[56,2351,2352],{},"£15-£30",[56,2354,2355],{},"Fifteen minutes",[35,2357,2358,2361,2364,2367],{},[56,2359,2360],{},"Service on schedule, right oil",[56,2362,2363],{},"1-3%",[56,2365,2366],{},"£15-£45",[56,2368,2369],{},"Already doing it",[35,2371,2372,2375,2378,2381],{},[56,2373,2374],{},"Air con off in town",[56,2376,2377],{},"1-3% in summer",[56,2379,2380],{},"Small",[56,2382,2383],{},"Uncomfortable",[12,2385,2386],{},"The top two are the ones worth actually doing: high value, near-zero effort, and neither of them\nmakes the drive worse.",[24,2388,2390],{"id":2389},"the-ones-that-are-mostly-myth","The ones that are mostly myth",[29,2392,2393,2403],{},[32,2394,2395],{},[35,2396,2397,2400],{},[38,2398,2399],{},"Claim",[38,2401,2402],{},"Reality",[51,2404,2405,2413,2421,2429,2437],{},[35,2406,2407,2410],{},[56,2408,2409],{},"\"Fill up when it's cold, fuel is denser\"",[56,2411,2412],{},"The difference is far below what you can measure",[35,2414,2415,2418],{},[56,2416,2417],{},"\"Premium fuel improves economy\"",[56,2419,2420],{},"Only in engines that require it; otherwise negligible",[35,2422,2423,2426],{},[56,2424,2425],{},"\"Coasting in neutral saves fuel\"",[56,2427,2428],{},"Modern engines cut fuel on the overrun; neutral uses more",[35,2430,2431,2434],{},[56,2432,2433],{},"\"Half a tank saves weight\"",[56,2435,2436],{},"~20 kg. Below the noise, and you refuel twice as often",[35,2438,2439,2442],{},[56,2440,2441],{},"\"Warm the engine up on the drive\"",[56,2443,2444],{},"Idling returns 0 mpg. Drive gently instead",[24,2446,2448],{"id":2447},"and-the-one-that-dwarfs-all-of-them","And the one that dwarfs all of them",[12,2450,2451],{},"If any of your driving is for work, the mileage claim is worth more than every habit above\ncombined:",[29,2453,2454,2463],{},[32,2455,2456],{},[35,2457,2458,2460],{},[38,2459],{},[38,2461,2462],{},"Annual value",[51,2464,2465,2473],{},[35,2466,2467,2470],{},[56,2468,2469],{},"Every fuel-saving habit above, done diligently",[56,2471,2472],{},"£150-£400",[35,2474,2475,2478],{},[56,2476,2477],{},"200 business miles a month, claimed at the approved rates",[56,2479,2480],{},[19,2481,2482],{},"£1,080",[12,2484,2485],{},"The catch is that unclaimed miles are worth nothing at all, which is the entire reason to keep a\nrecord.",[24,2487,518],{"id":517},[137,2489,2490,2497,2504],{},[140,2491,2492],{},[524,2493,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":2495},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fgovernment\u002Fstatistics\u002Fweekly-road-fuel-prices",[528],"Weekly road fuel prices (DESNZ)",[140,2498,2499],{},[524,2500,2503],{"href":2501,"rel":2502},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fgovernment\u002Fstatistical-data-sets\u002Foil-and-petroleum-products-weekly-statistics",[528],"Oil and petroleum products, weekly statistics (DESNZ)",[140,2505,2506],{},[524,2507,529],{"href":526,"rel":2508},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":2510},[2511,2512,2513,2514,2515,2516,2517,2518,2519,2520,2521,2522,2523,2524],{"id":2188,"depth":576,"text":2189},{"id":2195,"depth":576,"text":2196},{"id":2202,"depth":576,"text":2203},{"id":2209,"depth":576,"text":2210},{"id":2216,"depth":576,"text":2217},{"id":2223,"depth":576,"text":2224},{"id":2230,"depth":576,"text":2231},{"id":2237,"depth":576,"text":2238},{"id":2244,"depth":576,"text":2245},{"id":2251,"depth":576,"text":2252},{"id":2261,"depth":576,"text":2262},{"id":2389,"depth":576,"text":2390},{"id":2447,"depth":576,"text":2448},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-06-18","No new car, no lifestyle change. The habits and checks that actually move the needle, roughly in order of what they are worth.","Real-world economy tracked across tanks in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fcutting-fuel-costs-same-commute",{"title":2180,"description":2526},"blog\u002Fcutting-fuel-costs-same-commute",[1838,2533,2534],"savings","driving","-D6Ug9CAAA0x0PuLBB3V94nwmfN7ME1WgFdpR_TkQOA",{"id":2537,"title":2538,"author":7,"body":2539,"category":2858,"date":2859,"description":2860,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":2861,"imageAlt":2862,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":2863,"navigation":595,"path":2864,"readTime":1462,"seo":2865,"stem":2866,"tags":2867,"__hash__":2871},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fswitching-from-another-mileage-app.md","Switching mileage apps without losing the tax year",{"type":9,"value":2540,"toc":2848},[2541,2544,2548,2551,2554,2558,2569,2583,2586,2590,2596,2611,2625,2629,2636,2656,2659,2663,2666,2682,2685,2689,2760,2764,2831,2834,2836],[12,2542,2543],{},"Changing mileage apps mid-tax-year sounds like the sort of thing that loses you money. It does not have to, as long as the history comes with you.",[24,2545,2547],{"id":2546},"why-the-history-matters","Why the history matters",[12,2549,2550],{},"The 55p rate only applies to your first 10,000 business miles in a tax year. If your new app starts counting from zero in September, every mile it records is priced at 55p, including the ones that should have dropped to 25p because of driving you did in May. Your claim ends up wrong in the direction HMRC cares about.",[12,2552,2553],{},"Bring the old trips across and the banding is calculated over the whole year, as it should be.",[24,2555,2557],{"id":2556},"getting-the-data-out","Getting the data out",[12,2559,2560,2561,2564,2565,2568],{},"Most mileage apps can export a CSV, usually somewhere in settings under export, reports or backup. What you want is one row per journey with, at minimum, a ",[19,2562,2563],{},"date"," and a ",[19,2566,2567],{},"distance",". Anything else is a bonus:",[137,2570,2571,2574,2577,2580],{},[140,2572,2573],{},"Start and end location",[140,2575,2576],{},"Start time",[140,2578,2579],{},"Business or personal",[140,2581,2582],{},"Notes or purpose",[12,2584,2585],{},"If your old app can only email you a PDF report, you can still type the trips in by hand. Tedious, but a one-off.",[24,2587,2589],{"id":2588},"check-three-things-before-importing","Check three things before importing",[12,2591,2592,2595],{},[19,2593,2594],{},"Units."," Is the distance column miles or kilometres? Getting this wrong inflates or shrinks a whole year of claims.",[12,2597,2598,2601,2602,2606,2607,2610],{},[19,2599,2600],{},"Date format."," UK exports are usually ",[2603,2604,2605],"code",{},"dd\u002Fmm\u002Fyyyy",", but apps built elsewhere often use ",[2603,2608,2609],{},"mm\u002Fdd\u002Fyyyy",". If the first twelve rows look plausible and the rest look mad, this is why.",[12,2612,2613,2616,2617,2620,2621,2624],{},[19,2614,2615],{},"What \"category\" means."," Some apps export ",[2603,2618,2619],{},"Business","\u002F",[2603,2622,2623],{},"Personal",", others use custom categories like \"Client visit\" or \"Commute\". You will want to know which is which before you map the column.",[24,2626,2628],{"id":2627},"bringing-it-into-milesheet","Bringing it into Milesheet",[12,2630,2631,2632,2635],{},"Settings, then Export & backup, then ",[19,2633,2634],{},"Import trips from CSV",". The wizard is three steps:",[875,2637,2638,2644,2650],{},[140,2639,2640,2643],{},[19,2641,2642],{},"Pick the file."," Milesheet reads the header row and works out which column is which, including the common naming from other apps.",[140,2645,2646,2649],{},[19,2647,2648],{},"Check the mapping."," Every field is a dropdown. Point Date and Distance at the right columns, set miles or kilometres, choose what unlabelled rows should become, and pick which vehicle they belong to.",[140,2651,2652,2655],{},[19,2653,2654],{},"Preview and import."," You see how many trips parsed cleanly and how many rows could not be read, then confirm.",[12,2657,2658],{},"Anything that duplicates a trip already in Milesheet is skipped, so importing the same file twice is harmless. Rows with an unreadable date or distance are reported rather than silently dropped.",[24,2660,2662],{"id":2661},"after-the-import","After the import",[12,2664,2665],{},"Two things worth doing:",[137,2667,2668,2675],{},[140,2669,2670,2671,2674],{},"Open ",[19,2672,2673],{},"Insights"," and check the tax-year total looks like your year. If it is wildly out, the units or the date format were probably wrong; delete the imported trips and try again.",[140,2676,2677,2678,2681],{},"Tag your regular places in ",[19,2679,2680],{},"Locations",". Once the office and your usual sites are tagged, Milesheet sorts most future trips for you.",[12,2683,2684],{},"Then carry on driving. From that point, the log keeps itself.",[24,2686,2688],{"id":2687},"what-to-check-in-the-export","What to check in the export",[29,2690,2691,2703],{},[32,2692,2693],{},[35,2694,2695,2698,2700],{},[38,2696,2697],{},"Check",[38,2699,916],{},[38,2701,2702],{},"If it is wrong",[51,2704,2705,2716,2727,2738,2749],{},[35,2706,2707,2710,2713],{},[56,2708,2709],{},"Units, miles or kilometres",[56,2711,2712],{},"A km export read as miles is 38% short",[56,2714,2715],{},"Every claim figure understates",[35,2717,2718,2721,2724],{},[56,2719,2720],{},"Date format",[56,2722,2723],{},"US vs UK ordering silently swaps days and months",[56,2725,2726],{},"Trips land in the wrong month, banding breaks",[35,2728,2729,2732,2735],{},[56,2730,2731],{},"Classification column",[56,2733,2734],{},"Some apps export it, some do not",[56,2736,2737],{},"Everything arrives unclassified",[35,2739,2740,2743,2746],{},[56,2741,2742],{},"Running order",[56,2744,2745],{},"Banding depends on date order",[56,2747,2748],{},"Rate bands apply to the wrong trips",[35,2750,2751,2754,2757],{},[56,2752,2753],{},"Duplicates",[56,2755,2756],{},"Re-importing doubles mileage",[56,2758,2759],{},"The claim is overstated",[24,2761,2763],{"id":2762},"the-import-step-by-step","The import, step by step",[29,2765,2766,2775],{},[32,2767,2768],{},[35,2769,2770,2772],{},[38,2771,1668],{},[38,2773,2774],{},"Where",[51,2776,2777,2785,2793,2801,2808,2815,2823],{},[35,2778,2779,2782],{},[56,2780,2781],{},"Export CSV from the old app",[56,2783,2784],{},"Its own settings",[35,2786,2787,2790],{},[56,2788,2789],{},"Settings → Export & sync → Import trips from CSV",[56,2791,2792],{},"Milesheet",[35,2794,2795,2798],{},[56,2796,2797],{},"Map the columns (date and distance are required)",[56,2799,2800],{},"Import wizard",[35,2802,2803,2806],{},[56,2804,2805],{},"Choose the unit, miles or kilometres",[56,2807,2800],{},[35,2809,2810,2813],{},[56,2811,2812],{},"Review the preview before committing",[56,2814,2800],{},[35,2816,2817,2820],{},[56,2818,2819],{},"Sort anything that arrived unclassified",[56,2821,2822],{},"Classify tab",[35,2824,2825,2828],{},[56,2826,2827],{},"Tag your regular places",[56,2829,2830],{},"Settings → Locations",[12,2832,2833],{},"Duplicates of trips already in the app are skipped, so a second import after a failed one does not\ndouble anything.",[24,2835,518],{"id":517},[137,2837,2838,2843],{},[140,2839,2840],{},[524,2841,564],{"href":562,"rel":2842},[528],[140,2844,2845],{},[524,2846,529],{"href":526,"rel":2847},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":2849},[2850,2851,2852,2853,2854,2855,2856,2857],{"id":2546,"depth":576,"text":2547},{"id":2556,"depth":576,"text":2557},{"id":2588,"depth":576,"text":2589},{"id":2627,"depth":576,"text":2628},{"id":2661,"depth":576,"text":2662},{"id":2687,"depth":576,"text":2688},{"id":2762,"depth":576,"text":2763},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"Using Milesheet","2026-06-04","How to get your history out of another app, what to check in the export, and how to bring it into Milesheet so the 10,000-mile banding still works.","\u002Fshots\u002Fdata.png","Export and sync options in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fswitching-from-another-mileage-app",{"title":2538,"description":2860},"blog\u002Fswitching-from-another-mileage-app",[2868,2869,2870],"import","csv","getting started","Yg35BSk3CCC0DXZlQcT03U5ptGa0e9fHu3RUSbea_ts",{"id":2873,"title":2874,"author":7,"body":2875,"category":587,"date":3065,"description":3066,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":3067,"imageAlt":3068,"imageCredit":3069,"imageCreditUrl":3070,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":3071,"navigation":595,"path":3072,"readTime":576,"seo":3073,"stem":3074,"tags":3075,"__hash__":3078},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmotorcycle-and-bicycle-mileage-rates.md","The 24p and 20p rates almost nobody claims",{"type":9,"value":2876,"toc":3057},[2877,2880,2882,2899,2906,2910,2917,2987,2994,2998,3001,3004,3007,3011,3018,3021,3025,3028,3031,3033,3050,3052],[12,2878,2879],{},"Everyone knows the car rate, 55p from April 2026. Far fewer know that HMRC publishes approved rates for motorcycles and bicycles too, and that they behave differently in a way that works in your favour.",[24,2881,27],{"id":26},[137,2883,2884,2889,2894],{},[140,2885,2886,2888],{},[19,2887,58],{},": 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, then 25p",[140,2890,2891,2893],{},[19,2892,72],{},": 24p a mile, flat",[140,2895,2896,2898],{},[19,2897,85],{},": 20p a mile, flat",[12,2900,2901,2902,2905],{},"The important word is ",[571,2903,2904],{},"flat",". The 10,000-mile threshold that drops car mileage to 25p does not apply to motorcycles or bicycles. Ride 15,000 business miles on a motorbike and every one of them is 24p.",[24,2907,2909],{"id":2908},"what-the-flat-rate-is-worth-at-higher-mileage","What the flat rate is worth at higher mileage",[12,2911,2912,2913,2916],{},"Because motorcycle and bicycle rates are not banded, they overtake the car rate's ",[571,2914,2915],{},"average"," once\nyou pass the threshold:",[29,2918,2919,2934],{},[32,2920,2921],{},[35,2922,2923,2925,2928,2931],{},[38,2924,180],{},[38,2926,2927],{},"Car (banded)",[38,2929,2930],{},"Motorcycle (24p flat)",[38,2932,2933],{},"Bicycle (20p flat)",[51,2935,2936,2948,2961,2974],{},[35,2937,2938,2940,2943,2945],{},[56,2939,199],{},[56,2941,2942],{},"£900",[56,2944,352],{},[56,2946,2947],{},"£400",[35,2949,2950,2952,2955,2958],{},[56,2951,233],{},[56,2953,2954],{},"£4,500",[56,2956,2957],{},"£2,400",[56,2959,2960],{},"£2,000",[35,2962,2963,2965,2968,2971],{},[56,2964,267],{},[56,2966,2967],{},"£7,000 (35.0p avg)",[56,2969,2970],{},"£4,800",[56,2972,2973],{},"£4,000",[35,2975,2976,2978,2981,2984],{},[56,2977,285],{},[56,2979,2980],{},"£9,500 (31.7p avg)",[56,2982,2983],{},"£7,200",[56,2985,2986],{},"£6,000",[12,2988,2989,2990,2993],{},"The car still pays more per mile at every level, but the gap narrows, and the motorcycle's\nrunning costs are a fraction of the car's, so the ",[571,2991,2992],{},"margin"," often favours the bike.",[24,2995,2997],{"id":2996},"why-the-bicycle-rate-gets-ignored","Why the bicycle rate gets ignored",[12,2999,3000],{},"Because it sounds trivial. It is worth doing the arithmetic before you decide that.",[12,3002,3003],{},"A four-mile round trip to a client twice a week is roughly 400 business miles a year. At 20p that is £80 of allowance for journeys most people would never think to record. If you are an employee whose employer pays nothing, that becomes tax relief on £80, not life-changing, but it costs you nothing to have counted it.",[12,3005,3006],{},"For couriers, tradespeople doing local calls, or anyone in a city where the bike genuinely is the sensible vehicle, the numbers get considerably more interesting.",[24,3008,3010],{"id":3009},"the-same-rules-still-apply","The same rules still apply",[12,3012,3013,3014,3017],{},"None of this changes what counts as business travel. A cycle commute from home to a permanent workplace is ordinary commuting and is not claimable, exactly as it would be in a car. The journey has to be travel ",[571,3015,3016],{},"in the performance of your duties",", or to a temporary workplace.",[12,3019,3020],{},"You also cannot claim the bicycle rate for a bike provided through Cycle to Work, on journeys where the employer is already covering the cost.",[24,3022,3024],{"id":3023},"recording-them","Recording them",[12,3026,3027],{},"The evidence HMRC expects is the same whatever you were riding: the date, where you went and came from, why it was business, and the distance. That is the awkward part on a bike, because there is no odometer to photograph and nobody wants to stop and write things down.",[12,3029,3030],{},"Milesheet records the journey by GPS regardless of what you were on, so a bike trip logs itself the same way a drive does. Set the vehicle up with its own rate and the claim adds up correctly against the flat rate rather than the banded car one.",[24,3032,518],{"id":517},[137,3034,3035,3040,3045],{},[140,3036,3037],{},[524,3038,529],{"href":526,"rel":3039},[528],[140,3041,3042],{},[524,3043,543],{"href":541,"rel":3044},[528],[140,3046,3047],{},[524,3048,997],{"href":995,"rel":3049},[528],[566,3051],{},[12,3053,3054],{},[571,3055,3056],{},"General information for UK drivers and riders, not tax advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":3058},[3059,3060,3061,3062,3063,3064],{"id":26,"depth":576,"text":27},{"id":2908,"depth":576,"text":2909},{"id":2996,"depth":576,"text":2997},{"id":3009,"depth":576,"text":3010},{"id":3023,"depth":576,"text":3024},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-05-28","Motorcycles and bicycles have their own approved mileage rates, they are not banded at 10,000 miles, and most people who could claim them never do.","\u002Fblog\u002Fmotorcycle-and-bicycle-mileage-rates.jpg","Motorcyclists riding in city traffic","Photo by Skitter Photo, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fstocksnap.io\u002Fphoto\u002Fmotorbike-motorcycle-6F4302CB15",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmotorcycle-and-bicycle-mileage-rates",{"title":2874,"description":3066},"blog\u002Fmotorcycle-and-bicycle-mileage-rates",[602,3076,3077],"motorcycle","cycling","3BRJ8w2WJd-8465yMborc9kaGrAjDd2d6rrr0UxwnB4",{"id":3080,"title":3081,"author":7,"body":3082,"category":587,"date":3350,"description":3351,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1036,"imageAlt":3352,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":3353,"navigation":595,"path":3354,"readTime":1462,"seo":3355,"stem":3356,"tags":3357,"__hash__":3358},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fthe-24-month-rule-explained.md","The 24-month rule, in plain English",{"type":9,"value":3083,"toc":3340},[3084,3092,3096,3110,3113,3117,3124,3131,3138,3141,3145,3148,3151,3155,3217,3220,3224,3227,3278,3281,3285,3288,3291,3295,3298,3311,3314,3316,3333,3335],[12,3085,634,3086,3088,3089,3091],{},[19,3087,637],{}," is claimable. Travel to a ",[19,3090,623],{}," is ordinary commuting and is not. The 24-month rule is how HMRC decides which one you are looking at, and it catches people out because it works on expectation rather than hindsight.",[24,3093,3095],{"id":3094},"the-rule","The rule",[12,3097,3098,3099,3102,3103,3105,3106,3109],{},"A workplace stops being temporary when you have attended it, or expect to attend it, for ",[19,3100,3101],{},"more than 24 months",", ",[571,3104,1915],{}," your attendance is for a ",[19,3107,3108],{},"significant part"," of your working time.",[12,3111,3112],{},"Both halves matter. Two years on a site three days a week is caught. Two years popping in once a quarter is not.",[24,3114,3116],{"id":3115},"the-part-that-surprises-people","The part that surprises people",[12,3118,3119,3120,3123],{},"It is not \"you can claim for the first 24 months and then stop\". The test is about ",[19,3121,3122],{},"expectation",".",[12,3125,3126,3127,3130],{},"If you take an assignment that everyone knows from day one will run for three years, the workplace is permanent from the ",[571,3128,3129],{},"first day",". There is no 24 months of allowable travel followed by a cut-off. It was never temporary.",[12,3132,3133,3134,3137],{},"Conversely, if a six-month contract keeps being extended and at month 20 it becomes clear it will run past two years, the travel stops being claimable ",[19,3135,3136],{},"from the point your expectation changed",", not from month 24.",[12,3139,3140],{},"That is the trap. The clock is not counting your journeys. It is measuring what you reasonably expected.",[24,3142,3144],{"id":3143},"significant-part-of-your-working-time","\"Significant part of your working time\"",[12,3146,3147],{},"HMRC does not fix a percentage in the legislation, but 40% of your working time is the figure used in practice as the rule of thumb. Below that, a workplace can remain temporary even beyond 24 months.",[12,3149,3150],{},"This is what makes the occasional-visit case genuinely different from the four-days-a-week case, and why two people on the same contract can get different answers.",[24,3152,3154],{"id":3153},"four-scenarios-worked-through","Four scenarios, worked through",[29,3156,3157,3170],{},[32,3158,3159],{},[35,3160,3161,3164,3167],{},[38,3162,3163],{},"Situation",[38,3165,3166],{},"Temporary?",[38,3168,3169],{},"Travel claimable",[51,3171,3172,3182,3196,3207],{},[35,3173,3174,3177,3179],{},[56,3175,3176],{},"9-month contract, expected 9 months",[56,3178,67],{},[56,3180,3181],{},"Throughout",[35,3183,3184,3187,3191],{},[56,3185,3186],{},"3-year contract, known on day one",[56,3188,3189],{},[19,3190,80],{},[56,3192,3193],{},[19,3194,3195],{},"None, from day one",[35,3197,3198,3201,3204],{},[56,3199,3200],{},"12-month contract, extended at month 10 to 30 months",[56,3202,3203],{},"Yes, then no",[56,3205,3206],{},"Until month 10 only",[35,3208,3209,3212,3214],{},[56,3210,3211],{},"30-month engagement, attending one day a fortnight",[56,3213,67],{},[56,3215,3216],{},"Throughout, below the \"significant part\" test",[12,3218,3219],{},"The third row is the one that costs people money, because nothing visible changes on the day the\nanswer does. The clock is not counting your journeys; it is tracking what you reasonably expected.",[24,3221,3223],{"id":3222},"what-it-is-worth-in-money","What it is worth, in money",[12,3225,3226],{},"A 30-mile each-way commute to a site, four days a week, 46 weeks a year:",[29,3228,3229,3241],{},[32,3230,3231],{},[35,3232,3233,3235,3238],{},[38,3234],{},[38,3236,3237],{},"Miles",[38,3239,3240],{},"Approved amount",[51,3242,3243,3254,3265],{},[35,3244,3245,3248,3251],{},[56,3246,3247],{},"Per day",[56,3249,3250],{},"60",[56,3252,3253],{},"£27.00",[35,3255,3256,3259,3262],{},[56,3257,3258],{},"Per week (4 days)",[56,3260,3261],{},"240",[56,3263,3264],{},"£108.00",[35,3266,3267,3269,3272],{},[56,3268,2280],{},[56,3270,3271],{},"11,040",[56,3273,3274,3277],{},[19,3275,3276],{},"£4,730"," (banded)",[12,3279,3280],{},"Claiming that where the workplace was in fact permanent is an error worth thousands, repeated\nannually. Failing to claim it where the workplace genuinely was temporary is the same number, left\nbehind.",[24,3282,3284],{"id":3283},"why-it-is-worth-getting-right","Why it is worth getting right",[12,3286,3287],{},"The sums are not small. Someone driving 30 miles each way to a site four days a week covers roughly 12,000 business miles a year. At the approved rates, that is a little over £5,000 of allowance. Claiming it when the workplace was in fact permanent is the kind of error that gets expensive if it is repeated across several years.",[12,3289,3290],{},"Getting it wrong the other way, assuming a site is permanent when it qualified as temporary, is just money left behind.",[24,3292,3294],{"id":3293},"what-to-do-about-it","What to do about it",[12,3296,3297],{},"Keep the record either way. A journey you did not log cannot be claimed later if it turns out you were entitled, and a journey you logged but did not claim costs you nothing.",[12,3299,3300,3301,3304,3305,3307,3308,3310],{},"In Milesheet, tag a genuinely permanent workplace as ",[19,3302,3303],{},"Workplace"," and your house as ",[19,3306,937],{},": those journeys are then recognised as ordinary commuting and kept out of your claim automatically, while staying in your records. Tag a temporary site as ",[19,3309,2619],{}," instead, and it counts.",[12,3312,3313],{},"If the status of a site changes, an extension lands, the expectation shifts, change the tag from that date. The history stays intact and the claim adjusts.",[24,3315,518],{"id":517},[137,3317,3318,3323,3328],{},[140,3319,3320],{},[524,3321,997],{"href":995,"rel":3322},[528],[140,3324,3325],{},[524,3326,1004],{"href":1002,"rel":3327},[528],[140,3329,3330],{},[524,3331,543],{"href":541,"rel":3332},[528],[566,3334],{},[12,3336,3337],{},[571,3338,3339],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. The 24-month rule turns on the facts of your case: if a site is close to the line, take proper advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":3341},[3342,3343,3344,3345,3346,3347,3348,3349],{"id":3094,"depth":576,"text":3095},{"id":3115,"depth":576,"text":3116},{"id":3143,"depth":576,"text":3144},{"id":3153,"depth":576,"text":3154},{"id":3222,"depth":576,"text":3223},{"id":3283,"depth":576,"text":3284},{"id":3293,"depth":576,"text":3294},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-05-21","When a temporary workplace quietly becomes a permanent one, why the clock can start before you notice, and what it costs when it does.","Tagging a regular site as a workplace in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fthe-24-month-rule-explained",{"title":3081,"description":3351},"blog\u002Fthe-24-month-rule-explained",[602,637,1043],"kzLjhBnY43P18pmoiRkek5A9kUVxW9MtP7ivPYy5N8w",{"id":3360,"title":3361,"author":7,"body":3362,"category":587,"date":3580,"description":3581,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":3582,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":3583,"navigation":595,"path":3584,"readTime":1462,"seo":3585,"stem":3586,"tags":3587,"__hash__":3589},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fpassenger-payments-5p-a-mile.md","The 5p a mile almost every claim misses",{"type":9,"value":3363,"toc":3571},[3364,3371,3375,3378,3381,3385,3469,3476,3480,3483,3494,3501,3504,3508,3511,3515,3533,3536,3540,3543,3546,3548,3565,3567],[12,3365,3366,3367,3370],{},"If you carry a colleague on a business journey, HMRC's approved rates include an extra ",[19,3368,3369],{},"5p per passenger per mile",". Almost nobody claims it, for two reasons: it is easy not to know about, and it works differently from the main rate.",[24,3372,3374],{"id":3373},"how-it-works","How it works",[12,3376,3377],{},"The passenger payment is 5p a mile for each fellow employee who is also travelling on business. It is not banded. The 10,000-mile threshold that drops your car rate to 25p does not touch it. Every passenger mile is 5p, all year.",[12,3379,3380],{},"Two colleagues in the car for a 120-mile round trip is £12 on top of the mileage itself. Do that fortnightly and it is over £300 a year that most people never record.",[24,3382,3384],{"id":3383},"what-it-adds-up-to","What it adds up to",[29,3386,3387,3403],{},[32,3388,3389],{},[35,3390,3391,3394,3397,3400],{},[38,3392,3393],{},"Journey pattern",[38,3395,3396],{},"Passengers",[38,3398,3399],{},"Business miles\u002Fyr",[38,3401,3402],{},"Passenger payment",[51,3404,3405,3419,3431,3444,3456],{},[35,3406,3407,3410,3413,3416],{},[56,3408,3409],{},"Fortnightly 120-mile round trip",[56,3411,3412],{},"1",[56,3414,3415],{},"3,120",[56,3417,3418],{},"£156",[35,3420,3421,3423,3426,3428],{},[56,3422,3409],{},[56,3424,3425],{},"2",[56,3427,3415],{},[56,3429,3430],{},"£312",[35,3432,3433,3436,3438,3441],{},[56,3434,3435],{},"Weekly 80-mile site visit",[56,3437,3425],{},[56,3439,3440],{},"3,840",[56,3442,3443],{},"£384",[35,3445,3446,3449,3451,3454],{},[56,3447,3448],{},"Daily 40-mile run, 3 days a week",[56,3450,3412],{},[56,3452,3453],{},"6,240",[56,3455,3430],{},[35,3457,3458,3461,3464,3466],{},[56,3459,3460],{},"Territory driving, colleague half the time",[56,3462,3463],{},"1 (50%)",[56,3465,267],{},[56,3467,3468],{},"£500",[12,3470,3471,3472,3475],{},"Unlike the main rate, this is ",[19,3473,3474],{},"not banded",", every passenger mile is 5p regardless of your annual\ntotal.",[24,3477,3479],{"id":3478},"the-catch-employees-need-to-know","The catch employees need to know",[12,3481,3482],{},"Here is where it differs from the main rate, and why it is worth understanding before you rely on it.",[12,3484,3485,3486,3489,3490,3493],{},"If your employer pays you a passenger payment, up to 5p a mile is tax-free. But if your employer pays you ",[19,3487,3488],{},"nothing"," for carrying passengers, you ",[19,3491,3492],{},"cannot"," claim tax relief on the difference the way you can with the main mileage rate.",[12,3495,3496,3497,3500],{},"Mileage Allowance Relief covers the gap between what you were paid and the approved rate for the ",[571,3498,3499],{},"vehicle",". It does not extend to passenger payments. If the employer does not pay it, there is nothing to claim.",[12,3502,3503],{},"That makes this one worth raising with your employer rather than saving up for your tax return. Many will pay it once asked, because it costs them little and is tax-free up to 5p.",[24,3505,3507],{"id":3506},"for-the-self-employed","For the self-employed",[12,3509,3510],{},"Different picture. If you are self-employed and using simplified expenses, the mileage rate you claim is for the vehicle and its running costs. There is no separate passenger element to add, because you are claiming your own costs rather than being reimbursed by an employer.",[24,3512,3514],{"id":3513},"the-conditions","The conditions",[137,3516,3517,3523,3530],{},[140,3518,3519,3520],{},"The passenger must be a ",[19,3521,3522],{},"fellow employee",[140,3524,3525,3526,3529],{},"They must also be travelling ",[19,3527,3528],{},"on business",", not being dropped somewhere convenient",[140,3531,3532],{},"It applies to the same journey, in your own vehicle",[12,3534,3535],{},"A spouse, a client or a friend does not count, however useful the lift was.",[24,3537,3539],{"id":3538},"recording-it","Recording it",[12,3541,3542],{},"The evidence is the journey plus who was in the car. Milesheet lets you add passengers to a trip, works out the payment at 5p a mile per head, and shows it alongside the mileage claim, so if your employer does pay it, the number is already there rather than being reconstructed from memory at year end.",[12,3544,3545],{},"The same passenger count also drives the fuel split for personal journeys, which is a different calculation for a different purpose, but the same question: who was actually in the car.",[24,3547,518],{"id":517},[137,3549,3550,3555,3560],{},[140,3551,3552],{},[524,3553,529],{"href":526,"rel":3554},[528],[140,3556,3557],{},[524,3558,536],{"href":534,"rel":3559},[528],[140,3561,3562],{},[524,3563,543],{"href":541,"rel":3564},[528],[566,3566],{},[12,3568,3569],{},[571,3570,1444],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":3572},[3573,3574,3575,3576,3577,3578,3579],{"id":3373,"depth":576,"text":3374},{"id":3383,"depth":576,"text":3384},{"id":3478,"depth":576,"text":3479},{"id":3506,"depth":576,"text":3507},{"id":3513,"depth":576,"text":3514},{"id":3538,"depth":576,"text":3539},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-05-14","HMRC pays extra for carrying colleagues on business journeys. It is optional for employers, invisible to most people, and adds up faster than you would think.","Journeys recorded in Milesheet, with passengers per trip",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fpassenger-payments-5p-a-mile",{"title":3361,"description":3581},"blog\u002Fpassenger-payments-5p-a-mile",[602,3588,1043],"passengers","i-YkRekwJN60pwmiJ9QYtQUZgKRHawQaVu3bFnWB1QQ",{"id":3591,"title":3592,"author":7,"body":3593,"category":587,"date":3968,"description":3969,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":3970,"imageAlt":3971,"imageCredit":3972,"imageCreditUrl":3973,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":3974,"navigation":595,"path":3975,"readTime":1462,"seo":3976,"stem":3977,"tags":3978,"__hash__":3980},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fsimplified-expenses-vs-actual-costs.md","Mileage rate or actual costs: which is worth more to you",{"type":9,"value":3594,"toc":3958},[3595,3598,3602,3608,3614,3618,3625,3628,3631,3635,3697,3701,3704,3718,3721,3735,3738,3742,3825,3829,3832,3908,3911,3914,3918,3924,3927,3929,3951,3953],[12,3596,3597],{},"If you are self-employed, you can deduct the cost of business driving one of two ways. Choosing well is worth real money, and the choice is stickier than most people realise.",[24,3599,3601],{"id":3600},"the-two-options","The two options",[12,3603,3604,3607],{},[19,3605,3606],{},"Simplified expenses (the mileage rate)."," Claim a flat 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year and 25p after that. That figure is meant to cover everything: fuel, insurance, servicing, repairs, road tax, depreciation. You claim nothing else for the vehicle.",[12,3609,3610,3613],{},[19,3611,3612],{},"Actual costs."," Work out what the vehicle really costs you across the year, then claim the business proportion of it. You also claim capital allowances on the purchase price. This means keeping receipts for everything and knowing your business-use percentage.",[24,3615,3617],{"id":3616},"the-rule-that-catches-people","The rule that catches people",[12,3619,3620,3621,3624],{},"Once you have used the mileage rate for a particular vehicle, ",[19,3622,3623],{},"you must keep using it for that vehicle"," for as long as you own it. You cannot claim 55p a mile for three years and then switch to actual costs when the car needs a new gearbox.",[12,3626,3627],{},"It also runs the other way: if you claim capital allowances on a vehicle, the mileage rate is closed to you for that vehicle.",[12,3629,3630],{},"So the decision is made once, early, and lives with the car.",[24,3632,3634],{"id":3633},"the-quick-test","The quick test",[29,3636,3637,3647],{},[32,3638,3639],{},[35,3640,3641,3644],{},[38,3642,3643],{},"Your situation",[38,3645,3646],{},"Likely better",[51,3648,3649,3659,3666,3676,3683,3690],{},[35,3650,3651,3654],{},[56,3652,3653],{},"Cheap or already-owned car, high business mileage",[56,3655,3656],{},[19,3657,3658],{},"Mileage rate",[35,3660,3661,3664],{},[56,3662,3663],{},"Economical car, moderate mileage",[56,3665,3658],{},[35,3667,3668,3671],{},[56,3669,3670],{},"Expensive vehicle, high business-use percentage",[56,3672,3673],{},[19,3674,3675],{},"Actual costs",[35,3677,3678,3681],{},[56,3679,3680],{},"Thirsty van working hard",[56,3682,3675],{},[35,3684,3685,3688],{},[56,3686,3687],{},"Low business mileage, expensive car",[56,3689,3675],{},[35,3691,3692,3695],{},[56,3693,3694],{},"You would rather not keep receipts",[56,3696,3658],{},[24,3698,3700],{"id":3699},"which-usually-wins","Which usually wins",[12,3702,3703],{},"The mileage rate tends to win when:",[137,3705,3706,3709,3712,3715],{},[140,3707,3708],{},"The car was cheap, or was already yours",[140,3710,3711],{},"You drive a lot of business miles in it",[140,3713,3714],{},"It is economical, so 55p comfortably exceeds what the mile actually cost",[140,3716,3717],{},"You would rather not keep every receipt",[12,3719,3720],{},"Actual costs tend to win when:",[137,3722,3723,3726,3729,3732],{},[140,3724,3725],{},"The vehicle was expensive, so the capital allowances are substantial",[140,3727,3728],{},"Business use is a high proportion of total use",[140,3730,3731],{},"Running costs are genuinely high: a van, something thirsty, something old and needy",[140,3733,3734],{},"Your annual business mileage is modest, so the flat rate does not add up to much",[12,3736,3737],{},"The rough test: estimate your business miles for the year, multiply by the rate, and compare it against your real annual running costs times your business-use percentage. If the answer is close, the mileage rate is usually the better deal simply because it takes an afternoon less to administer.",[24,3739,3741],{"id":3740},"the-two-methods-side-by-side","The two methods side by side",[29,3743,3744,3754],{},[32,3745,3746],{},[35,3747,3748,3750,3752],{},[38,3749],{},[38,3751,3658],{},[38,3753,3675],{},[51,3755,3756,3767,3779,3790,3802,3814],{},[35,3757,3758,3761,3764],{},[56,3759,3760],{},"What you claim",[56,3762,3763],{},"55p \u002F 25p a mile",[56,3765,3766],{},"Business share of real costs",[35,3768,3769,3772,3776],{},[56,3770,3771],{},"Capital allowances",[56,3773,3774],{},[19,3775,80],{},[56,3777,3778],{},"Yes, on the purchase",[35,3780,3781,3784,3787],{},[56,3782,3783],{},"Receipts needed",[56,3785,3786],{},"Mileage log only",[56,3788,3789],{},"Everything, all year",[35,3791,3792,3795,3797],{},[56,3793,3794],{},"Business-use % needed",[56,3796,80],{},[56,3798,3799],{},[19,3800,3801],{},"Yes, and defensible",[35,3803,3804,3807,3812],{},[56,3805,3806],{},"Can you switch later?",[56,3808,3809],{},[19,3810,3811],{},"No, not for that vehicle",[56,3813,80],{},[35,3815,3816,3819,3822],{},[56,3817,3818],{},"Best for",[56,3820,3821],{},"Cheap, economical, high mileage",[56,3823,3824],{},"Expensive, thirsty, high business use",[24,3826,3828],{"id":3827},"a-worked-comparison","A worked comparison",[12,3830,3831],{},"A van bought for £18,000, doing 8,000 business miles out of 12,000 total (67% business):",[29,3833,3834,3844],{},[32,3835,3836],{},[35,3837,3838,3840,3842],{},[38,3839],{},[38,3841,3658],{},[38,3843,3675],{},[51,3845,3846,3856,3866,3876,3893],{},[35,3847,3848,3851,3853],{},[56,3849,3850],{},"Fuel, servicing, tyres, insurance, tax (£4,200 × 67%)",[56,3852,205],{},[56,3854,3855],{},"£2,814",[35,3857,3858,3861,3863],{},[56,3859,3860],{},"Capital allowances, first year (illustrative)",[56,3862,205],{},[56,3864,3865],{},"£3,240",[35,3867,3868,3871,3874],{},[56,3869,3870],{},"8,000 miles at 55p",[56,3872,3873],{},"£4,400",[56,3875,205],{},[35,3877,3878,3883,3888],{},[56,3879,3880],{},[19,3881,3882],{},"Year one total",[56,3884,3885],{},[19,3886,3887],{},"£3,600",[56,3889,3890],{},[19,3891,3892],{},"£6,054",[35,3894,3895,3901,3905],{},[56,3896,3897,3900],{},[19,3898,3899],{},"Year four total"," (allowances largely spent)",[56,3902,3903],{},[19,3904,3887],{},[56,3906,3907],{},"~£2,900",[12,3909,3910],{},"Actual costs win early, because of the capital allowances. The mileage rate wins later, because it\ndoes not decline. Since the choice is locked per vehicle, the question is which side of that\ncrossover you expect to spend most of the vehicle's life on.",[12,3912,3913],{},"Figures are illustrative. Capital allowance treatment depends on the vehicle and your\ncircumstances, which is exactly why this one is worth an accountant's hour.",[24,3915,3917],{"id":3916},"you-still-need-the-mileage-log-either-way","You still need the mileage log either way",[12,3919,3920,3921,3923],{},"This is the part people miss. Choosing actual costs does not free you from recording journeys. It makes the record ",[571,3922,163],{}," important, because your business-use percentage has to be justified from somewhere. \"About 60%\" is not a figure HMRC can check, and neither can you.",[12,3925,3926],{},"Whichever route you take, the underlying evidence is the same: date, from, to, purpose, distance. That is what Milesheet records, and why the log is worth keeping before you have decided which method you are using.",[24,3928,518],{"id":517},[137,3930,3931,3936,3941,3946],{},[140,3932,3933],{},[524,3934,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":3935},[528],[140,3937,3938],{},[524,3939,1810],{"href":1808,"rel":3940},[528],[140,3942,3943],{},[524,3944,529],{"href":526,"rel":3945},[528],[140,3947,3948],{},[524,3949,564],{"href":562,"rel":3950},[528],[566,3952],{},[12,3954,3955],{},[571,3956,3957],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. The choice between methods has long-term consequences: worth an hour of an accountant's time before you commit.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":3959},[3960,3961,3962,3963,3964,3965,3966,3967],{"id":3600,"depth":576,"text":3601},{"id":3616,"depth":576,"text":3617},{"id":3633,"depth":576,"text":3634},{"id":3699,"depth":576,"text":3700},{"id":3740,"depth":576,"text":3741},{"id":3827,"depth":576,"text":3828},{"id":3916,"depth":576,"text":3917},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-05-07","Self-employed drivers get a choice, it is effectively permanent for that vehicle, and the right answer depends on how much the car cost and how far you drive.","\u002Fblog\u002Fsimplified-expenses-vs-actual-costs.jpg","A hand writing figures on a pad beside a calculator","CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.rawpixel.com\u002Fimage\u002F5913662\u002Faccountant-free-public-domain-cc0-photo",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fsimplified-expenses-vs-actual-costs",{"title":3592,"description":3969},"blog\u002Fsimplified-expenses-vs-actual-costs",[3979,1945,602],"self-employed","wJJWbcwydSky5jbXUa1vtQaAEYVZytXIe8BwahH1qdA",{"id":3982,"title":3983,"author":7,"body":3984,"category":587,"date":4238,"description":4239,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":4240,"imageAlt":4241,"imageCredit":3972,"imageCreditUrl":4242,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":4243,"navigation":595,"path":4244,"readTime":1462,"seo":4245,"stem":4246,"tags":4247,"__hash__":4250},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fcompany-car-or-your-own.md","Company car or your own: what you can actually claim",{"type":9,"value":3985,"toc":4229},[3986,3989,3993,4000,4003,4007,4016,4019,4033,4036,4040,4108,4115,4119,4122,4172,4175,4179,4182,4189,4193,4196,4199,4202,4204,4222,4224],[12,3987,3988],{},"There are two entirely separate systems here, they use different numbers, and mixing them up is the most expensive routine mistake on UK mileage claims.",[24,3990,3992],{"id":3991},"if-the-car-is-yours","If the car is yours",[12,3994,3995,3996,3999],{},"You use ",[19,3997,3998],{},"Approved Mileage Allowance Payments",": 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, 25p thereafter. That rate is meant to cover everything the car costs you. Fuel, insurance, servicing, depreciation, the lot.",[12,4001,4002],{},"If your employer pays you less than that, you can claim tax relief on the shortfall. If they pay more, the excess is taxable.",[24,4004,4006],{"id":4005},"if-the-car-belongs-to-the-company","If the car belongs to the company",[12,4008,4009,4010,4012,4013,4015],{},"Approved mileage rates do not apply. The company already owns the car and bears its costs, so there is nothing to reimburse you for except ",[19,4011,1838],{},". That is what ",[19,4014,389],{}," are for.",[12,4017,4018],{},"Advisory Fuel Rates are:",[137,4020,4021,4024,4030],{},[140,4022,4023],{},"Much lower: pence per mile figures that vary by engine size and fuel type",[140,4025,4026,4029],{},[19,4027,4028],{},"Revised quarterly",", so last year's figure is not this year's",[140,4031,4032],{},"Used both for reimbursing employees for business fuel, and for employees repaying the cost of private fuel",[12,4034,4035],{},"The practical consequence: someone with a company car claiming 55p a mile is claiming something they are not entitled to, usually without realising, and often for years.",[24,4037,4039],{"id":4038},"which-system-applies","Which system applies",[29,4041,4042,4054],{},[32,4043,4044],{},[35,4045,4046,4048,4051],{},[38,4047,3163],{},[38,4049,4050],{},"Rate system",[38,4052,4053],{},"Roughly",[51,4055,4056,4067,4076,4086,4097],{},[35,4057,4058,4061,4064],{},[56,4059,4060],{},"Your own car, business journey",[56,4062,4063],{},"Approved mileage rates",[56,4065,4066],{},"55p then 25p",[35,4068,4069,4072,4074],{},[56,4070,4071],{},"Your own EV, business journey",[56,4073,4063],{},[56,4075,4066],{},[35,4077,4078,4081,4083],{},[56,4079,4080],{},"Company car, business fuel",[56,4082,389],{},[56,4084,4085],{},"Pence per mile, by engine and fuel",[35,4087,4088,4091,4094],{},[56,4089,4090],{},"Company EV, business mileage",[56,4092,4093],{},"Advisory electricity rate",[56,4095,4096],{},"A single pence-per-mile figure",[35,4098,4099,4102,4105],{},[56,4100,4101],{},"Company car, private fuel paid by employer",[56,4103,4104],{},"Car fuel benefit",[56,4106,4107],{},"Fixed charge from CO2, not usage",[12,4109,4110,4111,4114],{},"Advisory rates are revised ",[19,4112,4113],{},"quarterly",". Approved mileage rates have not changed since 2011.",[24,4116,4118],{"id":4117},"the-size-of-the-error","The size of the error",[12,4120,4121],{},"Someone with a company car claiming the approved car rate instead of the advisory fuel rate, on\n10,000 business miles:",[29,4123,4124,4136],{},[32,4125,4126],{},[35,4127,4128,4130,4133],{},[38,4129],{},[38,4131,4132],{},"Per mile",[38,4134,4135],{},"10,000 miles",[51,4137,4138,4147,4158],{},[35,4139,4140,4143,4145],{},[56,4141,4142],{},"Claimed at 55p",[56,4144,21],{},[56,4146,236],{},[35,4148,4149,4152,4155],{},[56,4150,4151],{},"Advisory fuel rate (illustrative)",[56,4153,4154],{},"~14p",[56,4156,4157],{},"£1,400",[35,4159,4160,4165,4167],{},[56,4161,4162],{},[19,4163,4164],{},"Over-claimed",[56,4166],{},[56,4168,4169],{},[19,4170,4171],{},"~£3,100",[12,4173,4174],{},"Repeated across several years, that is the kind of error that gets expensive with interest attached.\nThe advisory figure varies by engine size and fuel type. Check the current table rather than using\nthe number above.",[24,4176,4178],{"id":4177},"electric-company-cars","Electric company cars",[12,4180,4181],{},"There is a separate advisory electricity rate for fully electric company cars, published alongside the fuel rates and revised on the same cycle. It is not the same as the 55p rate, for the same reason: the company owns the car.",[12,4183,4184,4185,4188],{},"An electric car that is ",[571,4186,4187],{},"yours"," is different again. Approved mileage rates apply at the normal 55p and 25p, regardless of the fact you are charging rather than filling up.",[24,4190,4192],{"id":4191},"why-the-record-still-matters","Why the record still matters",[12,4194,4195],{},"Under both systems the underlying evidence is identical: which journeys were business, when, where from and to, and how far.",[12,4197,4198],{},"The difference is only in what you multiply the miles by. Get the log right and switching between the two, a new job, a company car arriving or going away, is a change of rate rather than a change of habit.",[12,4200,4201],{},"Milesheet keeps each vehicle separate, with its own economy and running costs, so a company car and your own car do not end up in the same total.",[24,4203,518],{"id":517},[137,4205,4206,4212,4217],{},[140,4207,4208],{},[524,4209,4211],{"href":555,"rel":4210},[528],"Advisory fuel rates (HMRC)",[140,4213,4214],{},[524,4215,529],{"href":526,"rel":4216},[528],[140,4218,4219],{},[524,4220,536],{"href":534,"rel":4221},[528],[566,4223],{},[12,4225,4226],{},[571,4227,4228],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Advisory Fuel Rates change quarterly. Check the current table before you claim.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":4230},[4231,4232,4233,4234,4235,4236,4237],{"id":3991,"depth":576,"text":3992},{"id":4005,"depth":576,"text":4006},{"id":4038,"depth":576,"text":4039},{"id":4117,"depth":576,"text":4118},{"id":4177,"depth":576,"text":4178},{"id":4191,"depth":576,"text":4192},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-04-30","Advisory Fuel Rates, approved mileage rates, and the expensive habit of confusing the two.","\u002Fblog\u002Fcompany-car-or-your-own.jpg","Cars lined up outside a dealership","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.rawpixel.com\u002Fimage\u002F6111399\u002Fphoto-image-public-domain-white-free",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fcompany-car-or-your-own",{"title":3983,"description":4239},"blog\u002Fcompany-car-or-your-own",[4248,4249,602],"company car","advisory fuel rates","z1bi4rD_gnb1HY26tEMu1Jgq1HoYHVSkRUDJWOXJoBw",{"id":4252,"title":4253,"author":7,"body":4254,"category":1828,"date":4454,"description":4455,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":4456,"imageAlt":4457,"imageCredit":4458,"imageCreditUrl":4459,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":4460,"navigation":595,"path":4461,"readTime":1462,"seo":4462,"stem":4463,"tags":4464,"__hash__":4466},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-winter-mpg-drops.md","Why your MPG falls off a cliff every winter",{"type":9,"value":4255,"toc":4443},[4256,4259,4263,4266,4269,4273,4276,4279,4283,4286,4290,4293,4297,4300,4304,4384,4388,4414,4417,4421,4424,4426],[12,4257,4258],{},"If you keep a fill-up log for a year, the shape that emerges is remarkably consistent: economy peaks in summer, sags through autumn and bottoms out in January or February. A 10-20% swing between best and worst month is entirely normal. Here is where it goes.",[24,4260,4262],{"id":4261},"the-engine-spends-longer-cold","The engine spends longer cold",[12,4264,4265],{},"This is the big one, and it is mostly about short journeys. A cold engine runs a richer mixture until it reaches operating temperature, and oil is thicker so there is more drag to overcome. In summer that warm-up might take four or five minutes. In February it takes considerably longer.",[12,4267,4268],{},"If your typical drive is twenty minutes, a large fraction of it is now happening at poor efficiency. If your typical drive is two hours, the warm-up barely registers. The same weather hits a short-hop driver far harder than a motorway one.",[24,4270,4272],{"id":4271},"everything-electrical-is-on","Everything electrical is on",[12,4274,4275],{},"Heated seats, heated rear screen, heated mirrors, blowers, lights, wipers. All of it is load on the alternator, and the alternator is turned by the engine, which burns fuel to do it. Individually trivial, collectively noticeable.",[12,4277,4278],{},"Air conditioning, incidentally, usually runs in winter too. Most cars use the compressor to dry the air when demisting.",[24,4280,4282],{"id":4281},"the-air-is-denser","The air is denser",[12,4284,4285],{},"Cold air is denser, which means more aerodynamic drag at any given speed. It is a small effect around town and a real one at motorway speeds.",[24,4287,4289],{"id":4288},"tyres-lose-pressure","Tyres lose pressure",[12,4291,4292],{},"Pressure falls as temperature drops, roughly 1-2 PSI for every 10°C. A tyre set correctly in September can be meaningfully soft by December, and soft tyres cost fuel through rolling resistance. This is the one on the list that is free to fix.",[24,4294,4296],{"id":4295},"winter-fuel-is-slightly-different","Winter fuel is slightly different",[12,4298,4299],{},"Fuel blends are adjusted seasonally for cold-weather performance, and winter blends carry marginally less energy per litre. It is a small contributor, but it is real and it is not something you control.",[24,4301,4303],{"id":4302},"where-the-winter-economy-goes","Where the winter economy goes",[29,4305,4306,4319],{},[32,4307,4308],{},[35,4309,4310,4313,4316],{},[38,4311,4312],{},"Cause",[38,4314,4315],{},"Typical share of the loss",[38,4317,4318],{},"Can you do anything?",[51,4320,4321,4332,4343,4353,4365,4374],{},[35,4322,4323,4326,4329],{},[56,4324,4325],{},"Longer warm-up on short journeys",[56,4327,4328],{},"Largest",[56,4330,4331],{},"Combine trips",[35,4333,4334,4337,4340],{},[56,4335,4336],{},"Electrical load, heaters, lights, wipers",[56,4338,4339],{},"Moderate",[56,4341,4342],{},"Not really",[35,4344,4345,4348,4351],{},[56,4346,4347],{},"Denser cold air, more drag",[56,4349,4350],{},"Moderate at speed",[56,4352,80],{},[35,4354,4355,4358,4361],{},[56,4356,4357],{},"Tyre pressure dropping with temperature",[56,4359,4360],{},"Small but free to fix",[56,4362,4363],{},[19,4364,67],{},[35,4366,4367,4370,4372],{},[56,4368,4369],{},"Winter fuel blend",[56,4371,2380],{},[56,4373,80],{},[35,4375,4376,4379,4382],{},[56,4377,4378],{},"Snow, slush, standing water",[56,4380,4381],{},"Variable",[56,4383,80],{},[24,4385,4387],{"id":4386},"what-actually-helps","What actually helps",[137,4389,4390,4396,4402,4408],{},[140,4391,4392,4395],{},[19,4393,4394],{},"Check pressures monthly through winter",", not annually",[140,4397,4398,4401],{},[19,4399,4400],{},"Combine short trips"," where you can: one warm engine doing three errands beats three cold starts",[140,4403,4404,4407],{},[19,4405,4406],{},"Do not idle to warm up",". Modern engines warm faster under gentle load, and idling returns exactly zero miles per gallon",[140,4409,4410,4413],{},[19,4411,4412],{},"Take the roof box off"," when you are not using it",[12,4415,4416],{},"What does not help much: driving more slowly than the traffic, or agonising over the heater. Use the heater. You will not save enough to matter and you will be miserable.",[24,4418,4420],{"id":4419},"know-your-own-numbers","Know your own numbers",[12,4422,4423],{},"The reason to log fill-ups is that this stops being folklore and becomes your car. Milesheet works out MPG between full tanks and charts it, so the winter dip is visible as a shape rather than a suspicion, and if a tank is unusually bad for the time of year, that is worth investigating rather than shrugging at.",[24,4425,518],{"id":517},[137,4427,4428,4433,4438],{},[140,4429,4430],{},[524,4431,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":4432},[528],[140,4434,4435],{},[524,4436,2503],{"href":2501,"rel":4437},[528],[140,4439,4440],{},[524,4441,529],{"href":526,"rel":4442},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":4444},[4445,4446,4447,4448,4449,4450,4451,4452,4453],{"id":4261,"depth":576,"text":4262},{"id":4271,"depth":576,"text":4272},{"id":4281,"depth":576,"text":4282},{"id":4288,"depth":576,"text":4289},{"id":4295,"depth":576,"text":4296},{"id":4302,"depth":576,"text":4303},{"id":4386,"depth":576,"text":4387},{"id":4419,"depth":576,"text":4420},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-04-23","Cold engines, denser air, heated everything: the reasons a January tank goes less far than a July one, and how much of it you can do anything about.","\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-winter-mpg-drops.jpg","City street in falling snow","Photo by Osman Rana, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Fpublicdomain\u002Fzero\u002F1.0\u002F",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-winter-mpg-drops",{"title":4253,"description":4455},"blog\u002Fwhy-winter-mpg-drops",[1838,1839,4465],"winter","afW9tlmdW45Du98hqgvfkbh67anXzWmksrZ7lK7qbVQ",{"id":4468,"title":4469,"author":7,"body":4470,"category":587,"date":4673,"description":4674,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":4675,"imageAlt":4676,"imageCredit":4677,"imageCreditUrl":4678,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":4679,"navigation":595,"path":4680,"readTime":1462,"seo":4681,"stem":4682,"tags":4683,"__hash__":4686},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fworking-from-home-mileage.md","If you work from home, where does business travel start?",{"type":9,"value":4471,"toc":4664},[4472,4475,4479,4486,4489,4493,4504,4507,4510,4514,4517,4520,4524,4601,4605,4608,4619,4622,4626,4629,4638,4640,4657,4659],[12,4473,4474],{},"Hybrid working broke a rule that used to be simple. When everyone went to an office five days a week, home was home and the office was the permanent workplace. Now the line moves, and a lot of people are guessing.",[24,4476,4478],{"id":4477},"the-default-answer","The default answer",[12,4480,4481,4482,4485],{},"Your home is ",[19,4483,4484],{},"not"," automatically a workplace just because you work in it. HMRC's starting position is that where you live is a personal choice, and travel from it to your employer's premises is ordinary commuting, not claimable, whether you go five days a week or one.",[12,4487,4488],{},"That is the answer most hybrid workers do not want, and it is the answer that applies to most of them.",[24,4490,4492],{"id":4491},"when-home-genuinely-is-a-workplace","When home genuinely is a workplace",[12,4494,4495,4496,4499,4500,4503],{},"It can be, but the bar is meaningful. Broadly, the duties you perform at home must be ",[19,4497,4498],{},"substantive",", real work, not just admin you could have done anywhere, and there must be an ",[19,4501,4502],{},"objective requirement"," to do them at home, rather than a personal preference or an employer being relaxed about it.",[12,4505,4506],{},"\"My employer lets me work from home three days a week\" does not clear it. \"There is no office within a hundred miles and my role requires a base\" is much closer.",[12,4508,4509],{},"If home does qualify as a workplace, travel from there to another workplace is business travel, and the picture changes considerably.",[24,4511,4513],{"id":4512},"the-trap-in-the-middle","The trap in the middle",[12,4515,4516],{},"The most common hybrid mistake is treating office days as claimable because they are occasional. Frequency is not the test. A permanent workplace visited once a fortnight is still a permanent workplace, and the drive to it is still commuting.",[12,4518,4519],{},"Equally, people under-claim: a drive from home straight to a client, on a day you would otherwise have been at home, is business travel and often goes unrecorded because it did not feel like a \"work trip\".",[24,4521,4523],{"id":4522},"the-hybrid-cases-resolved","The hybrid cases, resolved",[29,4525,4526,4534],{},[32,4527,4528],{},[35,4529,4530,4532],{},[38,4531,718],{},[38,4533,721],{},[51,4535,4536,4546,4556,4565,4573,4583,4591],{},[35,4537,4538,4541],{},[56,4539,4540],{},"Home → office, 5 days a week",[56,4542,4543,4545],{},[19,4544,80],{},", commuting",[35,4547,4548,4551],{},[56,4549,4550],{},"Home → office, once a fortnight",[56,4552,4553,4555],{},[19,4554,80],{},", still a permanent workplace",[35,4557,4558,4561],{},[56,4559,4560],{},"Home → client, on a home-working day",[56,4562,4563],{},[19,4564,67],{},[35,4566,4567,4570],{},[56,4568,4569],{},"Home → office → client → home",[56,4571,4572],{},"Leg 1 no, legs 2 and 3 yes",[35,4574,4575,4578],{},[56,4576,4577],{},"Home → temporary project site",[56,4579,4580,4582],{},[19,4581,67],{},", subject to the 24-month rule",[35,4584,4585,4588],{},[56,4586,4587],{},"Home → coworking space the employer pays for",[56,4589,4590],{},"Depends whether it is a permanent workplace",[35,4592,4593,4596],{},[56,4594,4595],{},"Home → office on a day you were not required in",[56,4597,4598,4600],{},[19,4599,80],{},", frequency is not the test",[24,4602,4604],{"id":4603},"triangular-journeys","Triangular journeys",[12,4606,4607],{},"Home → office → client → home is three legs and they are not all the same.",[137,4609,4610,4613,4616],{},[140,4611,4612],{},"Home to office: commuting, not claimable",[140,4614,4615],{},"Office to client: business travel, claimable",[140,4617,4618],{},"Client to home: usually claimable, though if you detour somewhere personal on the way, that part is not",[12,4620,4621],{},"The practical answer is to record all of it and classify each leg for what it was, rather than deciding at the end of the month that the whole day was or was not \"business\".",[24,4623,4625],{"id":4624},"why-the-record-helps-here-more-than-anywhere","Why the record helps here more than anywhere",[12,4627,4628],{},"This is precisely the area where a claim gets challenged, because the facts vary person to person and month to month. A contemporaneous log, recorded on the day, not reconstructed in April, is the difference between a defensible position and an argument.",[12,4630,4631,4632,4634,4635,4637],{},"Milesheet records each leg separately, so a day like the one above arrives as three journeys you can sort individually. Tag home as ",[19,4633,937],{}," and the office as ",[19,4636,3303],{}," and the commuting legs are recognised and kept out of the claim automatically, while still sitting in your records where you can see them.",[24,4639,518],{"id":517},[137,4641,4642,4647,4652],{},[140,4643,4644],{},[524,4645,997],{"href":995,"rel":4646},[528],[140,4648,4649],{},[524,4650,1004],{"href":1002,"rel":4651},[528],[140,4653,4654],{},[524,4655,543],{"href":541,"rel":4656},[528],[566,4658],{},[12,4660,4661],{},[571,4662,4663],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Whether a home qualifies as a workplace is fact-specific: if you are relying on it, get it confirmed.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":4665},[4666,4667,4668,4669,4670,4671,4672],{"id":4477,"depth":576,"text":4478},{"id":4491,"depth":576,"text":4492},{"id":4512,"depth":576,"text":4513},{"id":4522,"depth":576,"text":4523},{"id":4603,"depth":576,"text":4604},{"id":4624,"depth":576,"text":4625},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-04-16","Whether your house counts as a workplace, when the drive to the office becomes claimable, and why hybrid working makes this harder rather than easier.","\u002Fblog\u002Fworking-from-home-mileage.jpg","A home office desk with a computer by a window","Photo by Gabriel Beaudry, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fstocksnap.io\u002Fphoto\u002Foffice-work-4ALWT6KXM0",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fworking-from-home-mileage",{"title":4469,"description":4674},"blog\u002Fworking-from-home-mileage",[602,4684,4685],"working from home","hybrid","UAHrl-ETi95O9AAXNrurbiX3CkxFrM0fh30YPJva0XU",{"id":4688,"title":4689,"author":7,"body":4690,"category":587,"date":4967,"description":4968,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":4969,"imageAlt":4970,"imageCredit":4971,"imageCreditUrl":4972,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":4973,"navigation":595,"path":4974,"readTime":1462,"seo":4975,"stem":4976,"tags":4977,"__hash__":4979},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Ftax-year-end-checklist-for-drivers.md","A tax year end checklist for anyone who drives for work",{"type":9,"value":4691,"toc":4956},[4692,4699,4703,4706,4709,4713,4720,4723,4727,4730,4733,4737,4740,4743,4747,4750,4754,4765,4769,4870,4874,4926,4928,4950,4952],[12,4693,4694,4695,4698],{},"The UK tax year ends on ",[19,4696,4697],{},"5 April",". Nothing dramatic happens on the day, but a few things get considerably harder once it has passed. Here is the short list.",[24,4700,4702],{"id":4701},"_1-sort-anything-still-unclassified","1. Sort anything still unclassified",[12,4704,4705],{},"An unclassified journey is in no total. If you have a backlog of trips you never got round to marking business or personal, that is money sitting in a queue.",[12,4707,4708],{},"Do it now while you can still remember what a Tuesday in November was for. In six months you will be guessing, and a guessed log is a weak log.",[24,4710,4712],{"id":4711},"_2-check-your-business-mileage-against-the-10000-line","2. Check your business mileage against the 10,000 line",[12,4714,4715,4716,4719],{},"The rate drops from 55p to 25p once you pass 10,000 business miles ",[19,4717,4718],{},"in the tax year",", and the counter resets on 6 April.",[12,4721,4722],{},"This matters for planning if you are close to it. Nobody is suggesting you invent journeys, but if you have discretion over when a long trip happens, and you are at 9,800 miles in late March, the same drive is worth 55p a mile in April rather than 25p now.",[24,4724,4726],{"id":4725},"_3-reconcile-your-odometer","3. Reconcile your odometer",[12,4728,4729],{},"This is the one people skip and later regret. Compare what your odometer says against what your log accounts for. If the car has covered 14,000 miles and your journeys add up to 11,000, then 3,000 miles went unrecorded, and unrecorded business miles cannot be claimed.",[12,4731,4732],{},"You will not recover all of it, but a gap between two known dates is a far better prompt for your memory than a blank year. Milesheet does this comparison for you from your fill-up odometer readings and flags stretches where the two disagree.",[24,4734,4736],{"id":4735},"_4-collect-the-out-of-pocket-costs","4. Collect the out-of-pocket costs",[12,4738,4739],{},"Parking, tolls, congestion and clean-air charges on business journeys are claimable separately from mileage. The mileage rate covers running the vehicle, not what you paid to leave it somewhere.",[12,4741,4742],{},"Receipts are easier to find in April than in January. If you photograph them onto the journey as you go, this step is already done.",[24,4744,4746],{"id":4745},"_5-export-before-you-need-it","5. Export before you need it",[12,4748,4749],{},"Produce the CSV and the claim PDF for the year while everything is fresh, and put them somewhere that is not only your phone. If you file in January, the version of events you want is the one you assembled in April.",[24,4751,4753],{"id":4752},"_6-check-how-long-to-keep-it","6. Check how long to keep it",[12,4755,4756,4757,4760,4761,4764],{},"Records need keeping for ",[19,4758,4759],{},"at least 22 months after the end of the tax year"," if you are employed, and ",[19,4762,4763],{},"five years after the 31 January filing deadline"," if you are self-employed. Deleting last year's log to tidy up is a bad trade.",[24,4766,4768],{"id":4767},"the-checklist-in-one-table","The checklist in one table",[29,4770,4771,4787],{},[32,4772,4773],{},[35,4774,4775,4778,4781,4784],{},[38,4776,4777],{},"#",[38,4779,4780],{},"Task",[38,4782,4783],{},"Why it is harder later",[38,4785,4786],{},"Time",[51,4788,4789,4802,4815,4829,4843,4857],{},[35,4790,4791,4793,4796,4799],{},[56,4792,3412],{},[56,4794,4795],{},"Sort anything unclassified",[56,4797,4798],{},"Memory fades; guesses are weak evidence",[56,4800,4801],{},"10 min",[35,4803,4804,4806,4809,4812],{},[56,4805,3425],{},[56,4807,4808],{},"Check where you are against 10,000 miles",[56,4810,4811],{},"The counter resets on 6 April",[56,4813,4814],{},"1 min",[35,4816,4817,4820,4823,4826],{},[56,4818,4819],{},"3",[56,4821,4822],{},"Reconcile the odometer against your log",[56,4824,4825],{},"A year-old gap is unrecoverable",[56,4827,4828],{},"5 min",[35,4830,4831,4834,4837,4840],{},[56,4832,4833],{},"4",[56,4835,4836],{},"Collect parking, tolls and charges",[56,4838,4839],{},"Receipts vanish",[56,4841,4842],{},"15 min",[35,4844,4845,4848,4851,4854],{},[56,4846,4847],{},"5",[56,4849,4850],{},"Export the CSV and claim PDF",[56,4852,4853],{},"You will file in January from April's data",[56,4855,4856],{},"2 min",[35,4858,4859,4862,4865,4868],{},[56,4860,4861],{},"6",[56,4863,4864],{},"Check retention periods",[56,4866,4867],{},"Deleting last year to tidy up is costly",[56,4869,205],{},[24,4871,4873],{"id":4872},"key-dates","Key dates",[29,4875,4876,4885],{},[32,4877,4878],{},[35,4879,4880,4882],{},[38,4881,923],{},[38,4883,4884],{},"What happens",[51,4886,4887,4895,4902,4910,4918],{},[35,4888,4889,4892],{},[56,4890,4891],{},"6 April",[56,4893,4894],{},"New tax year begins; 10,000-mile counter resets",[35,4896,4897,4899],{},[56,4898,4697],{},[56,4900,4901],{},"Tax year ends",[35,4903,4904,4907],{},[56,4905,4906],{},"31 October",[56,4908,4909],{},"Paper Self Assessment deadline",[35,4911,4912,4915],{},[56,4913,4914],{},"31 January",[56,4916,4917],{},"Online filing and payment deadline for the year ended the previous 5 April",[35,4919,4920,4923],{},[56,4921,4922],{},"4 years back",[56,4924,4925],{},"How far Mileage Allowance Relief can generally be backdated",[24,4927,518],{"id":517},[137,4929,4930,4935,4940,4945],{},[140,4931,4932],{},[524,4933,564],{"href":562,"rel":4934},[528],[140,4936,4937],{},[524,4938,529],{"href":526,"rel":4939},[528],[140,4941,4942],{},[524,4943,550],{"href":548,"rel":4944},[528],[140,4946,4947],{},[524,4948,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":4949},[528],[566,4951],{},[12,4953,4954],{},[571,4955,1444],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":4957},[4958,4959,4960,4961,4962,4963,4964,4965,4966],{"id":4701,"depth":576,"text":4702},{"id":4711,"depth":576,"text":4712},{"id":4725,"depth":576,"text":4726},{"id":4735,"depth":576,"text":4736},{"id":4745,"depth":576,"text":4746},{"id":4752,"depth":576,"text":4753},{"id":4767,"depth":576,"text":4768},{"id":4872,"depth":576,"text":4873},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-04-09","What to do in the fortnight before 5 April, and the three things that are much harder to fix afterwards.","\u002Fblog\u002Ftax-year-end-checklist-for-drivers.jpg","Paperwork and a pen on a desk","Photo by Ch%E2u%20Th%F4ng%20Phan, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fstocksnap.io\u002Fphoto\u002Foffice-work-UP9J4EZYNJ",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Ftax-year-end-checklist-for-drivers",{"title":4689,"description":4968},"blog\u002Ftax-year-end-checklist-for-drivers",[4978,1467,1466],"tax year","yaWtWXZTLhTuEFzAQaUplUZzMZebKmaDngZcoU3_SoU",{"id":4981,"title":4982,"author":7,"body":4983,"category":1828,"date":5248,"description":5249,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":5250,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":5251,"navigation":595,"path":5252,"readTime":1462,"seo":5253,"stem":5254,"tags":5255,"__hash__":5258},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fsplitting-petrol-with-friends.md","Working out what your passengers actually owe you",{"type":9,"value":4984,"toc":5239},[4985,4994,4997,5000,5004,5007,5012,5015,5021,5028,5032,5035,5041,5047,5050,5054,5057,5147,5151,5154,5202,5205,5209,5212,5215,5219,5222,5225,5227],[4986,4987,4988],"blockquote",{},[12,4989,4990,4993],{},[19,4991,4992],{},"Update, April 2026:"," the approved rate for cars and vans rose from 45p to 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles. The 25p rate above that, and the 5p passenger payment, are unchanged. This post describes the position as it stood when it was written.",[12,4995,4996],{},"Somebody drives, everyone says they will chip in, and then nobody knows what the number is. It gets settled with a round guess that is either generous or resentful, and often both across the same weekend.",[12,4998,4999],{},"The number is knowable. Here is how to get it.",[24,5001,5003],{"id":5002},"start-with-what-the-journey-actually-cost","Start with what the journey actually cost",[12,5005,5006],{},"The honest figure is fuel used, not fuel bought. You want:",[12,5008,5009],{},[19,5010,5011],{},"litres used = miles ÷ (mpg ÷ 4.546)",[12,5013,5014],{},"then multiply by what you paid per litre.",[12,5016,5017,5018,3123],{},"A 300-mile round trip in a car doing a real 42 mpg uses about 32.5 litres. At 145p a litre, that is roughly ",[19,5019,5020],{},"£47",[12,5022,5023,5024,5027],{},"Note ",[571,5025,5026],{},"real"," mpg. The brochure figure will understate what the trip cost, usually by 10-20%, and you are the one absorbing the difference. Two full tanks with odometer readings tell you your own number, which is the only one worth using here.",[24,5029,5031],{"id":5030},"then-decide-who-is-paying","Then decide who is paying",[12,5033,5034],{},"This is where it turns social rather than arithmetic, and there are two defensible answers.",[12,5036,5037,5040],{},[19,5038,5039],{},"Everyone shares, driver included."," Four people, £47 of fuel, £11.75 each. The logic: everyone is going to the same place and benefits equally, and the driver is already contributing the car, the wear and the driving.",[12,5042,5043,5046],{},[19,5044,5045],{},"Passengers cover the fuel."," Three passengers split £47, £15.67 each, driver pays nothing. The logic: the driver is providing the vehicle and doing the work, so the least the others can do is cover the consumable.",[12,5048,5049],{},"Neither is wrong. The mistake is not agreeing which one you are doing until somebody is being asked for money.",[24,5051,5053],{"id":5052},"what-common-trips-actually-cost","What common trips actually cost",[12,5055,5056],{},"At 145p a litre, using real economy rather than the brochure:",[29,5058,5059,5077],{},[32,5060,5061],{},[35,5062,5063,5066,5068,5071,5074],{},[38,5064,5065],{},"Trip",[38,5067,3237],{},[38,5069,5070],{},"At 35 mpg",[38,5072,5073],{},"At 45 mpg",[38,5075,5076],{},"At 55 mpg",[51,5078,5079,5096,5113,5130],{},[35,5080,5081,5084,5087,5090,5093],{},[56,5082,5083],{},"Night out, 30 mi round",[56,5085,5086],{},"30",[56,5088,5089],{},"£5.65",[56,5091,5092],{},"£4.40",[56,5094,5095],{},"£3.60",[35,5097,5098,5101,5104,5107,5110],{},[56,5099,5100],{},"Day out, 120 mi round",[56,5102,5103],{},"120",[56,5105,5106],{},"£22.60",[56,5108,5109],{},"£17.55",[56,5111,5112],{},"£14.35",[35,5114,5115,5118,5121,5124,5127],{},[56,5116,5117],{},"Weekend away, 250 mi round",[56,5119,5120],{},"250",[56,5122,5123],{},"£47.05",[56,5125,5126],{},"£36.60",[56,5128,5129],{},"£29.95",[35,5131,5132,5135,5138,5141,5144],{},[56,5133,5134],{},"Long haul, 500 mi round",[56,5136,5137],{},"500",[56,5139,5140],{},"£94.15",[56,5142,5143],{},"£73.15",[56,5145,5146],{},"£59.85",[24,5148,5150],{"id":5149},"splitting-it-four-ways","Splitting it four ways",[12,5152,5153],{},"A 250-mile round trip costing £36.60 in a 45 mpg car:",[29,5155,5156,5169],{},[32,5157,5158],{},[35,5159,5160,5163,5166],{},[38,5161,5162],{},"Method",[38,5164,5165],{},"Driver pays",[38,5167,5168],{},"Each passenger pays",[51,5170,5171,5181,5191],{},[35,5172,5173,5176,5179],{},[56,5174,5175],{},"Everyone shares equally (4 people)",[56,5177,5178],{},"£9.15",[56,5180,5178],{},[35,5182,5183,5186,5188],{},[56,5184,5185],{},"Passengers cover the fuel (3 passengers)",[56,5187,431],{},[56,5189,5190],{},"£12.20",[35,5192,5193,5196,5199],{},[56,5194,5195],{},"Passengers cover half",[56,5197,5198],{},"£18.30",[56,5200,5201],{},"£6.10",[12,5203,5204],{},"The gap between the first two is about £3 a head. It is almost never the money that causes the\nargument. It is that nobody said which one was happening.",[24,5206,5208],{"id":5207},"what-about-wear-and-tear-not-just-fuel","What about wear and tear, not just fuel?",[12,5210,5211],{},"Fuel is roughly a third to a half of the true cost of running a car once you count tyres, servicing, depreciation and insurance. That is the reasoning behind HMRC's 45p a mile, which is meant to cover the lot.",[12,5213,5214],{},"For a trip with mates, charging full whack-per-mile usually feels like running a taxi service. Fuel is the convention because it is the cost that visibly happened. Worth knowing the difference, though, before you conclude you broke even.",[24,5216,5218],{"id":5217},"keep-it-out-of-the-group-chat","Keep it out of the group chat",[12,5220,5221],{},"The thing that makes this awkward is not the money, it is the ambiguity. A figure someone worked out, showing distance and fuel price, ends the conversation. A guess invites negotiation.",[12,5223,5224],{},"Milesheet costs the journey from your own measured economy, splits it between however many were in the car, with or without the driver taking a share, and shares the drive as a PDF with the route and the numbers on it. Send that instead of a text saying \"about twenty quid?\".",[24,5226,518],{"id":517},[137,5228,5229,5234],{},[140,5230,5231],{},[524,5232,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":5233},[528],[140,5235,5236],{},[524,5237,529],{"href":526,"rel":5238},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":5240},[5241,5242,5243,5244,5245,5246,5247],{"id":5002,"depth":576,"text":5003},{"id":5030,"depth":576,"text":5031},{"id":5052,"depth":576,"text":5053},{"id":5149,"depth":576,"text":5150},{"id":5207,"depth":576,"text":5208},{"id":5217,"depth":576,"text":5218},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-04-02","Petrol money without the guesswork: what a journey really cost, how to divide it fairly, and why the driver's share is the argument.","Journeys recorded in Milesheet, business and personal alike",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fsplitting-petrol-with-friends",{"title":4982,"description":5249},"blog\u002Fsplitting-petrol-with-friends",[1838,5256,5257],"sharing","road trips","ahnRA60_AlPpEnnnaiovf_fYK6MTN8ToxoFm3B9xnBY",{"id":5260,"title":5261,"author":7,"body":5262,"category":587,"date":5451,"description":5452,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":5453,"imageAlt":5454,"imageCredit":5455,"imageCreditUrl":5456,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":5457,"navigation":595,"path":5458,"readTime":1462,"seo":5459,"stem":5460,"tags":5461,"__hash__":5463},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Felectric-cars-and-the-45p-rate.md","Electric cars and the 45p rate",{"type":9,"value":5263,"toc":5443},[5264,5270,5273,5277,5284,5287,5290,5293,5297,5300,5339,5342,5380,5383,5387,5394,5397,5400,5404,5407,5411,5414,5417,5419,5436,5438],[4986,5265,5266],{},[12,5267,5268,4993],{},[19,5269,4992],{},[12,5271,5272],{},"The rules here are simpler than people expect, but they land in a way that surprises everyone the first time.",[24,5274,5276],{"id":5275},"if-the-ev-is-yours","If the EV is yours",[12,5278,5279,5280,5283],{},"You claim the ",[19,5281,5282],{},"same approved mileage rates as any other car",": 45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, then 25p.",[12,5285,5286],{},"There is no separate electric rate, no reduction for the fact you are charging rather than filling up, and no requirement to work out what the electricity cost. The rate is the rate.",[12,5288,5289],{},"This is quietly one of the better deals in the tax system. The approved rate is designed around the running costs of an average car, including petrol at petrol prices. If you charge mostly at home on a cheap overnight tariff, your actual cost per mile can be a small fraction of 45p, and you keep the difference.",[12,5291,5292],{},"Charge exclusively on the rapid network at motorway prices and the gap narrows considerably. It can close entirely.",[24,5294,5296],{"id":5295},"what-you-keep","What you keep",[12,5298,5299],{},"An EV owned by you, doing 8,000 business miles, charged at home on an off-peak tariff:",[29,5301,5302,5310],{},[32,5303,5304],{},[35,5305,5306,5308],{},[38,5307],{},[38,5309,1739],{},[51,5311,5312,5319,5327],{},[35,5313,5314,5317],{},[56,5315,5316],{},"Approved mileage claim (8,000 × 45p)",[56,5318,3887],{},[35,5320,5321,5324],{},[56,5322,5323],{},"Actual electricity cost at ~2p a mile",[56,5325,5326],{},"£160",[35,5328,5329,5334],{},[56,5330,5331],{},[19,5332,5333],{},"Difference retained",[56,5335,5336],{},[19,5337,5338],{},"£3,440",[12,5340,5341],{},"The same car charged exclusively on motorway rapids at ~23p a mile:",[29,5343,5344,5352],{},[32,5345,5346],{},[35,5347,5348,5350],{},[38,5349],{},[38,5351,1739],{},[51,5353,5354,5361,5369],{},[35,5355,5356,5359],{},[56,5357,5358],{},"Approved mileage claim",[56,5360,3887],{},[35,5362,5363,5366],{},[56,5364,5365],{},"Actual electricity cost",[56,5367,5368],{},"£1,840",[35,5370,5371,5375],{},[56,5372,5373],{},[19,5374,5333],{},[56,5376,5377],{},[19,5378,5379],{},"£1,760",[12,5381,5382],{},"Same car, same rate, same journeys. Where you plug in changes the outcome by more than a thousand\npounds.",[24,5384,5386],{"id":5385},"if-the-ev-belongs-to-the-company","If the EV belongs to the company",[12,5388,5389,5390,5393],{},"Different system. Approved mileage rates do not apply, because the company owns the car and bears its costs. What applies instead is the ",[19,5391,5392],{},"advisory electricity rate",", published by HMRC alongside Advisory Fuel Rates and revised on the same quarterly cycle.",[12,5395,5396],{},"It is a pence-per-mile figure for reimbursing business mileage in a company EV, and it is a lot lower than 45p, for exactly the reason it should be: you are being reimbursed for electricity, not for running a car you own.",[12,5398,5399],{},"Claiming 45p for a company EV is the same error as claiming it for a company diesel. Common, and expensive if it runs for years.",[24,5401,5403],{"id":5402},"home-charging-and-company-cars","Home charging and company cars",[12,5405,5406],{},"Reimbursement for charging a company car at home has its own treatment and has changed in recent years. If that is your situation, check the current guidance rather than relying on what was true when you got the car.",[24,5408,5410],{"id":5409},"what-to-record","What to record",[12,5412,5413],{},"Identical to any other vehicle: date, from, to, purpose, distance. The rate you apply differs; the evidence does not.",[12,5415,5416],{},"If you run an EV alongside a petrol car, keep them as separate vehicles in your records. They may be on different systems entirely, and the 10,000-mile threshold is counted across all your own vehicles rather than per car, which is a detail worth getting right when two cars are in play.",[24,5418,518],{"id":517},[137,5420,5421,5426,5431],{},[140,5422,5423],{},[524,5424,529],{"href":526,"rel":5425},[528],[140,5427,5428],{},[524,5429,4211],{"href":555,"rel":5430},[528],[140,5432,5433],{},[524,5434,536],{"href":534,"rel":5435},[528],[566,5437],{},[12,5439,5440],{},[571,5441,5442],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Rates for company vehicles are revised quarterly, check the current table.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":5444},[5445,5446,5447,5448,5449,5450],{"id":5275,"depth":576,"text":5276},{"id":5295,"depth":576,"text":5296},{"id":5385,"depth":576,"text":5386},{"id":5402,"depth":576,"text":5403},{"id":5409,"depth":576,"text":5410},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-03-26","Why an EV you own claims exactly the same as a petrol car, why a company EV does not, and what that gap is worth.","\u002Fblog\u002Felectric-cars-and-the-45p-rate.jpg","Electric vehicle charging connectors","Photo by Paul Sladen, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=76903497",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Felectric-cars-and-the-45p-rate",{"title":5261,"description":5452},"blog\u002Felectric-cars-and-the-45p-rate",[5462,602,4248],"electric","rdaVBAlKZAh-H7YnR2DHxjOM8FT6tXX0teqJZu8woxc",{"id":5465,"title":5466,"author":7,"body":5467,"category":587,"date":5651,"description":5652,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":5653,"imageAlt":5654,"imageCredit":3972,"imageCreditUrl":4459,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":5655,"navigation":595,"path":5656,"readTime":1462,"seo":5657,"stem":5658,"tags":5659,"__hash__":5661},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fclaiming-mileage-in-a-van.md","Claiming mileage in a van",{"type":9,"value":5468,"toc":5642},[5469,5475,5482,5486,5489,5495,5498,5502,5505,5569,5572,5576,5587,5590,5594,5597,5600,5604,5607,5611,5614,5617,5619,5636,5638],[4986,5470,5471],{},[12,5472,5473,4993],{},[19,5474,4992],{},[12,5476,5477,5478,5481],{},"Vans sit in the same band as cars for approved mileage: ",[19,5479,5480],{},"45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles, 25p after",". There is no separate van rate, which is the first thing worth knowing and the reason the mileage rate suits some trades badly.",[24,5483,5485],{"id":5484},"why-the-flat-rate-can-work-against-a-van","Why the flat rate can work against a van",[12,5487,5488],{},"The 45p figure is built around the running costs of an average car. A van is generally not an average car. It is heavier, thirstier, harder on tyres and brakes, more expensive to insure commercially, and often working considerably harder than a family hatchback.",[12,5490,5491,5492,5494],{},"If you are running a long-wheelbase van at 28 mpg, loaded, doing 6,000 business miles a year, the flat rate may well be less than the vehicle genuinely costs you. That is the case where ",[19,5493,1949],{}," deserve a proper look. Real fuel, real servicing, real insurance, plus capital allowances on the purchase.",[12,5496,5497],{},"Against that: actual costs mean keeping every receipt and defending a business-use percentage.",[24,5499,5501],{"id":5500},"when-the-flat-rate-stops-covering-a-van","When the flat rate stops covering a van",[12,5503,5504],{},"Approved rate against real running cost per mile:",[29,5506,5507,5519],{},[32,5508,5509],{},[35,5510,5511,5513,5516],{},[38,5512,40],{},[38,5514,5515],{},"Real cost\u002Fmile",[38,5517,5518],{},"45p covers it?",[51,5520,5521,5534,5545,5557],{},[35,5522,5523,5526,5529],{},[56,5524,5525],{},"Small van, 45 mpg, bought used",[56,5527,5528],{},"~28p",[56,5530,5531],{},[19,5532,5533],{},"Comfortably",[35,5535,5536,5539,5542],{},[56,5537,5538],{},"Mid van, 38 mpg, 3 years old",[56,5540,5541],{},"~36p",[56,5543,5544],{},"Yes, with margin",[35,5546,5547,5550,5553],{},[56,5548,5549],{},"LWB van, 30 mpg, loaded, new",[56,5551,5552],{},"~48p",[56,5554,5555],{},[19,5556,80],{},[35,5558,5559,5562,5565],{},[56,5560,5561],{},"LWB van, 28 mpg, high mileage, towing",[56,5563,5564],{},"~55p",[56,5566,5567],{},[19,5568,80],{},[12,5570,5571],{},"The bottom two rows are where actual costs deserve a proper look, remembering that the choice is\nclose to permanent for that vehicle.",[24,5573,5575],{"id":5574},"where-the-mileage-rate-wins","Where the mileage rate wins",[137,5577,5578,5581,5584],{},[140,5579,5580],{},"High business mileage in a smaller, economical van",[140,5582,5583],{},"The van was bought cheaply, or is old enough that capital allowances are largely spent",[140,5585,5586],{},"You would rather have a simple, defensible number than a shoebox of receipts",[12,5588,5589],{},"The arithmetic is the same test as for a car: business miles × the rate, against real annual costs × business-use percentage.",[24,5591,5593],{"id":5592},"the-decision-is-close-to-permanent","The decision is close to permanent",[12,5595,5596],{},"Worth repeating, because it bites hardest here: once you use the mileage rate for a vehicle, you must keep using it for that vehicle. You cannot claim 45p for three years and switch to actual costs the year the clutch goes.",[12,5598,5599],{},"For a van with a hard life, that is a decision worth making deliberately at purchase rather than discovering later.",[24,5601,5603],{"id":5602},"private-use","Private use",[12,5605,5606],{},"If the van is also your personal transport, only the business proportion is claimable, and for employees a company van available for private use is a benefit in kind with its own charge. \"It's a work van\" is not, by itself, an answer to any of this.",[24,5608,5610],{"id":5609},"recording","Recording",[12,5612,5613],{},"Same evidence as any vehicle: date, from, to, purpose, distance. Trades doing many short drops in a day are the group most likely to under-record, because stopping to write down a four-mile hop between jobs is not going to happen.",[12,5615,5616],{},"That is the case for recording automatically. Milesheet logs each leg as its own journey, so a day of eleven drops arrives as eleven trips to sort rather than one vague total, and keeps each vehicle's economy and costs separate if you run more than one.",[24,5618,518],{"id":517},[137,5620,5621,5626,5631],{},[140,5622,5623],{},[524,5624,529],{"href":526,"rel":5625},[528],[140,5627,5628],{},[524,5629,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":5630},[528],[140,5632,5633],{},[524,5634,1810],{"href":1808,"rel":5635},[528],[566,5637],{},[12,5639,5640],{},[571,5641,1444],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":5643},[5644,5645,5646,5647,5648,5649,5650],{"id":5484,"depth":576,"text":5485},{"id":5500,"depth":576,"text":5501},{"id":5574,"depth":576,"text":5575},{"id":5592,"depth":576,"text":5593},{"id":5602,"depth":576,"text":5603},{"id":5609,"depth":576,"text":5610},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-03-19","Vans use the same 45p rate as cars, which is better news for some trades than others, and worse news than actual costs for a few.","\u002Fblog\u002Fclaiming-mileage-in-a-van.jpg","A white van travelling on a road",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fclaiming-mileage-in-a-van",{"title":5466,"description":5652},"blog\u002Fclaiming-mileage-in-a-van",[5660,3979,602],"vans","ql-69eHKkKkaMZQgLWjjjil76v8Q70hy623-kUSpZzE",{"id":5663,"title":5664,"author":7,"body":5665,"category":587,"date":5864,"description":5865,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":5866,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":5867,"navigation":595,"path":5868,"readTime":576,"seo":5869,"stem":5870,"tags":5871,"__hash__":5873},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fparking-fines-are-not-expenses.md","Parking fees you can claim, and fines you cannot",{"type":9,"value":5666,"toc":5856},[5667,5670,5674,5681,5684,5690,5694,5697,5700,5704,5793,5797,5800,5814,5821,5825,5828,5831,5833,5850,5852],[12,5668,5669],{},"Both come out of the same wallet on the same day. Only one of them is deductible.",[24,5671,5673],{"id":5672},"parking-fees-claimable","Parking fees: claimable",[12,5675,5676,5677,5680],{},"Parking while on a business journey is a legitimate business expense, and it is claimable ",[19,5678,5679],{},"separately from mileage",". The approved mileage rate covers the cost of running the vehicle, fuel, wear, insurance, depreciation, not what you paid to leave it somewhere.",[12,5682,5683],{},"The same goes for tolls, the Dartford Crossing, the Severn crossing when it charged, congestion charges and clean-air zone charges, provided the journey itself was business.",[12,5685,5686,5687,5689],{},"What is not claimable is parking at your ",[19,5688,623],{},". That follows the same logic as commuting: getting yourself to your normal place of work is your own affair.",[24,5691,5693],{"id":5692},"parking-fines-not-claimable","Parking fines: not claimable",[12,5695,5696],{},"Penalties are not an allowable deduction. The reasoning is straightforward. The tax system does not subsidise breaking the law, however routine it feels.",[12,5698,5699],{},"That covers parking tickets, speeding fines, and penalty charge notices, whether you were on business or not.",[24,5701,5703],{"id":5702},"claimable-or-not","Claimable or not",[29,5705,5706,5714],{},[32,5707,5708],{},[35,5709,5710,5712],{},[38,5711,1969],{},[38,5713,721],{},[51,5715,5716,5725,5732,5741,5750,5758,5766,5775,5784],{},[35,5717,5718,5721],{},[56,5719,5720],{},"Parking on a business journey",[56,5722,5723],{},[19,5724,67],{},[35,5726,5727,5730],{},[56,5728,5729],{},"Parking at your permanent workplace",[56,5731,80],{},[35,5733,5734,5737],{},[56,5735,5736],{},"Toll or crossing on a business journey",[56,5738,5739],{},[19,5740,67],{},[35,5742,5743,5746],{},[56,5744,5745],{},"Congestion or clean air charge, business journey",[56,5747,5748],{},[19,5749,67],{},[35,5751,5752,5754],{},[56,5753,2028],{},[56,5755,5756],{},[19,5757,80],{},[35,5759,5760,5762],{},[56,5761,2040],{},[56,5763,5764],{},[19,5765,80],{},[35,5767,5768,5771],{},[56,5769,5770],{},"Penalty charge notice",[56,5772,5773],{},[19,5774,80],{},[35,5776,5777,5780],{},[56,5778,5779],{},"Late payment penalty on a toll",[56,5781,5782],{},[19,5783,80],{},[35,5785,5786,5789],{},[56,5787,5788],{},"Clamping or removal fee",[56,5790,5791],{},[19,5792,80],{},[24,5794,5796],{"id":5795},"the-bit-that-differs-by-structure","The bit that differs by structure",[12,5798,5799],{},"There is a wrinkle worth knowing if you run a limited company.",[137,5801,5802,5808],{},[140,5803,5804,5807],{},[19,5805,5806],{},"Sole trader",": the fine is simply not deductible. It comes out of taxed money.",[140,5809,5810,5813],{},[19,5811,5812],{},"Limited company paying a fine issued to the driver personally",": the company has effectively settled a personal liability, which can be treated as a benefit in kind or as earnings, with the reporting that implies.",[12,5815,5816,5817,5820],{},"Fines issued to the ",[571,5818,5819],{},"company"," rather than the individual are treated differently again. Either way, \"the company paid it\" does not make it deductible.",[24,5822,5824],{"id":5823},"the-practical-bit","The practical bit",[12,5826,5827],{},"Keep the receipts for the fees and attach them to the journey they belong to. A parking receipt on its own is a scrap of thermal paper that will be illegible by August; a parking receipt attached to a recorded journey with a date, a destination and a purpose is evidence.",[12,5829,5830],{},"Milesheet lets you add parking, tolls and charges to a trip with a photo of the receipt, and carries them into your monthly statements alongside the mileage, so the claimable costs are itemised, and the fines are somewhere else entirely, which is where they belong.",[24,5832,518],{"id":517},[137,5834,5835,5840,5845],{},[140,5836,5837],{},[524,5838,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":5839},[528],[140,5841,5842],{},[524,5843,536],{"href":534,"rel":5844},[528],[140,5846,5847],{},[524,5848,543],{"href":541,"rel":5849},[528],[566,5851],{},[12,5853,5854],{},[571,5855,1444],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":5857},[5858,5859,5860,5861,5862,5863],{"id":5672,"depth":576,"text":5673},{"id":5692,"depth":576,"text":5693},{"id":5702,"depth":576,"text":5703},{"id":5795,"depth":576,"text":5796},{"id":5823,"depth":576,"text":5824},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-03-12","The line between a cost of doing business and a penalty, and the small print that catches sole traders and directors differently.","Costs attached to individual journeys in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fparking-fines-are-not-expenses",{"title":5664,"description":5865},"blog\u002Fparking-fines-are-not-expenses",[2175,5872,602],"parking","jCl7Olg-gmcZMzVYln_dt9wRluUsBrluNXHLCy2bk8E",{"id":5875,"title":5876,"author":7,"body":5877,"category":587,"date":6049,"description":6050,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":6051,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":6052,"navigation":595,"path":6053,"readTime":576,"seo":6054,"stem":6055,"tags":6056,"__hash__":6059},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fcongestion-ulez-and-clean-air-zones.md","Congestion, ULEZ and clean air zones: what you can claim",{"type":9,"value":5878,"toc":6041},[5879,5882,5886,5893,5900,5904,5907,5910,5914,5992,5995,5999,6002,6005,6009,6012,6015,6017,6034,6036],[12,5880,5881],{},"Anyone driving for work in a UK city is now paying charges that did not exist a few years ago. They add up faster than people expect, and they are claimable, but only under the same test as everything else.",[24,5883,5885],{"id":5884},"they-are-separate-from-mileage","They are separate from mileage",[12,5887,5888,5889,5892],{},"This is the part worth internalising. The approved mileage rate covers ",[19,5890,5891],{},"running the vehicle",": fuel, servicing, insurance, depreciation. It does not cover what you paid to drive it into a particular postcode.",[12,5894,5895,5896,5899],{},"So congestion charges, ULEZ charges and clean air zone charges on a business journey are claimed ",[19,5897,5898],{},"in addition"," to the mileage, not instead of it. The same is true of tolls and crossings.",[24,5901,5903],{"id":5902},"the-test-is-the-journey-not-the-charge","The test is the journey, not the charge",[12,5905,5906],{},"A charge is claimable if the journey was business travel. It is not claimable if the journey was ordinary commuting. Driving into a zone to reach your permanent workplace is your own cost, however unwelcome.",[12,5908,5909],{},"That means the same £15 charge can be claimable on Tuesday and not on Wednesday, depending on where you were going. This is exactly why a per-journey record beats a monthly total: a bank statement showing charges tells you what you paid, not which of them qualify.",[24,5911,5913],{"id":5912},"which-vehicles-pay-by-zone-class","Which vehicles pay, by zone class",[29,5915,5916,5935],{},[32,5917,5918],{},[35,5919,5920,5923,5926,5929,5932],{},[38,5921,5922],{},"Class",[38,5924,5925],{},"Buses, coaches, taxis",[38,5927,5928],{},"HGVs",[38,5930,5931],{},"Vans, minibuses",[38,5933,5934],{},"Cars",[51,5936,5937,5951,5964,5977],{},[35,5938,5939,5942,5945,5947,5949],{},[56,5940,5941],{},"A",[56,5943,5944],{},"Charged",[56,5946,205],{},[56,5948,205],{},[56,5950,205],{},[35,5952,5953,5956,5958,5960,5962],{},[56,5954,5955],{},"B",[56,5957,5944],{},[56,5959,5944],{},[56,5961,205],{},[56,5963,205],{},[35,5965,5966,5969,5971,5973,5975],{},[56,5967,5968],{},"C",[56,5970,5944],{},[56,5972,5944],{},[56,5974,5944],{},[56,5976,205],{},[35,5978,5979,5982,5984,5986,5988],{},[56,5980,5981],{},"D",[56,5983,5944],{},[56,5985,5944],{},[56,5987,5944],{},[56,5989,5990],{},[19,5991,5944],{},[12,5993,5994],{},"Compliant vehicles pay nothing in any class. The test is emissions standard, not age. Broadly Euro\n6 for diesels and Euro 4 for petrols.",[24,5996,5998],{"id":5997},"zones-vary-and-so-does-what-they-charge","Zones vary, and so does what they charge",[12,6000,6001],{},"There is no single national scheme. London's congestion charge and ULEZ are separate things with separate rules. Clean air zones in other cities differ in class, some charge vans and taxis but not private cars, some charge almost everything, some charge nothing for compliant vehicles.",[12,6003,6004],{},"The practical consequence: what you owe depends on the vehicle as much as the city. If you run more than one vehicle, the same trip can cost differently depending on which one you took, and that is worth knowing before you decide which to take.",[24,6006,6008],{"id":6007},"keep-the-evidence-attached-to-the-journey","Keep the evidence attached to the journey",[12,6010,6011],{},"Charges are usually paid online, often days later, sometimes in a batch. By the time it reaches your statement it is a line item with a reference number and no context.",[12,6013,6014],{},"The version that survives a question is the charge attached to the journey it belongs to, with the date, the destination and the reason it was business. Milesheet takes parking, tolls and charges as costs on a trip, with a photo of the receipt or confirmation, and carries them into the monthly statement alongside the mileage, so the claimable ones are itemised where the journey is.",[24,6016,518],{"id":517},[137,6018,6019,6024,6029],{},[140,6020,6021],{},[524,6022,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":6023},[528],[140,6025,6026],{},[524,6027,536],{"href":534,"rel":6028},[528],[140,6030,6031],{},[524,6032,543],{"href":541,"rel":6033},[528],[566,6035],{},[12,6037,6038],{},[571,6039,6040],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Zone rules and charges change: check the operating authority for current rates.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":6042},[6043,6044,6045,6046,6047,6048],{"id":5884,"depth":576,"text":5885},{"id":5902,"depth":576,"text":5903},{"id":5912,"depth":576,"text":5913},{"id":5997,"depth":576,"text":5998},{"id":6007,"depth":576,"text":6008},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-03-05","Daily charges are a real cost of driving for work, they are claimable separately from mileage, and the rules on which vehicle pays what keep moving.","Charges attached to the journeys they belong to in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fcongestion-ulez-and-clean-air-zones",{"title":5876,"description":6050},"blog\u002Fcongestion-ulez-and-clean-air-zones",[2175,6057,6058],"ulez","clean air zones","DGC9cgXH8ltmnRTFwr-NrdnrJKzfNnboIRkbEfdm5EE",{"id":6061,"title":6062,"author":7,"body":6063,"category":1828,"date":6338,"description":6339,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":6340,"imageAlt":6341,"imageCredit":6342,"imageCreditUrl":6343,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":6344,"navigation":595,"path":6345,"readTime":1462,"seo":6346,"stem":6347,"tags":6348,"__hash__":6350},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fbusiness-use-car-insurance.md","Does your insurance actually cover driving for work?",{"type":9,"value":6064,"toc":6329},[6065,6075,6078,6082,6114,6121,6125,6205,6208,6212,6215,6218,6222,6288,6292,6295,6298,6302,6305,6308,6310,6322,6324],[12,6066,6067,6068,6071,6072,6074],{},"Most private policies are written as ",[19,6069,6070],{},"social, domestic and pleasure",", often with ",[19,6073,1044],{}," added. Neither of those covers driving to a client, a site, or a second office as part of your job.",[12,6076,6077],{},"If you are claiming mileage for business journeys, it is worth checking that the policy covering those journeys knows about them.",[24,6079,6081],{"id":6080},"the-classes-roughly","The classes, roughly",[137,6083,6084,6090,6096,6102,6108],{},[140,6085,6086,6089],{},[19,6087,6088],{},"SD&P",": personal use only. Not commuting, not work.",[140,6091,6092,6095],{},[19,6093,6094],{},"SD&P + commuting",": adds travel between home and one permanent place of work.",[140,6097,6098,6101],{},[19,6099,6100],{},"Class 1 business use",": adds driving in connection with your work, for you and usually a named spouse.",[140,6103,6104,6107],{},[19,6105,6106],{},"Class 2",": as class 1, but with additional named drivers doing the same.",[140,6109,6110,6113],{},[19,6111,6112],{},"Class 3 \u002F commercial travelling",": for people whose job is substantially driving: sales rounds, deliveries, mobile trades.",[12,6115,6116,6117,6120],{},"The gap that catches people is between commuting and class 1. Driving to ",[571,6118,6119],{},"your"," office is commuting. Driving from your office to a customer is business use, and it is a different class.",[24,6122,6124],{"id":6123},"which-class-covers-what","Which class covers what",[29,6126,6127,6139],{},[32,6128,6129],{},[35,6130,6131,6133,6136],{},[38,6132,5922],{},[38,6134,6135],{},"Covers",[38,6137,6138],{},"Does not cover",[51,6140,6141,6152,6162,6175,6186,6195],{},[35,6142,6143,6146,6149],{},[56,6144,6145],{},"Social, domestic & pleasure",[56,6147,6148],{},"Personal use",[56,6150,6151],{},"Commuting, any work driving",[35,6153,6154,6156,6159],{},[56,6155,6094],{},[56,6157,6158],{},"Above, plus home to one permanent workplace",[56,6160,6161],{},"Driving to clients or sites",[35,6163,6164,6169,6172],{},[56,6165,6166],{},[19,6167,6168],{},"Class 1 business",[56,6170,6171],{},"Above, plus driving in connection with your work",[56,6173,6174],{},"Carrying goods for sale, other drivers",[35,6176,6177,6180,6183],{},[56,6178,6179],{},"Class 2 business",[56,6181,6182],{},"Class 1 for additional named drivers",[56,6184,6185],{},"Commercial travelling",[35,6187,6188,6190,6193],{},[56,6189,6112],{},[56,6191,6192],{},"Driving as the substance of the job",[56,6194,205],{},[35,6196,6197,6200,6203],{},[56,6198,6199],{},"Goods \u002F commercial policy",[56,6201,6202],{},"Carrying tools, stock, goods",[56,6204,205],{},[12,6206,6207],{},"The gap most people sit in is between the second and third rows.",[24,6209,6211],{"id":6210},"why-it-matters-more-than-the-premium","Why it matters more than the premium",[12,6213,6214],{},"Class 1 usually costs very little to add, often a few pounds a year, sometimes nothing. Driving without it does not usually mean a slightly reduced payout. It can mean the claim is declined and, because using a vehicle without valid insurance is an offence in itself, consequences beyond the accident.",[12,6216,6217],{},"This is a rare case where the cheap answer and the safe answer are the same answer.",[24,6219,6221],{"id":6220},"what-to-declare","What to declare",[29,6223,6224,6234],{},[32,6225,6226],{},[35,6227,6228,6231],{},[38,6229,6230],{},"If you",[38,6232,6233],{},"You probably need",[51,6235,6236,6243,6252,6259,6269,6277],{},[35,6237,6238,6241],{},[56,6239,6240],{},"Drive only to one fixed workplace",[56,6242,6094],{},[35,6244,6245,6248],{},[56,6246,6247],{},"Visit clients or sites occasionally",[56,6249,6250],{},[19,6251,6168],{},[35,6253,6254,6257],{},[56,6255,6256],{},"Drive between sites as the substance of the job",[56,6258,6112],{},[35,6260,6261,6264],{},[56,6262,6263],{},"Carry tools, stock or goods for sale",[56,6265,6266],{},[19,6267,6268],{},"Commercial policy",[35,6270,6271,6274],{},[56,6272,6273],{},"Carry colleagues who chip in for fuel",[56,6275,6276],{},"Usually fine on class 1",[35,6278,6279,6282],{},[56,6280,6281],{},"Carry passengers for a fare",[56,6283,6284,6287],{},[19,6285,6286],{},"Hire and reward",", a different policy entirely",[24,6289,6291],{"id":6290},"the-self-employed-wrinkle","The self-employed wrinkle",[12,6293,6294],{},"If you are self-employed, the line between \"my car\" and \"the business's car\" is often blurred in practice and completely sharp in an insurer's wording. Carrying tools, stock or goods for sale usually needs commercial cover rather than class 1, whatever the mileage looks like.",[12,6296,6297],{},"Carrying a passenger for payment, even informally, even a colleague chipping in for petrol, can also fall outside a private policy. Splitting fuel costs between friends on a shared trip is generally fine; charging a fare is not.",[24,6299,6301],{"id":6300},"the-connection-to-your-mileage-log","The connection to your mileage log",[12,6303,6304],{},"If you are recording business journeys carefully enough to claim them, you already have the evidence of how much business driving you actually do. That is the number your insurer is asking about when they ask how you use the car, and a real figure is a better answer than a shrug.",[12,6306,6307],{},"It also tends to be smaller than people fear. Many drivers who assume they need commercial cover find that class 1 is the honest description once they see the split between business and personal in front of them.",[24,6309,518],{"id":517},[137,6311,6312,6317],{},[140,6313,6314],{},[524,6315,543],{"href":541,"rel":6316},[528],[140,6318,6319],{},[524,6320,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":6321},[528],[566,6323],{},[12,6325,6326],{},[571,6327,6328],{},"General information, not insurance or tax advice. Cover classes vary by insurer: check your own certificate and schedule.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":6330},[6331,6332,6333,6334,6335,6336,6337],{"id":6080,"depth":576,"text":6081},{"id":6123,"depth":576,"text":6124},{"id":6210,"depth":576,"text":6211},{"id":6220,"depth":576,"text":6221},{"id":6290,"depth":576,"text":6291},{"id":6300,"depth":576,"text":6301},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-02-26","Social, domestic and pleasure plus commuting is not business use. The distinction is small in wording and total in effect.","\u002Fblog\u002Fbusiness-use-car-insurance.jpg","A car badly damaged in a collision at the roadside","Photo by National Transportation Safety Board, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.rawpixel.com\u002Fimage\u002F4042566\u002Fphoto-image-car-public-domain",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fbusiness-use-car-insurance",{"title":6062,"description":6339},"blog\u002Fbusiness-use-car-insurance",[6349,1043,3979],"insurance","ozTWgj6QmHVVlz0nPAOJ8t9rkEc7pFn80hI1tw4B6A8",{"id":6352,"title":6353,"author":7,"body":6354,"category":587,"date":6631,"description":6632,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":6633,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":6634,"navigation":595,"path":6635,"readTime":1462,"seo":6636,"stem":6637,"tags":6638,"__hash__":6640},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-triggers-a-mileage-query.md","What makes HMRC look twice at a mileage claim",{"type":9,"value":6355,"toc":6619},[6356,6359,6363,6366,6369,6373,6376,6379,6383,6386,6390,6397,6401,6404,6408,6504,6508,6511,6565,6569,6572,6579,6583,6586,6589,6591,6613,6615],[12,6357,6358],{},"Most mileage claims are never looked at. The ones that are tend to share a handful of characteristics, and none of them are about the amount being large.",[24,6360,6362],{"id":6361},"round-numbers-everywhere","Round numbers everywhere",[12,6364,6365],{},"Real driving does not produce round numbers. A month of genuine journeys totals 847 miles, not 850. A claim made of tidy fifties and hundreds looks estimated because it usually is.",[12,6367,6368],{},"This is the single most common tell, and it is entirely avoidable: record the distance you actually drove.",[24,6370,6372],{"id":6371},"the-same-figure-every-month","The same figure every month",[12,6374,6375],{},"A claim of exactly 500 miles in twelve consecutive months describes a standing order, not a working year. Real mileage moves with holidays, weather, illness, quiet Augusts and busy Novembers.",[12,6377,6378],{},"If your driving genuinely is that regular, the record will show it, but it will show it as 512, 486, 503, not 500 twelve times.",[24,6380,6382],{"id":6381},"days-that-could-not-have-happened","Days that could not have happened",[12,6384,6385],{},"Claims that require being in two places at once, or covering 400 miles in a working day that also contained six hours of meetings, do not survive contact with a calendar. Reconstructing a year from memory produces these without anyone intending to mislead.",[24,6387,6389],{"id":6388},"no-evidence-of-the-journeys-purpose","No evidence of the journey's purpose",[12,6391,6392,6393,6396],{},"The distance is only half of it. HMRC's expectation is that you can say ",[19,6394,6395],{},"why"," a journey was business, which client, which site, which job. \"Business mileage: 340\" is a number, not a record.",[24,6398,6400],{"id":6399},"commuting-mixed-in","Commuting mixed in",[12,6402,6403],{},"Home to a permanent workplace is not claimable, and a claim that quietly includes it is the most common substantive error rather than a presentational one. If a pattern of identical journeys on identical weekdays runs through the log, it invites exactly the question you do not want.",[24,6405,6407],{"id":6406},"the-patterns-ranked","The patterns, ranked",[29,6409,6410,6423],{},[32,6411,6412],{},[35,6413,6414,6417,6420],{},[38,6415,6416],{},"Pattern",[38,6418,6419],{},"How obvious",[38,6421,6422],{},"Why it draws attention",[51,6424,6425,6434,6444,6454,6464,6473,6484,6494],{},[35,6426,6427,6429,6431],{},[56,6428,1376],{},[56,6430,1788],{},[56,6432,6433],{},"Real driving is not round",[35,6435,6436,6439,6441],{},[56,6437,6438],{},"Identical total every month",[56,6440,1788],{},[56,6442,6443],{},"Describes a standing order, not a year",[35,6445,6446,6449,6451],{},[56,6447,6448],{},"Impossible days",[56,6450,1788],{},[56,6452,6453],{},"Fails against a calendar",[35,6455,6456,6458,6461],{},[56,6457,1400],{},[56,6459,6460],{},"High",[56,6462,6463],{},"A repeating weekday pattern is visible",[35,6465,6466,6468,6470],{},[56,6467,1392],{},[56,6469,6460],{},[56,6471,6472],{},"A distance is not a record",[35,6474,6475,6478,6481],{},[56,6476,6477],{},"Claim jumps sharply year on year",[56,6479,6480],{},"Medium",[56,6482,6483],{},"Invites \"what changed?\"",[35,6485,6486,6489,6491],{},[56,6487,6488],{},"Mileage inconsistent with fuel receipts",[56,6490,6480],{},[56,6492,6493],{},"Two of your own records disagree",[35,6495,6496,6499,6501],{},[56,6497,6498],{},"Claim inconsistent with the odometer",[56,6500,6480],{},[56,6502,6503],{},"Easy to check at MOT",[24,6505,6507],{"id":6506},"what-your-claim-is-checked-against","What your claim is checked against",[12,6509,6510],{},"Most of these are your own documents, which is why a consistent record is so much stronger than a\nplausible one:",[29,6512,6513,6523],{},[32,6514,6515],{},[35,6516,6517,6520],{},[38,6518,6519],{},"Cross-check",[38,6521,6522],{},"What it reveals",[51,6524,6525,6533,6541,6549,6557],{},[35,6526,6527,6530],{},[56,6528,6529],{},"Your calendar",[56,6531,6532],{},"Whether the meetings existed",[35,6534,6535,6538],{},[56,6536,6537],{},"Your invoices",[56,6539,6540],{},"Whether the client was visited that week",[35,6542,6543,6546],{},[56,6544,6545],{},"Fuel receipts",[56,6547,6548],{},"Whether enough fuel was bought to cover the miles",[35,6550,6551,6554],{},[56,6552,6553],{},"MOT odometer history",[56,6555,6556],{},"Whether the car covered the distance at all",[35,6558,6559,6562],{},[56,6560,6561],{},"Employer's reimbursement records",[56,6563,6564],{},"Whether the figures agree",[24,6566,6568],{"id":6567},"what-a-good-record-looks-like","What a good record looks like",[12,6570,6571],{},"For each journey: the date, where you went from and to, why it was business, and how far. Kept as you go, not assembled afterwards. Retained for at least 22 months after the end of the tax year if you are employed, or five years after the filing deadline if self-employed.",[12,6573,6574,6575,6578],{},"The reason contemporaneous records matter is not bureaucratic. It is that they are ",[571,6576,6577],{},"checkable",", against your calendar, your invoices, your fuel receipts and your odometer, and a claim that agrees with four other sources is not a claim anyone spends long on.",[24,6580,6582],{"id":6581},"the-quiet-advantage-of-recording-automatically","The quiet advantage of recording automatically",[12,6584,6585],{},"A log that writes itself as you drive is contemporaneous by definition. It produces the awkward, specific numbers real driving makes, it carries the route rather than just the total, and it cannot accidentally include the school run because nobody was reconstructing anything in April.",[12,6587,6588],{},"Milesheet records each journey as it happens, keeps commuting out of the claim once home and workplace are tagged, and exports the year as a CSV or PDF that shows the individual journeys rather than a monthly figure.",[24,6590,518],{"id":517},[137,6592,6593,6598,6603,6608],{},[140,6594,6595],{},[524,6596,564],{"href":562,"rel":6597},[528],[140,6599,6600],{},[524,6601,997],{"href":995,"rel":6602},[528],[140,6604,6605],{},[524,6606,543],{"href":541,"rel":6607},[528],[140,6609,6610],{},[524,6611,529],{"href":526,"rel":6612},[528],[566,6614],{},[12,6616,6617],{},[571,6618,1444],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":6620},[6621,6622,6623,6624,6625,6626,6627,6628,6629,6630],{"id":6361,"depth":576,"text":6362},{"id":6371,"depth":576,"text":6372},{"id":6381,"depth":576,"text":6382},{"id":6388,"depth":576,"text":6389},{"id":6399,"depth":576,"text":6400},{"id":6406,"depth":576,"text":6407},{"id":6506,"depth":576,"text":6507},{"id":6567,"depth":576,"text":6568},{"id":6581,"depth":576,"text":6582},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-02-19","Round numbers, impossible days, claims that never change, and the other patterns that invite a question you would rather not answer.","A month of journeys in Milesheet, each with its own date, route and distance",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-triggers-a-mileage-query",{"title":6353,"description":6632},"blog\u002Fwhat-triggers-a-mileage-query",[602,1466,6639],"compliance","rPxxkiW3K73Zu1GegpC2ulRWfZPStVB8ylzxJM-BT0U",{"id":6642,"title":6643,"author":7,"body":6644,"category":587,"date":6824,"description":6825,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":6826,"imageAlt":6827,"imageCredit":6828,"imageCreditUrl":6829,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":6830,"navigation":595,"path":6831,"readTime":1462,"seo":6832,"stem":6833,"tags":6834,"__hash__":6837},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdirectors-claiming-mileage.md","Claiming mileage as a company director",{"type":9,"value":6645,"toc":6815},[6646,6652,6655,6658,6662,6665,6668,6672,6675,6747,6750,6754,6757,6760,6764,6767,6770,6774,6777,6781,6784,6786,6808,6810],[4986,6647,6648],{},[12,6649,6650,4993],{},[19,6651,4992],{},[12,6653,6654],{},"If you run a limited company and drive your own car on its business, the company can pay you the approved mileage rates, 45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, then 25p, and that payment is tax-free in your hands and deductible for the company.",[12,6656,6657],{},"It is one of the more efficient ways to take money out of a company. It is also one of the easiest to do sloppily.",[24,6659,6661],{"id":6660},"you-are-an-employee-here","You are an employee here",[12,6663,6664],{},"A director is an office holder, and for these purposes the same rules apply as to any employee. The car is yours, the company reimburses you for business journeys, and the approved rates are what it can pay without creating a tax charge.",[12,6666,6667],{},"Pay more than the approved rate and the excess is earnings, reportable and taxable. Pay less and you can claim relief on the shortfall personally, exactly as an employee would.",[24,6669,6671],{"id":6670},"what-it-is-worth-to-take-mileage-rather-than-salary","What it is worth to take mileage rather than salary",[12,6673,6674],{},"Paying yourself £4,500 of approved mileage instead of the equivalent gross salary:",[29,6676,6677,6689],{},[32,6678,6679],{},[35,6680,6681,6683,6686],{},[38,6682],{},[38,6684,6685],{},"Via salary",[38,6687,6688],{},"Via approved mileage",[51,6690,6691,6701,6714,6725,6734],{},[35,6692,6693,6696,6699],{},[56,6694,6695],{},"Cost to the company",[56,6697,6698],{},"£4,500 + employer NIC",[56,6700,2954],{},[35,6702,6703,6706,6709],{},[56,6704,6705],{},"Income tax on you",[56,6707,6708],{},"Yes, at your marginal rate",[56,6710,6711],{},[19,6712,6713],{},"None",[35,6715,6716,6719,6721],{},[56,6717,6718],{},"Employee NIC",[56,6720,67],{},[56,6722,6723],{},[19,6724,6713],{},[35,6726,6727,6730,6732],{},[56,6728,6729],{},"Corporation tax deduction for the company",[56,6731,67],{},[56,6733,67],{},[35,6735,6736,6739,6742],{},[56,6737,6738],{},"Paperwork required",[56,6740,6741],{},"Payroll",[56,6743,6744],{},[19,6745,6746],{},"A mileage log",[12,6748,6749],{},"That is why it is efficient, and equally why the log matters: the whole benefit rests on the\npayment being a reimbursement of a real cost rather than disguised remuneration.",[24,6751,6753],{"id":6752},"the-record-is-the-whole-thing","The record is the whole thing",[12,6755,6756],{},"Because you are both sides of this transaction, nobody else is checking your figures, which is precisely why the record needs to stand on its own.",[12,6758,6759],{},"What is expected is a journey-level log: date, from, to, purpose, distance. A monthly transfer from the company account described as \"mileage\" with no underlying detail is not a record, it is a payment. If the detail is missing, the payment starts to look like undeclared salary, and that is an expensive reclassification.",[24,6761,6763],{"id":6762},"commuting-is-still-commuting","Commuting is still commuting",[12,6765,6766],{},"Owning the company does not change the rule. Travel from home to your permanent workplace is ordinary commuting whether the workplace belongs to your employer or to you.",[12,6768,6769],{},"If you genuinely work from home and the company has no other premises, the position is different, but \"the company is registered at my house\" does not by itself make every drive claimable. This is worth getting right, because it applies to a lot of journeys repeated a lot of times.",[24,6771,6773],{"id":6772},"company-car-versus-your-own","Company car versus your own",[12,6775,6776],{},"If instead the company buys the car, none of the above applies: the vehicle is a benefit in kind with its own charge, and fuel is handled through Advisory Fuel Rates rather than approved mileage rates. Which is better depends on the car's value, its emissions and your mileage, and it is one of the few genuinely worthwhile conversations to have with an accountant.",[24,6778,6780],{"id":6779},"keeping-it-simple","Keeping it simple",[12,6782,6783],{},"Record every journey as it happens, mark it business or personal, tag home and any permanent workplace so commuting is excluded automatically, and export the year as a CSV. Then the mileage the company paid you and the mileage you can evidence are the same number, which is the whole point.",[24,6785,518],{"id":517},[137,6787,6788,6793,6798,6803],{},[140,6789,6790],{},[524,6791,536],{"href":534,"rel":6792},[528],[140,6794,6795],{},[524,6796,529],{"href":526,"rel":6797},[528],[140,6799,6800],{},[524,6801,4211],{"href":555,"rel":6802},[528],[140,6804,6805],{},[524,6806,997],{"href":995,"rel":6807},[528],[566,6809],{},[12,6811,6812],{},[571,6813,6814],{},"General information, not tax advice. Director remuneration has knock-on effects: take proper advice on the whole picture.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":6816},[6817,6818,6819,6820,6821,6822,6823],{"id":6660,"depth":576,"text":6661},{"id":6670,"depth":576,"text":6671},{"id":6752,"depth":576,"text":6753},{"id":6762,"depth":576,"text":6763},{"id":6772,"depth":576,"text":6773},{"id":6779,"depth":576,"text":6780},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-02-12","Your own car, your own company, and the paperwork that keeps 45p a mile out of the taxman's definition of salary.","\u002Fblog\u002Fdirectors-claiming-mileage.jpg","People meeting around a table in an office","Photo by Senator Stabenow, CC BY","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=70841172",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdirectors-claiming-mileage",{"title":6643,"description":6825},"blog\u002Fdirectors-claiming-mileage",[6835,6836,602],"limited company","directors","iJN7On5iu95iU4bK9WmTVsMEA6XXbNQQcnBgI9BQMJA",{"id":6839,"title":6840,"author":7,"body":6841,"category":1828,"date":7095,"description":7096,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1831,"imageAlt":7097,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":7098,"navigation":595,"path":7099,"readTime":1462,"seo":7100,"stem":7101,"tags":7102,"__hash__":7104},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-speed-costs-in-fuel.md","What 80 costs you compared with 70",{"type":9,"value":6842,"toc":7087},[6843,6846,6850,6860,6863,6866,6870,6873,6895,6898,6901,6905,6908,7027,7030,7034,7037,7063,7067,7070,7073,7075],[12,6844,6845],{},"Most cars are at their most efficient somewhere between 45 and 60 mph. Above that, economy falls away, and it falls away faster the faster you go.",[24,6847,6849],{"id":6848},"why-speed-costs-more-than-it-looks","Why speed costs more than it looks",[12,6851,6852,6853,6856,6857,3123],{},"At motorway speeds, most of the engine's work is pushing air out of the way. Aerodynamic drag rises with the ",[19,6854,6855],{},"square"," of speed, and the power needed to overcome it rises with the ",[19,6858,6859],{},"cube",[12,6861,6862],{},"The practical upshot: going from 60 to 70 costs you something. Going from 70 to 80 costs you noticeably more than that, even though it is the same ten miles an hour.",[12,6864,6865],{},"Typical real-world figures put the drop at roughly 10-15% from 70 to 80, on top of a similar drop from 60 to 70. A car returning 50 mpg at a steady 60 might see low 40s at 70 and high 30s at 80.",[24,6867,6869],{"id":6868},"what-it-is-worth-on-a-real-trip","What it is worth on a real trip",[12,6871,6872],{},"Take a 200-mile motorway run in a car doing 45 mpg at 70.",[137,6874,6875,6885],{},[140,6876,6877,6880,6881,6884],{},[19,6878,6879],{},"At 70 mph",": about 20 litres. At 145p, roughly ",[19,6882,6883],{},"£29",". Journey time around 2h 51m.",[140,6886,6887,6890,6891,6894],{},[19,6888,6889],{},"At 80 mph",": maybe 40 mpg, so about 22.7 litres, roughly ",[19,6892,6893],{},"£33",". Journey time around 2h 30m.",[12,6896,6897],{},"So the faster run costs about £4 more and saves about twenty minutes, before considering that the twenty minutes rarely survives contact with roadworks, and that the faster you were going the more the licence costs if it goes wrong.",[12,6899,6900],{},"Whether £4 for twenty minutes is a good trade is a personal question. The point is that it is a knowable one.",[24,6902,6904],{"id":6903},"the-numbers-on-a-200-mile-run","The numbers on a 200-mile run",[12,6906,6907],{},"A car returning 45 mpg at a steady 70, fuel at 145p:",[29,6909,6910,6935],{},[32,6911,6912],{},[35,6913,6914,6917,6920,6923,6926,6929,6932],{},[38,6915,6916],{},"Speed",[38,6918,6919],{},"Approx. MPG",[38,6921,6922],{},"Litres",[38,6924,6925],{},"Fuel cost",[38,6927,6928],{},"Journey time",[38,6930,6931],{},"Time saved",[38,6933,6934],{},"Cost per minute saved",[51,6936,6937,6958,6981,7004],{},[35,6938,6939,6942,6945,6948,6951,6954,6956],{},[56,6940,6941],{},"60 mph",[56,6943,6944],{},"52",[56,6946,6947],{},"17.5",[56,6949,6950],{},"£25.35",[56,6952,6953],{},"3h 20m",[56,6955,205],{},[56,6957,205],{},[35,6959,6960,6963,6966,6969,6972,6975,6978],{},[56,6961,6962],{},"70 mph",[56,6964,6965],{},"45",[56,6967,6968],{},"20.2",[56,6970,6971],{},"£29.30",[56,6973,6974],{},"2h 51m",[56,6976,6977],{},"29 min",[56,6979,6980],{},"14p",[35,6982,6983,6986,6989,6992,6995,6998,7001],{},[56,6984,6985],{},"80 mph",[56,6987,6988],{},"40",[56,6990,6991],{},"22.7",[56,6993,6994],{},"£32.95",[56,6996,6997],{},"2h 30m",[56,6999,7000],{},"50 min",[56,7002,7003],{},"15p",[35,7005,7006,7009,7012,7015,7018,7021,7024],{},[56,7007,7008],{},"85 mph",[56,7010,7011],{},"37",[56,7013,7014],{},"24.6",[56,7016,7017],{},"£35.60",[56,7019,7020],{},"2h 21m",[56,7022,7023],{},"59 min",[56,7025,7026],{},"17p",[12,7028,7029],{},"Two things fall out of this. The cost per minute saved is remarkably flat, so the \"is it worth it\"\nquestion is really about whether the minutes matter to you. And the totals are small enough that\nspeed is rarely where a fuel problem actually lives.",[24,7031,7033],{"id":7032},"the-things-that-cost-more-than-speed","The things that cost more than speed",[12,7035,7036],{},"If you actually want to move the needle, these are bigger levers than the last ten miles an hour:",[137,7038,7039,7045,7051,7057],{},[140,7040,7041,7044],{},[19,7042,7043],{},"A roof box or bars left on all year."," A box can cost 10-20% at motorway speed. Bars alone are not free either. Take them off.",[140,7046,7047,7050],{},[19,7048,7049],{},"Under-inflated tyres."," Rolling resistance rises as pressure falls, and pressure falls in winter whether you check it or not.",[140,7052,7053,7056],{},[19,7054,7055],{},"Carrying weight you do not need."," Less dramatic than the internet claims, but real if the boot is a permanent storeroom.",[140,7058,7059,7062],{},[19,7060,7061],{},"Stop-start town driving."," No motorway speed is as expensive per mile as accelerating away from lights repeatedly.",[24,7064,7066],{"id":7065},"measure-rather-than-guess","Measure rather than guess",[12,7068,7069],{},"All of the above is averages, and your car is not an average. The only way to know what any of it is worth to you is to log fill-ups with the odometer and watch what your MPG actually does across tanks.",[12,7071,7072],{},"Milesheet works out real economy between full tanks and charts it, so a change of habit, or a roof box coming off, shows up as a shape rather than a feeling.",[24,7074,518],{"id":517},[137,7076,7077,7082],{},[140,7078,7079],{},[524,7080,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":7081},[528],[140,7083,7084],{},[524,7085,2503],{"href":2501,"rel":7086},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":7088},[7089,7090,7091,7092,7093,7094],{"id":6848,"depth":576,"text":6849},{"id":6868,"depth":576,"text":6869},{"id":6903,"depth":576,"text":6904},{"id":7032,"depth":576,"text":7033},{"id":7065,"depth":576,"text":7066},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-02-05","Drag rises with the square of speed, so the last ten miles an hour are the expensive ones. The arithmetic, and what it is worth on a real journey.","MPG across recent tanks in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-speed-costs-in-fuel",{"title":6840,"description":7096},"blog\u002Fwhat-speed-costs-in-fuel",[1838,1839,7103],"motorway","4rj7XumjnFUAUYrXHn41gMzRc9UIm0xUQIaAGru5bis",{"id":7106,"title":7107,"author":7,"body":7108,"category":1828,"date":7392,"description":7393,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1831,"imageAlt":7394,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":7395,"navigation":595,"path":7396,"readTime":1462,"seo":7397,"stem":7398,"tags":7399,"__hash__":7402},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdepreciation-the-cost-nobody-counts.md","Depreciation: the biggest cost of your car, and the one nobody counts",{"type":9,"value":7109,"toc":7384},[7110,7116,7119,7122,7126,7129,7158,7161,7165,7168,7268,7271,7317,7320,7324,7327,7334,7337,7341,7344,7347,7351,7354,7357,7360,7362],[4986,7111,7112],{},[12,7113,7114,4993],{},[19,7115,4992],{},[12,7117,7118],{},"Ask someone what their car costs and they will tell you what they spend on fuel. It is the visible cost, because you hand money over for it in small, memorable amounts.",[12,7120,7121],{},"For most drivers it is not the biggest one.",[24,7123,7125],{"id":7124},"the-shape-of-the-real-bill","The shape of the real bill",[12,7127,7128],{},"Across a typical year, the costs stack up roughly like this:",[137,7130,7131,7137,7143,7148,7153],{},[140,7132,7133,7136],{},[19,7134,7135],{},"Depreciation",": usually the largest single item on a car under about eight years old",[140,7138,7139,7142],{},[19,7140,7141],{},"Fuel",": the one you notice",[140,7144,7145],{},[19,7146,7147],{},"Insurance",[140,7149,7150],{},[19,7151,7152],{},"Servicing, tyres, MOT and repairs",[140,7154,7155],{},[19,7156,7157],{},"Road tax",[12,7159,7160],{},"A three-year-old car losing £1,200 a year in value, while burning £1,400 of fuel, is not unusual. On a newer or more expensive car, depreciation can dwarf everything else. A £30,000 car shedding 40% in three years is losing about £4,000 a year, roughly £77 a week, while you sleep.",[24,7162,7164],{"id":7163},"where-the-money-actually-goes","Where the money actually goes",[12,7166,7167],{},"A typical three-year-old family car, 10,000 miles a year:",[29,7169,7170,7183],{},[32,7171,7172],{},[35,7173,7174,7176,7178,7180],{},[38,7175,1969],{},[38,7177,2280],{},[38,7179,4132],{},[38,7181,7182],{},"Share",[51,7184,7185,7197,7210,7222,7236,7249],{},[35,7186,7187,7189,7191,7194],{},[56,7188,7135],{},[56,7190,154],{},[56,7192,7193],{},"12.0p",[56,7195,7196],{},"34%",[35,7198,7199,7201,7204,7207],{},[56,7200,7141],{},[56,7202,7203],{},"£1,460",[56,7205,7206],{},"14.6p",[56,7208,7209],{},"41%",[35,7211,7212,7214,7216,7219],{},[56,7213,7147],{},[56,7215,352],{},[56,7217,7218],{},"4.8p",[56,7220,7221],{},"13%",[35,7223,7224,7227,7230,7233],{},[56,7225,7226],{},"Servicing, tyres, MOT",[56,7228,7229],{},"£350",[56,7231,7232],{},"3.5p",[56,7234,7235],{},"10%",[35,7237,7238,7240,7243,7246],{},[56,7239,7157],{},[56,7241,7242],{},"£70",[56,7244,7245],{},"0.7p",[56,7247,7248],{},"2%",[35,7250,7251,7256,7261,7266],{},[56,7252,7253],{},[19,7254,7255],{},"Total",[56,7257,7258],{},[19,7259,7260],{},"£3,560",[56,7262,7263],{},[19,7264,7265],{},"35.6p",[56,7267],{},[12,7269,7270],{},"At 45p a mile, the approved rate is comfortably ahead of that. On a newer or more expensive car it\noften is not:",[29,7272,7273,7286],{},[32,7274,7275],{},[35,7276,7277,7280,7283],{},[38,7278,7279],{},"Car",[38,7281,7282],{},"Annual depreciation",[38,7284,7285],{},"Total cost per mile at 10,000 mi",[51,7287,7288,7298,7307],{},[35,7289,7290,7293,7295],{},[56,7291,7292],{},"8-year-old hatchback, bought for £4,000",[56,7294,2947],{},[56,7296,7297],{},"~26p",[35,7299,7300,7303,7305],{},[56,7301,7302],{},"3-year-old family car",[56,7304,154],{},[56,7306,5541],{},[35,7308,7309,7312,7314],{},[56,7310,7311],{},"New £30,000 car, 40% over three years",[56,7313,2973],{},[56,7315,7316],{},"~64p",[12,7318,7319],{},"The new car loses more in depreciation alone than the older one costs to run entirely.",[24,7321,7323],{"id":7322},"why-this-matters-for-a-mileage-claim","Why this matters for a mileage claim",[12,7325,7326],{},"It explains the 45p.",[12,7328,7329,7330,7333],{},"HMRC's approved mileage rate is not a fuel reimbursement. It is meant to cover the ",[571,7331,7332],{},"whole"," cost of running your own car for business: fuel, insurance, servicing, tyres, road tax and depreciation. That is why it is so much higher than the Advisory Fuel Rates used for company cars, where the company already owns the asset and is absorbing the depreciation itself.",[12,7335,7336],{},"People who think of 45p as \"generous because petrol is only about 12p a mile\" are comparing it against one line of a five-line bill.",[24,7338,7340],{"id":7339},"the-mileage-connection","The mileage connection",[12,7342,7343],{},"Depreciation is partly time and partly miles. Two identical cars, one at 6,000 miles a year and one at 20,000, will not be worth the same in three years.",[12,7345,7346],{},"Which means high-mileage drivers are absorbing a larger cost than the fuel gauge suggests, and it is exactly those drivers for whom recording business mileage properly is worth the most, because the claim is what offsets it.",[24,7348,7350],{"id":7349},"knowing-your-own-number","Knowing your own number",[12,7352,7353],{},"The honest cost per mile is total annual costs divided by annual miles, not pence per litre.",[12,7355,7356],{},"Milesheet gets you part of the way automatically: it works out your real fuel cost per mile from your own fill-ups rather than a brochure figure. The rest, insurance, servicing, the value the car quietly lost, is worth adding up once a year, if only to know whether the 45p you are claiming is generous or barely covering it.",[12,7358,7359],{},"For most people it is generous. For someone running a thirsty vehicle hard, it is not, and that is the case where actual costs deserve a look instead.",[24,7361,518],{"id":517},[137,7363,7364,7369,7374,7379],{},[140,7365,7366],{},[524,7367,529],{"href":526,"rel":7368},[528],[140,7370,7371],{},[524,7372,4211],{"href":555,"rel":7373},[528],[140,7375,7376],{},[524,7377,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":7378},[528],[140,7380,7381],{},[524,7382,1817],{"href":1815,"rel":7383},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":7385},[7386,7387,7388,7389,7390,7391],{"id":7124,"depth":576,"text":7125},{"id":7163,"depth":576,"text":7164},{"id":7322,"depth":576,"text":7323},{"id":7339,"depth":576,"text":7340},{"id":7349,"depth":576,"text":7350},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-01-29","Fuel is the cost you feel because you pay it at a pump. For most drivers it is not the largest one.","Cost per mile and running costs in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdepreciation-the-cost-nobody-counts",{"title":7107,"description":7393},"blog\u002Fdepreciation-the-cost-nobody-counts",[1840,7400,7401],"depreciation","buying","b1OuOT01ZkW8s2BlQ1MfOxr6TQoV6fYbK3yf1DWRFRg",{"id":7404,"title":7405,"author":7,"body":7406,"category":587,"date":7592,"description":7593,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":7594,"imageAlt":7595,"imageCredit":3972,"imageCreditUrl":7596,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":7597,"navigation":595,"path":7598,"readTime":576,"seo":7599,"stem":7600,"tags":7601,"__hash__":7603},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Ftravel-between-two-jobs.md","Two jobs, one car: which journeys count",{"type":9,"value":7407,"toc":7584},[7408,7411,7415,7418,7421,7425,7431,7434,7438,7525,7528,7532,7535,7538,7542,7549,7552,7555,7558,7560,7577,7579],[12,7409,7410],{},"More people hold two jobs than the tax rules were originally designed around, and the travel between them is where the confusion sits.",[24,7412,7414],{"id":7413},"the-default-each-job-has-its-own-commute","The default: each job has its own commute",[12,7416,7417],{},"If you work for two unconnected employers, the journey from home to each of them is ordinary commuting for that employment. Neither is claimable.",[12,7419,7420],{},"That includes the awkward middle case: finishing at job A, driving to job B. Even though it feels like a working journey rather than a commute, if the two employers are unconnected it is generally treated as commuting to the second job, not travel in the performance of duties for the first.",[24,7422,7424],{"id":7423},"the-exception-connected-employers","The exception: connected employers",[12,7426,7427,7428,7430],{},"Where the two employments are with ",[19,7429,832],{}," employers, companies under common control, for example, travel between the two workplaces can be business travel rather than commuting.",[12,7432,7433],{},"This is the case most likely to be missed by people who work across a group, or who hold roles in two companies with the same owner. Those journeys can be claimable, and often are not claimed because they feel like commuting.",[24,7435,7437],{"id":7436},"which-journeys-count","Which journeys count",[29,7439,7440,7451],{},[32,7441,7442],{},[35,7443,7444,7446,7449],{},[38,7445,718],{},[38,7447,7448],{},"Employers",[38,7450,721],{},[51,7452,7453,7464,7475,7489,7503,7514],{},[35,7454,7455,7458,7460],{},[56,7456,7457],{},"Home → job A",[56,7459,205],{},[56,7461,7462,4545],{},[19,7463,80],{},[35,7465,7466,7469,7471],{},[56,7467,7468],{},"Home → job B",[56,7470,205],{},[56,7472,7473,4545],{},[19,7474,80],{},[35,7476,7477,7480,7483],{},[56,7478,7479],{},"Job A → job B",[56,7481,7482],{},"Unconnected",[56,7484,7485,7488],{},[19,7486,7487],{},"Generally no",", commuting to the second",[35,7490,7491,7493,7498],{},[56,7492,7479],{},[56,7494,7495],{},[19,7496,7497],{},"Connected",[56,7499,7500,7502],{},[19,7501,838],{},", travel between workplaces",[35,7504,7505,7508,7510],{},[56,7506,7507],{},"Job A → client of job A",[56,7509,205],{},[56,7511,7512],{},[19,7513,67],{},[35,7515,7516,7519,7521],{},[56,7517,7518],{},"Home → temporary site for job B",[56,7520,205],{},[56,7522,7523,4582],{},[19,7524,67],{},[12,7526,7527],{},"The third and fourth rows are the same physical drive with different answers, decided by something\ninvisible from the road.",[24,7529,7531],{"id":7530},"the-temporary-workplace-overlay","The temporary workplace overlay",[12,7533,7534],{},"Everything from the 24-month rule still applies on top. If one of the two workplaces is genuinely temporary, a short assignment, a site with a defined end, travel to it may be claimable regardless of the other job.",[12,7536,7537],{},"Two tests, applied in order: is this workplace permanent or temporary for this employment, and if permanent, is the journey commuting or travel between connected employments.",[24,7539,7541],{"id":7540},"why-this-argues-for-recording-everything","Why this argues for recording everything",[12,7543,7544,7545,7548],{},"The pattern here is that the ",[571,7546,7547],{},"same physical journey"," can be claimable or not depending on facts that are not visible from the road: who employs whom, whether an assignment is expected to run past two years, whether an employer is connected to another.",[12,7550,7551],{},"Those facts can also change after the journey. A contract extends; a company is acquired; a temporary site becomes the permanent base.",[12,7553,7554],{},"If the journey was never recorded, none of that helps you. If it was recorded and classified, changing the classification later is trivial and the underlying evidence still holds.",[12,7556,7557],{},"That is the argument for logging everything and deciding afterwards, rather than deciding at the roadside whether a drive is worth writing down.",[24,7559,518],{"id":517},[137,7561,7562,7567,7572],{},[140,7563,7564],{},[524,7565,997],{"href":995,"rel":7566},[528],[140,7568,7569],{},[524,7570,1004],{"href":1002,"rel":7571},[528],[140,7573,7574],{},[524,7575,543],{"href":541,"rel":7576},[528],[566,7578],{},[12,7580,7581],{},[571,7582,7583],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Connected-employer cases turn on the detail: take advice before relying on one.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":7585},[7586,7587,7588,7589,7590,7591],{"id":7413,"depth":576,"text":7414},{"id":7423,"depth":576,"text":7424},{"id":7436,"depth":576,"text":7437},{"id":7530,"depth":576,"text":7531},{"id":7540,"depth":576,"text":7541},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-01-22","Travel between separate employments, the second-job commute, and the rule that surprises people working for connected companies.","\u002Fblog\u002Ftravel-between-two-jobs.jpg","A busy transit station concourse","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.rawpixel.com\u002Fimage\u002F3297136\u002Ffree-photo-image-bicycle-banister-bike",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Ftravel-between-two-jobs",{"title":7405,"description":7593},"blog\u002Ftravel-between-two-jobs",[602,7602,1043],"second job","6d0B7Qnanu-ygYZhWUPOrOP6ZZqciMbF7jK9GmB7p0o",{"id":7605,"title":7606,"author":7,"body":7607,"category":1828,"date":7832,"description":7833,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1831,"imageAlt":7834,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":7835,"navigation":595,"path":7836,"readTime":1462,"seo":7837,"stem":7838,"tags":7839,"__hash__":7841},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Froof-boxes-towing-and-drag.md","Roof boxes, bike racks and towing: what they really cost",{"type":9,"value":7608,"toc":7824},[7609,7612,7616,7619,7657,7661,7664,7744,7747,7751,7754,7764,7767,7771,7774,7800,7804,7807,7810,7812],[12,7610,7611],{},"Cars are shaped the way they are for a reason, and most of that reason is air. Anything bolted to the outside interferes with the shape, and the bill arrives at every fill-up.",[24,7613,7615],{"id":7614},"the-rough-ranking","The rough ranking",[12,7617,7618],{},"From most expensive to least, at motorway speeds:",[875,7620,7621,7627,7633,7639,7645,7651],{},[140,7622,7623,7626],{},[19,7624,7625],{},"Towing a caravan",": economy can halve. There is no trick here: you are pushing a second box through the air and hauling its weight.",[140,7628,7629,7632],{},[19,7630,7631],{},"A loaded roof box",": commonly 10-20% at 70 mph, more on a small efficient car where the box is large relative to the vehicle.",[140,7634,7635,7638],{},[19,7636,7637],{},"An empty roof box",": nearly as bad as a full one. The drag is the shape, not the contents.",[140,7640,7641,7644],{},[19,7642,7643],{},"Bare roof bars",": often 5-10%. Less than a box, absolutely not nothing.",[140,7646,7647,7650],{},[19,7648,7649],{},"A bike rack on the towbar",": usually gentler than a roof rack, because it sits in air the car has already disturbed.",[140,7652,7653,7656],{},[19,7654,7655],{},"Windows down at speed",": measurable, though generally less than the air conditioning it is replacing.",[24,7658,7660],{"id":7659},"what-each-one-costs-per-year","What each one costs, per year",[12,7662,7663],{},"On 10,000 miles at 45 mpg and 145p a litre, about £1,460 of fuel, assuming the item is fitted all\nyear:",[29,7665,7666,7679],{},[32,7667,7668],{},[35,7669,7670,7673,7676],{},[38,7671,7672],{},"Fitted item",[38,7674,7675],{},"Typical penalty",[38,7677,7678],{},"Extra fuel per year",[51,7680,7681,7691,7702,7712,7723,7733],{},[35,7682,7683,7685,7688],{},[56,7684,7643],{},[56,7686,7687],{},"5-10%",[56,7689,7690],{},"£73-£146",[35,7692,7693,7696,7699],{},[56,7694,7695],{},"Empty roof box",[56,7697,7698],{},"10-15%",[56,7700,7701],{},"£146-£219",[35,7703,7704,7707,7709],{},[56,7705,7706],{},"Loaded roof box",[56,7708,1624],{},[56,7710,7711],{},"£146-£292",[35,7713,7714,7717,7720],{},[56,7715,7716],{},"Towbar bike rack (2 bikes)",[56,7718,7719],{},"3-7%",[56,7721,7722],{},"£44-£102",[35,7724,7725,7728,7730],{},[56,7726,7727],{},"Roof-mounted bike rack (2 bikes)",[56,7729,1613],{},[56,7731,7732],{},"£219-£365",[35,7734,7735,7738,7741],{},[56,7736,7737],{},"Caravan, in tow",[56,7739,7740],{},"30-50% while towing",[56,7742,7743],{},"Depends on towing miles",[12,7745,7746],{},"Roof-mounted bikes are the surprise: two bikes on the roof cost more than the box does, because\nthey are bluff shapes in clean air.",[24,7748,7750],{"id":7749},"the-one-that-actually-costs-people-money","The one that actually costs people money",[12,7752,7753],{},"Bars and boxes left on all year.",[12,7755,7756,7757,7759,7760,7763],{},"The trip they were fitted for lasted a fortnight. The 8% they cost carries on until somebody gets a spanner out. Over a year of ordinary driving, that is a real number: on 10,000 miles at 45 mpg and 145p a litre, roughly ",[19,7758,7203],{}," of fuel, so 8% is around ",[19,7761,7762],{},"£117"," for carrying an empty box you are not using.",[12,7765,7766],{},"Ten minutes with a spanner is one of the better hourly rates available.",[24,7768,7770],{"id":7769},"towing-what-actually-helps","Towing: what actually helps",[12,7772,7773],{},"You cannot make a caravan aerodynamic, but you can avoid making it worse.",[137,7775,7776,7782,7788,7794],{},[140,7777,7778,7781],{},[19,7779,7780],{},"Load it nose-heavy within the noseweight limit",": stability first, but a stable outfit also needs fewer corrections",[140,7783,7784,7787],{},[19,7785,7786],{},"Keep tyre pressures right on both"," vehicle and trailer",[140,7789,7790,7793],{},[19,7791,7792],{},"Slow down."," Drag rises with the square of speed and you are now presenting a great deal more frontal area to it",[140,7795,7796,7799],{},[19,7797,7798],{},"Take the roof box off the car"," if the caravan is carrying the luggage",[24,7801,7803],{"id":7802},"measure-your-own","Measure your own",[12,7805,7806],{},"Every figure above is a typical range. Your car, your box, your speed and your roads will produce your own number, and the only way to find it is to compare tanks.",[12,7808,7809],{},"Log a few fill-ups with the box on and a few with it off, and Milesheet will show the difference as a change in your real MPG between full tanks. It is a satisfying way to settle an argument, and occasionally a surprising one.",[24,7811,518],{"id":517},[137,7813,7814,7819],{},[140,7815,7816],{},[524,7817,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":7818},[528],[140,7820,7821],{},[524,7822,2503],{"href":2501,"rel":7823},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":7825},[7826,7827,7828,7829,7830,7831],{"id":7614,"depth":576,"text":7615},{"id":7659,"depth":576,"text":7660},{"id":7749,"depth":576,"text":7750},{"id":7769,"depth":576,"text":7770},{"id":7802,"depth":576,"text":7803},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-01-15","The bolt-ons that quietly ruin your economy, ranked by how much they cost and how easily you can stop paying for them.","A dip in economy visible across tanks in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Froof-boxes-towing-and-drag",{"title":7606,"description":7833},"blog\u002Froof-boxes-towing-and-drag",[1838,1839,7840],"towing","BtVnaCaDSI8b3xT0cRJOOzVCVsPFcYHJC6irtA153ZE",{"id":7843,"title":7844,"author":7,"body":7845,"category":587,"date":8036,"description":8037,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":8038,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":8039,"navigation":595,"path":8040,"readTime":576,"seo":8041,"stem":8042,"tags":8043,"__hash__":8045},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-abroad-for-work.md","Driving abroad for work: what you can still claim",{"type":9,"value":7846,"toc":8028},[7847,7850,7854,7857,7860,7864,7867,7893,7896,7900,7972,7976,7982,7988,7994,7996,7999,8002,8004,8021,8023],[12,7848,7849],{},"If you take your own car abroad on business, the mileage itself is treated much as it would be at home. Nearly everything else about the trip is treated differently, and that is where the money and the mistakes are.",[24,7851,7853],{"id":7852},"the-mileage","The mileage",[12,7855,7856],{},"Approved mileage allowance payments apply to business travel in your own vehicle. The rates are not restricted to UK roads. A business journey is a business journey, and the miles you drive in France on the way to a client count towards the same annual total as the miles you drove to get to the ferry.",[12,7858,7859],{},"That includes the 10,000-mile threshold. It is one running total for the tax year across all your own vehicles, wherever they were driven.",[24,7861,7863],{"id":7862},"the-costs-that-are-not-mileage","The costs that are not mileage",[12,7865,7866],{},"The mileage rate covers running the vehicle. It does not cover:",[137,7868,7869,7874,7879,7884,7888],{},[140,7870,7871],{},[19,7872,7873],{},"Ferries and tunnel crossings",[140,7875,7876],{},[19,7877,7878],{},"Foreign tolls and vignettes",[140,7880,7881],{},[19,7882,7883],{},"Emissions stickers and city permits",[140,7885,7886],{},[19,7887,1860],{},[140,7889,7890],{},[19,7891,7892],{},"Additional insurance or breakdown cover for the trip",[12,7894,7895],{},"These are claimable separately where the journey is business, exactly as tolls and parking are at home. Keep them attached to the journey rather than in a pile.",[24,7897,7899],{"id":7898},"what-is-claimable-and-how","What is claimable, and how",[29,7901,7902,7911],{},[32,7903,7904],{},[35,7905,7906,7908],{},[38,7907,1969],{},[38,7909,7910],{},"Treatment",[51,7912,7913,7921,7929,7936,7943,7949,7956,7964],{},[35,7914,7915,7918],{},[56,7916,7917],{},"Mileage in your own car",[56,7919,7920],{},"Approved rates, same annual 10,000-mile total",[35,7922,7923,7926],{},[56,7924,7925],{},"Ferry or tunnel crossing",[56,7927,7928],{},"Separate claimable expense",[35,7930,7931,7934],{},[56,7932,7933],{},"Foreign tolls, vignettes",[56,7935,7928],{},[35,7937,7938,7941],{},[56,7939,7940],{},"Emissions stickers, city permits",[56,7942,7928],{},[35,7944,7945,7947],{},[56,7946,1860],{},[56,7948,7928],{},[35,7950,7951,7954],{},[56,7952,7953],{},"Extra insurance or breakdown cover for the trip",[56,7955,7928],{},[35,7957,7958,7961],{},[56,7959,7960],{},"Hire car abroad",[56,7962,7963],{},"The hire cost, not a per-mile rate",[35,7965,7966,7969],{},[56,7967,7968],{},"Fuel in a hire car",[56,7970,7971],{},"Actual cost, not the mileage rate",[24,7973,7975],{"id":7974},"where-it-gets-complicated","Where it gets complicated",[12,7977,7978,7981],{},[19,7979,7980],{},"Mixed trips."," A week abroad that is three days of client work and four days of holiday is not wholly business. The travel there and back has to be apportioned, or may fail entirely if the primary purpose was personal. This is the single most contested area of foreign business travel and the one worth taking advice on.",[12,7983,7984,7987],{},[19,7985,7986],{},"Subsistence."," Meals and accommodation abroad have their own treatment, including HMRC's published overseas scale rates for some countries. That is a separate topic from mileage but usually part of the same trip.",[12,7989,7990,7993],{},[19,7991,7992],{},"Foreign exchange."," Costs paid in another currency need converting at a reasonable rate, applied consistently. Pick a method, the card's rate on the day is usually the cleanest, and use it for the whole trip.",[24,7995,5410],{"id":5409},[12,7997,7998],{},"The same as at home, plus a bit more: date, from, to, purpose, distance, and enough detail to show the business character of the trip if the days were mixed. A calendar of meetings alongside the journey log answers most questions before they are asked.",[12,8000,8001],{},"Milesheet records the drive by GPS wherever you are, so the distance is measured rather than estimated from a map afterwards, which matters more abroad, where the route you actually took and the route you planned are often not the same.",[24,8003,518],{"id":517},[137,8005,8006,8011,8016],{},[140,8007,8008],{},[524,8009,529],{"href":526,"rel":8010},[528],[140,8012,8013],{},[524,8014,997],{"href":995,"rel":8015},[528],[140,8017,8018],{},[524,8019,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":8020},[528],[566,8022],{},[12,8024,8025],{},[571,8026,8027],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Mixed business and personal trips abroad are fact-sensitive: take advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":8029},[8030,8031,8032,8033,8034,8035],{"id":7852,"depth":576,"text":7853},{"id":7862,"depth":576,"text":7863},{"id":7898,"depth":576,"text":7899},{"id":7974,"depth":576,"text":7975},{"id":5409,"depth":576,"text":5410},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-01-08","The approved rates do not stop at Dover, but almost everything around them changes.","Journeys recorded wherever they were driven, in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-abroad-for-work",{"title":7844,"description":8037},"blog\u002Fdriving-abroad-for-work",[602,8044,1043],"travel abroad","mK5ajIVFnNPzEC752c-m-zG1OEkCImaWiUjG45KU4hk",{"id":8047,"title":8048,"author":7,"body":8049,"category":587,"date":8232,"description":8233,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":592,"imageAlt":8234,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":8235,"navigation":595,"path":8236,"readTime":576,"seo":8237,"stem":8238,"tags":8239,"__hash__":8241},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Ffuel-cards-and-mileage.md","Fuel cards and mileage claims: how they interact",{"type":9,"value":8050,"toc":8224},[8051,8054,8058,8064,8067,8070,8074,8081,8084,8087,8091,8094,8097,8101,8177,8180,8184,8195,8198,8200,8217,8219],[12,8052,8053],{},"Fuel cards feel like they simplify things. The fuel is paid for, so surely there is nothing to claim. In practice they usually create more record-keeping, not less, because the question stops being \"what am I owed\" and becomes \"what did I use that I should not have\".",[24,8055,8057],{"id":8056},"your-own-car-employers-fuel-card","Your own car, employer's fuel card",[12,8059,8060,8061,8063],{},"If the card pays for fuel in ",[19,8062,6119],{}," car, the employer is meeting a cost that is partly personal. That has consequences.",[12,8065,8066],{},"Fuel used on business journeys is a business cost. Fuel used on personal journeys, including your commute, that the employer paid for is a benefit, and it is taxable.",[12,8068,8069],{},"So the split between business and personal mileage stops being about what you can claim and starts being about what you owe. Get the log wrong in the generous direction and you have understated a benefit. That is a worse position than under-claiming.",[24,8071,8073],{"id":8072},"company-car-fuel-card-no-reimbursement","Company car, fuel card, no reimbursement",[12,8075,8076,8077,8080],{},"If the car belongs to the company and the card pays for all fuel including private use, that is the ",[19,8078,8079],{},"car fuel benefit",", which is a fixed charge based on the car's CO2 figure rather than on how much fuel you actually used.",[12,8082,8083],{},"The catch is that it is fixed. Someone doing very little private mileage can end up taxed as though they did a great deal, which is why some drivers repay the cost of private fuel instead, using Advisory Fuel Rates, to avoid the charge entirely.",[12,8085,8086],{},"Whether repaying beats being taxed is arithmetic, and it depends on your private mileage. You cannot do that arithmetic without a mileage record.",[24,8088,8090],{"id":8089},"company-car-business-fuel-only","Company car, business fuel only",[12,8092,8093],{},"The cleanest arrangement: the card is used for business fuel, private fuel is repaid or bought separately. Advisory Fuel Rates are the yardstick.",[12,8095,8096],{},"Here the mileage log is the entire basis of the split. Without it there is no defensible line between the two.",[24,8098,8100],{"id":8099},"which-arrangement-you-are-in","Which arrangement you are in",[29,8102,8103,8118],{},[32,8104,8105],{},[35,8106,8107,8109,8112,8115],{},[38,8108,7279],{},[38,8110,8111],{},"Card pays for",[38,8113,8114],{},"What you owe or claim",[38,8116,8117],{},"Record needed",[51,8119,8120,8137,8149,8165],{},[35,8121,8122,8125,8128,8134],{},[56,8123,8124],{},"Yours",[56,8126,8127],{},"All fuel",[56,8129,8130,8131],{},"Private fuel paid by employer is a ",[19,8132,8133],{},"taxable benefit",[56,8135,8136],{},"Business\u002Fprivate split",[35,8138,8139,8141,8144,8147],{},[56,8140,8124],{},[56,8142,8143],{},"Business fuel only",[56,8145,8146],{},"Nothing; costs are met",[56,8148,8136],{},[35,8150,8151,8154,8157,8162],{},[56,8152,8153],{},"Company",[56,8155,8156],{},"All fuel incl. private",[56,8158,8159,8161],{},[19,8160,4104],{},", fixed charge from CO2",[56,8163,8164],{},"Split, to decide whether to repay",[35,8166,8167,8169,8171,8174],{},[56,8168,8153],{},[56,8170,8143],{},[56,8172,8173],{},"Nothing, if private fuel repaid at advisory rates",[56,8175,8176],{},"Split, to calculate the repayment",[12,8178,8179],{},"Every row needs the same underlying thing: how many of those miles were business.",[24,8181,8183],{"id":8182},"the-common-thread","The common thread",[12,8185,8186,8187,8190,8191,8194],{},"In every version of this, the fuel card removes the ",[571,8188,8189],{},"payment"," but not the ",[571,8192,8193],{},"question",". Somebody still has to know how many of those miles were business, and the only way to know is to have recorded them as they happened.",[12,8196,8197],{},"Milesheet keeps each vehicle separate and records every journey with its own classification, so the business and private split is a number you can produce rather than an estimate you defend.",[24,8199,518],{"id":517},[137,8201,8202,8207,8212],{},[140,8203,8204],{},[524,8205,4211],{"href":555,"rel":8206},[528],[140,8208,8209],{},[524,8210,536],{"href":534,"rel":8211},[528],[140,8213,8214],{},[524,8215,529],{"href":526,"rel":8216},[528],[566,8218],{},[12,8220,8221],{},[571,8222,8223],{},"General information, not tax advice. Fuel benefit rules are detailed and change: check current guidance before relying on this.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":8225},[8226,8227,8228,8229,8230,8231],{"id":8056,"depth":576,"text":8057},{"id":8072,"depth":576,"text":8073},{"id":8089,"depth":576,"text":8090},{"id":8099,"depth":576,"text":8100},{"id":8182,"depth":576,"text":8183},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2026-01-01","A fuel card does not remove the need for a mileage log. It usually makes it more important.","The business and personal split in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Ffuel-cards-and-mileage",{"title":8048,"description":8233},"blog\u002Ffuel-cards-and-mileage",[8240,602,4248],"fuel cards","P9LXMW6Ek9IsUm5hsFoTsPhZChBF2xBD-JOqRYfNyGs",{"id":8243,"title":8244,"author":7,"body":8245,"category":587,"date":8492,"description":8493,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":8494,"imageAlt":8495,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":8496,"navigation":595,"path":8497,"readTime":1462,"seo":8498,"stem":8499,"tags":8500,"__hash__":8502},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-45p-has-not-changed-since-2011.md","45p held for fifteen years, then moved to 55p",{"type":9,"value":8246,"toc":8483},[8247,8254,8264,8267,8271,8274,8277,8281,8393,8396,8400,8403,8408,8413,8416,8420,8423,8426,8430,8433,8436,8440,8443,8449,8452,8454,8476,8478],[12,8248,8249,8250,8253],{},"The approved mileage rate for cars and vans went to ",[19,8251,8252],{},"45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles"," from 6 April 2011, up from 40p. The 25p rate above 10,000 miles has been unchanged for considerably longer.",[12,8255,8256,8257,8260,8261,8263],{},"It then did not move for fifteen years. On ",[19,8258,8259],{},"6 April 2026"," it went to ",[19,8262,21],{},", the first change since 2011. The 25p rate above 10,000 miles stayed where it was, as did the 5p passenger payment.",[12,8265,8266],{},"This is the story of why it held for so long, and what finally shifted.",[24,8268,8270],{"id":8269},"what-the-rate-is-meant-to-cover","What the rate is meant to cover",[12,8272,8273],{},"It is not a fuel reimbursement. The approved rate is intended to cover the whole cost of running your own car for business: fuel, insurance, road tax, servicing, tyres, repairs and depreciation.",[12,8275,8276],{},"That is why it is so much higher than the Advisory Fuel Rates used for company cars, which cover fuel alone because the company already owns the asset.",[24,8278,8280],{"id":8279},"what-has-happened-since-2011","What has happened since 2011",[29,8282,8283,8298],{},[32,8284,8285],{},[35,8286,8287,8289,8292,8295],{},[38,8288],{},[38,8290,8291],{},"2011",[38,8293,8294],{},"Now",[38,8296,8297],{},"Direction",[51,8299,8300,8315,8329,8343,8356,8367,8380],{},[35,8301,8302,8305,8308,8310],{},[56,8303,8304],{},"Approved rate, first 10,000 miles",[56,8306,8307],{},"45p",[56,8309,21],{},[56,8311,8312],{},[19,8313,8314],{},"Up 22%, in 2026",[35,8316,8317,8320,8322,8324],{},[56,8318,8319],{},"Rate above 10,000 miles",[56,8321,472],{},[56,8323,472],{},[56,8325,8326],{},[19,8327,8328],{},"Unchanged",[35,8330,8331,8334,8337,8339],{},[56,8332,8333],{},"Threshold",[56,8335,8336],{},"10,000 mi",[56,8338,8336],{},[56,8340,8341],{},[19,8342,8328],{},[35,8344,8345,8348,8350,8353],{},[56,8346,8347],{},"Insurance, servicing, parts",[56,8349,205],{},[56,8351,8352],{},"Substantially higher",[56,8354,8355],{},"Against the rate",[35,8357,8358,8361,8363,8365],{},[56,8359,8360],{},"New car prices, so depreciation",[56,8362,205],{},[56,8364,8352],{},[56,8366,8355],{},[35,8368,8369,8372,8374,8377],{},[56,8370,8371],{},"Typical fuel economy",[56,8373,205],{},[56,8375,8376],{},"Better",[56,8378,8379],{},"For the rate",[35,8381,8382,8385,8388,8391],{},[56,8383,8384],{},"Electric running costs",[56,8386,8387],{},"Negligible uptake",[56,8389,8390],{},"Very low at home",[56,8392,8379],{},[12,8394,8395],{},"Which is why the same rate is generous for one driver and thin for another, on identical mileage.",[24,8397,8399],{"id":8398},"why-it-feels-less-generous-than-it-did","Why it feels less generous than it did",[12,8401,8402],{},"Two things pull in opposite directions.",[12,8404,8405,8407],{},[19,8406,8355],{},": everything except fuel has risen substantially since 2011. Insurance, parts, labour rates, and the purchase price of cars, which drives depreciation.",[12,8409,8410,8412],{},[19,8411,8379],{},": cars have become considerably more efficient. A 2011 family car doing 40 mpg has a 2026 equivalent doing rather better, and an electric one doing better still on running cost per mile.",[12,8414,8415],{},"For a driver with a modern, efficient, cheaply-acquired car, the rate can still be comfortably ahead of what the mile costs. For someone running an older, thirstier or more expensive vehicle, it increasingly is not.",[24,8417,8419],{"id":8418},"the-10000-mile-cliff","The 10,000-mile cliff",[12,8421,8422],{},"The part that ages least well is the threshold. It has been 10,000 miles for a very long time, and it is not indexed to anything.",[12,8424,8425],{},"A driver doing 20,000 business miles a year is claiming 55p on half of them and 25p on the rest, giving a blended rate of 40p. The rules assume high mileage means lower marginal cost, which is true for fuel and largely untrue for tyres, servicing and depreciation.",[24,8427,8429],{"id":8428},"what-finally-changed-it","What finally changed it",[12,8431,8432],{},"Fifteen years of the arguments above pulling in opposite directions ended with the fuel-cost movements of early 2026, on top of a decade and a half of everything else getting dearer. The rate went to 55p from 6 April 2026.",[12,8434,8435],{},"Worth noting what did not change: the 10,000-mile threshold, the 25p rate above it, and the 5p passenger payment. The blended rate for a high-mileage driver therefore improved by less than the headline suggests, and the case for actual costs on a thirsty vehicle has narrowed rather than closed.",[24,8437,8439],{"id":8438},"what-you-can-do-about-it","What you can do about it",[12,8441,8442],{},"If you are an employee paid less than the approved rate, you can claim tax relief on the difference. That is Mileage Allowance Relief and it is claimed through Self Assessment or a P87.",[12,8444,8445,8446,8448],{},"If you are self-employed and the flat rate genuinely does not cover your costs, a thirsty van, high mileage, expensive vehicle, ",[19,8447,1949],{}," may be worth more than simplified expenses. That decision is close to permanent per vehicle, so it is worth doing the arithmetic properly rather than defaulting.",[12,8450,8451],{},"Either way, the first requirement is knowing what your driving actually costs. Log fill-ups with the odometer and the figure stops being a guess.",[24,8453,518],{"id":517},[137,8455,8456,8461,8466,8471],{},[140,8457,8458],{},[524,8459,529],{"href":526,"rel":8460},[528],[140,8462,8463],{},[524,8464,543],{"href":541,"rel":8465},[528],[140,8467,8468],{},[524,8469,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":8470},[528],[140,8472,8473],{},[524,8474,4211],{"href":555,"rel":8475},[528],[566,8477],{},[12,8479,8480],{},[571,8481,8482],{},"General information for UK drivers, not tax advice. Check the current rate table before claiming.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":8484},[8485,8486,8487,8488,8489,8490,8491],{"id":8269,"depth":576,"text":8270},{"id":8279,"depth":576,"text":8280},{"id":8398,"depth":576,"text":8399},{"id":8418,"depth":576,"text":8419},{"id":8428,"depth":576,"text":8429},{"id":8438,"depth":576,"text":8439},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-12-25","The rate was set when petrol was cheaper and cars were thirstier. It outlasted three prime ministers and a great deal of inflation before it finally gave.","\u002Fshots\u002Fcalculator.png","Pricing a journey at the current approved rates in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-45p-has-not-changed-since-2011",{"title":8244,"description":8493},"blog\u002Fwhy-45p-has-not-changed-since-2011",[602,603,8501],"policy","Uk0RYOpryMyKzLnlkj40xrfFK6wCn-RA0Ezl8QU_zMY",{"id":8504,"title":8505,"author":7,"body":8506,"category":2858,"date":8693,"description":8694,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":8695,"imageAlt":8696,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":8697,"navigation":595,"path":8698,"readTime":576,"seo":8699,"stem":8700,"tags":8701,"__hash__":8704},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Ffive-habits-that-make-the-claim-add-up.md","Five habits that turn a mileage app into a claim",{"type":9,"value":8507,"toc":8683},[8508,8511,8515,8518,8521,8525,8528,8537,8541,8544,8547,8551,8558,8561,8565,8568,8571,8575,8659,8662,8666,8669,8671],[12,8509,8510],{},"Most abandoned mileage logs are not abandoned because the app was bad. They are abandoned because the habit never formed. These five take about two minutes a week between them.",[24,8512,8514],{"id":8513},"_1-sort-trips-while-you-still-remember-them","1. Sort trips while you still remember them",[12,8516,8517],{},"The single highest-value habit. A journey sorted on the evening it happened is accurate. The same journey sorted in April is a guess dressed as a record.",[12,8519,8520],{},"Milesheet's Classify deck exists for this: each card replays the route on a map, you swipe right for business and left for personal, and a week of driving takes under a minute. Do it while the kettle boils.",[24,8522,8524],{"id":8523},"_2-tag-your-regular-places-once","2. Tag your regular places once",[12,8526,8527],{},"Ten minutes, once, and a large proportion of your sorting stops being manual. Tag the office, the sites you visit repeatedly, the clients you see monthly.",[12,8529,8530,8531,8533,8534,8536],{},"Tag your house as ",[19,8532,937],{}," and any permanent workplace as ",[19,8535,3303],{}," while you are there. That is what keeps ordinary commuting out of your claim, which is the most common way a mileage claim goes wrong.",[24,8538,8540],{"id":8539},"_3-log-the-fill-up-at-the-pump-not-later","3. Log the fill-up at the pump, not later",[12,8542,8543],{},"Two full tanks with odometer readings and Milesheet knows your car's real economy rather than the brochure figure. Every trip cost after that is a real number.",[12,8545,8546],{},"The reason to do it at the pump is that the odometer reading is the part you cannot reconstruct afterwards. The receipt survives; the mileage on the dash does not.",[24,8548,8550],{"id":8549},"_4-check-insights-once-a-month","4. Check Insights once a month",[12,8552,8553,8554,8557],{},"Not for pleasure, for the two things that are much harder to fix later. Whether anything is still unclassified, and whether the ",[19,8555,8556],{},"unlogged mileage"," figure has appeared, which means the odometer and your journeys disagree and some driving never got recorded.",[12,8559,8560],{},"A month-old gap is recoverable from memory and a calendar. A year-old one is not.",[24,8562,8564],{"id":8563},"_5-export-at-the-end-of-the-tax-year-not-the-end-of-january","5. Export at the end of the tax year, not the end of January",[12,8566,8567],{},"Produce the CSV and the claim PDF in April while the year is fresh, and put them somewhere that is not only your phone. If you file in January, you want the version you assembled when you could still check it.",[12,8569,8570],{},"Turn on auto-export and even this one takes care of itself.",[24,8572,8574],{"id":8573},"the-habits-and-what-each-is-worth","The habits, and what each is worth",[29,8576,8577,8592],{},[32,8578,8579],{},[35,8580,8581,8584,8587,8589],{},[38,8582,8583],{},"Habit",[38,8585,8586],{},"How often",[38,8588,4786],{},[38,8590,8591],{},"What it protects",[51,8593,8594,8607,8619,8633,8646],{},[35,8595,8596,8599,8602,8604],{},[56,8597,8598],{},"Sort trips while you remember them",[56,8600,8601],{},"Weekly",[56,8603,4814],{},[56,8605,8606],{},"Accuracy of the whole log",[35,8608,8609,8611,8614,8616],{},[56,8610,2827],{},[56,8612,8613],{},"Once",[56,8615,4801],{},[56,8617,8618],{},"Most future sorting, and commuting exclusion",[35,8620,8621,8624,8627,8630],{},[56,8622,8623],{},"Log the fill-up at the pump",[56,8625,8626],{},"Per fill",[56,8628,8629],{},"30 sec",[56,8631,8632],{},"Real MPG, and the odometer trail",[35,8634,8635,8638,8641,8643],{},[56,8636,8637],{},"Check Insights",[56,8639,8640],{},"Monthly",[56,8642,4856],{},[56,8644,8645],{},"Unclassified backlog and unlogged mileage",[35,8647,8648,8651,8654,8656],{},[56,8649,8650],{},"Export at tax year end",[56,8652,8653],{},"Yearly",[56,8655,4856],{},[56,8657,8658],{},"The version you filed from",[12,8660,8661],{},"Under fifteen minutes a year of actual effort, plus a minute a week.",[24,8663,8665],{"id":8664},"the-underlying-point","The underlying point",[12,8667,8668],{},"None of these are about diligence. They are about doing the small thing at the moment it is easy, so that nothing depends on remembering anything nine months later.",[24,8670,518],{"id":517},[137,8672,8673,8678],{},[140,8674,8675],{},[524,8676,564],{"href":562,"rel":8677},[528],[140,8679,8680],{},[524,8681,543],{"href":541,"rel":8682},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":8684},[8685,8686,8687,8688,8689,8690,8691,8692],{"id":8513,"depth":576,"text":8514},{"id":8523,"depth":576,"text":8524},{"id":8539,"depth":576,"text":8540},{"id":8549,"depth":576,"text":8550},{"id":8563,"depth":576,"text":8564},{"id":8573,"depth":576,"text":8574},{"id":8664,"depth":576,"text":8665},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-12-18","Installing it is not the job. These are the small things that decide whether you have a record worth filing in January.","\u002Fshots\u002Fclassify.png","Sorting journeys into business or personal in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Ffive-habits-that-make-the-claim-add-up",{"title":8505,"description":8694},"blog\u002Ffive-habits-that-make-the-claim-add-up",[8702,8703,1466],"milesheet","habits","2pioEWU2DDMkOxzaLZNnrGABkOK5utvGbvERGI0ek_s",{"id":8706,"title":8707,"author":7,"body":8708,"category":1828,"date":8900,"description":8901,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":8902,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":8903,"navigation":595,"path":8904,"readTime":1462,"seo":8905,"stem":8906,"tags":8907,"__hash__":8909},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fplanning-a-road-trip-costs.md","Planning a road trip so the money does not sour it",{"type":9,"value":8709,"toc":8891},[8710,8713,8717,8723,8729,8735,8739,8742,8748,8755,8761,8765,8768,8840,8843,8847,8860,8864,8867,8870,8874,8877,8879],[12,8711,8712],{},"Shared driving falls out over money more often than over routes, and almost always for the same reason: nobody agreed what the deal was while everyone was still enthusiastic.",[24,8714,8716],{"id":8715},"settle-three-things-before-you-set-off","Settle three things before you set off",[12,8718,8719,8722],{},[19,8720,8721],{},"Who is paying for what."," Fuel only, or fuel plus tolls, parking and the ferry? Say it out loud. \"We'll sort it out\" is how you end up with one person quietly £80 down.",[12,8724,8725,8728],{},[19,8726,8727],{},"Whether the driver pays a share."," Both answers are reasonable. Everyone including the driver splitting equally is fair because everyone is going. Passengers covering the fuel is fair because the driver is providing the car, the wear and the concentration. Pick one.",[12,8730,8731,8734],{},[19,8732,8733],{},"What happens if plans change."," Somebody drops out the night before, somebody gets a train home. Decide whether the split is by head or by seat booked.",[24,8736,8738],{"id":8737},"work-out-the-real-number-not-a-round-one","Work out the real number, not a round one",[12,8740,8741],{},"The honest figure is fuel used, not the amount that went into the tank at the last fill.",[12,8743,8744,8747],{},[19,8745,8746],{},"litres = miles ÷ (mpg ÷ 4.546)",", then multiply by price per litre.",[12,8749,8750,8751,8754],{},"400 miles in a car doing a real 44 mpg is about 41 litres. At 145p, roughly ",[19,8752,8753],{},"£60",". Four people sharing equally is £15 each; three passengers covering it is £20 each.",[12,8756,8757,8758,8760],{},"Use your car's ",[571,8759,5026],{}," economy, not the brochure. The gap is usually 10-20% and it comes out of the driver's pocket.",[24,8762,8764],{"id":8763},"the-full-cost-of-a-weekend-away","The full cost of a weekend away",[12,8766,8767],{},"Four people, 300-mile round trip, 44 mpg, 145p a litre:",[29,8769,8770,8781],{},[32,8771,8772],{},[35,8773,8774,8777,8779],{},[38,8775,8776],{},"Item",[38,8778,1969],{},[38,8780,1975],{},[51,8782,8783,8793,8804,8815,8826],{},[35,8784,8785,8787,8790],{},[56,8786,7141],{},[56,8788,8789],{},"£45.00",[56,8791,8792],{},"Using real economy, not the brochure",[35,8794,8795,8798,8801],{},[56,8796,8797],{},"Tolls \u002F crossings",[56,8799,8800],{},"£0-£15",[56,8802,8803],{},"Route dependent",[35,8805,8806,8809,8812],{},[56,8807,8808],{},"Clean air \u002F congestion charges",[56,8810,8811],{},"£0-£27.50",[56,8813,8814],{},"If the route goes through a charging city",[35,8816,8817,8820,8823],{},[56,8818,8819],{},"Parking, 2 nights",[56,8821,8822],{},"£0-£40",[56,8824,8825],{},"Often the largest single item",[35,8827,8828,8833,8838],{},[56,8829,8830],{},[19,8831,8832],{},"Typical total",[56,8834,8835],{},[19,8836,8837],{},"£45-£127",[56,8839],{},[12,8841,8842],{},"Split four ways that is £11 to £32 each. A threefold range depending on things nobody thinks to\nmention when the trip is being planned.",[24,8844,8846],{"id":8845},"add-the-things-people-forget","Add the things people forget",[137,8848,8849,8851,8854,8857],{},[140,8850,1993],{},[140,8852,8853],{},"Parking at the destination, which on a festival or airport run can rival the fuel",[140,8855,8856],{},"Congestion or clean air charges through cities",[140,8858,8859],{},"The return leg, which somehow always gets left out of the estimate",[24,8861,8863],{"id":8862},"send-a-number-not-a-vibe","Send a number, not a vibe",[12,8865,8866],{},"The thing that makes this awkward is ambiguity, not cost. A message saying \"about twenty quid?\" invites negotiation. A figure with the distance and the fuel price behind it ends the conversation.",[12,8868,8869],{},"Milesheet records the drive, costs it from your own measured economy, splits it between however many were in the car, with or without the driver taking a share, and shares the journey as a PDF with the route and the numbers on it. Nobody else needs the app to read it.",[24,8871,8873],{"id":8872},"and-if-any-of-it-was-work","And if any of it was work",[12,8875,8876],{},"Keep the legs separate. A trip that is three days of holiday and one client meeting is not one journey, and the claimable part is only the part that was business. Recording each leg as it happens means you are classifying rather than reconstructing.",[24,8878,518],{"id":517},[137,8880,8881,8886],{},[140,8882,8883],{},[524,8884,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":8885},[528],[140,8887,8888],{},[524,8889,529],{"href":526,"rel":8890},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":8892},[8893,8894,8895,8896,8897,8898,8899],{"id":8715,"depth":576,"text":8716},{"id":8737,"depth":576,"text":8738},{"id":8763,"depth":576,"text":8764},{"id":8845,"depth":576,"text":8846},{"id":8862,"depth":576,"text":8863},{"id":8872,"depth":576,"text":8873},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-12-11","Agree the rules before you leave, not at a service station at eleven at night.","A trip recorded and costed in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fplanning-a-road-trip-costs",{"title":8707,"description":8901},"blog\u002Fplanning-a-road-trip-costs",[5257,5256,8908],"friends","TmMogobiFUpIaBFqmO6eh94GUT3CrQWpBFfH9dJyYBE",{"id":8911,"title":8912,"author":7,"body":8913,"category":587,"date":9189,"description":9190,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":9191,"imageAlt":9192,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":9193,"navigation":595,"path":9194,"readTime":1462,"seo":9195,"stem":9196,"tags":9197,"__hash__":9200},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fchoosing-a-company-car-the-numbers.md","Choosing a company car: the numbers that actually decide it",{"type":9,"value":8914,"toc":9181},[8915,8921,8924,8928,8931,8958,8961,8964,8968,9024,9027,9087,9090,9094,9104,9107,9110,9114,9117,9120,9140,9144,9147,9150,9152,9174,9176],[4986,8916,8917],{},[12,8918,8919,4993],{},[19,8920,4992],{},[12,8922,8923],{},"A company car is not a perk with a tax side-effect. It is a taxable benefit whose size you choose when you pick the car, and the difference between two similar cars can be hundreds of pounds a year of take-home.",[24,8925,8927],{"id":8926},"how-the-charge-is-built","How the charge is built",[12,8929,8930],{},"Three numbers multiply together:",[875,8932,8933,8943,8953],{},[140,8934,8935,8938,8939,8942],{},[19,8936,8937],{},"List price"," (P11D value): the manufacturer's price including VAT and delivery, plus options. Note that it is the ",[571,8940,8941],{},"list"," price, not what your employer negotiated.",[140,8944,8945,8948,8949,8952],{},[19,8946,8947],{},"The appropriate percentage",", driven mainly by ",[19,8950,8951],{},"CO2 emissions",", with electric and low-emission cars at the bottom of the scale and high emitters at the top.",[140,8954,8955],{},[19,8956,8957],{},"Your marginal rate of tax.",[12,8959,8960],{},"The taxable benefit is list price × percentage. You then pay income tax on that at your rate, and the employer pays Class 1A NICs on it.",[12,8962,8963],{},"The practical consequence: a cheaper car with high emissions can cost more in tax than a pricier car with very low ones.",[24,8965,8967],{"id":8966},"how-the-benefit-is-built","How the benefit is built",[29,8969,8970,8978],{},[32,8971,8972],{},[35,8973,8974,8976],{},[38,8975,1668],{},[38,8977,913],{},[51,8979,8980,8988,8996,9004,9012],{},[35,8981,8982,8985],{},[56,8983,8984],{},"List price (P11D value), including options",[56,8986,8987],{},"£35,000",[35,8989,8990,8993],{},[56,8991,8992],{},"Appropriate percentage, driven by CO2",[56,8994,8995],{},"25%",[35,8997,8998,9001],{},[56,8999,9000],{},"Taxable benefit",[56,9002,9003],{},"£8,750",[35,9005,9006,9009],{},[56,9007,9008],{},"Your marginal tax rate",[56,9010,9011],{},"40%",[35,9013,9014,9019],{},[56,9015,9016],{},[19,9017,9018],{},"Income tax you pay per year",[56,9020,9021],{},[19,9022,9023],{},"£3,500",[12,9025,9026],{},"Change only the CO2 figure and the answer moves enormously:",[29,9028,9029,9042],{},[32,9030,9031],{},[35,9032,9033,9036,9039],{},[38,9034,9035],{},"Appropriate percentage",[38,9037,9038],{},"Taxable benefit on £35,000",[38,9040,9041],{},"Tax at 40%",[51,9043,9044,9057,9068,9076],{},[35,9045,9046,9049,9052],{},[56,9047,9048],{},"2% (typical electric)",[56,9050,9051],{},"£700",[56,9053,9054],{},[19,9055,9056],{},"£280",[35,9058,9059,9062,9065],{},[56,9060,9061],{},"12%",[56,9063,9064],{},"£4,200",[56,9066,9067],{},"£1,680",[35,9069,9070,9072,9074],{},[56,9071,8995],{},[56,9073,9003],{},[56,9075,9023],{},[35,9077,9078,9081,9084],{},[56,9079,9080],{},"37% (high emitter)",[56,9082,9083],{},"£12,950",[56,9085,9086],{},"£5,180",[12,9088,9089],{},"A cheaper car with high emissions can easily cost more tax than a pricier low-emission one.",[24,9091,9093],{"id":9092},"fuel-is-a-separate-decision","Fuel is a separate decision",[12,9095,9096,9097,9100,9101,9103],{},"If the employer also pays for ",[19,9098,9099],{},"private"," fuel, there is a ",[19,9102,8079],{}," on top, and it is calculated from a fixed multiplier and the same CO2 percentage, not from how much fuel you actually used.",[12,9105,9106],{},"That makes it a bad deal for anyone with modest private mileage. Many drivers are better off repaying the cost of private fuel, using Advisory Fuel Rates as the yardstick, and avoiding the charge entirely.",[12,9108,9109],{},"You cannot work out which side you are on without knowing your private mileage. Which means you need the log before you can make the decision.",[24,9111,9113],{"id":9112},"company-car-or-your-own-car","Company car or your own car?",[12,9115,9116],{},"The alternative is running your own car and claiming approved mileage rates, 45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles, then 25p, tax-free.",[12,9118,9119],{},"Very roughly:",[137,9121,9122,9128,9134],{},[140,9123,9124,9127],{},[19,9125,9126],{},"High business mileage, modest car",": your own car often wins, because 45p a mile is generous against a cheap vehicle's real costs.",[140,9129,9130,9133],{},[19,9131,9132],{},"Low business mileage, expensive or low-emission car",": the company car often wins, because there is little mileage to claim and the benefit charge on an EV is small.",[140,9135,9136,9139],{},[19,9137,9138],{},"Anything in between",": do the arithmetic, and do it with real mileage figures rather than an estimate.",[24,9141,9143],{"id":9142},"the-thing-to-do-first","The thing to do first",[12,9145,9146],{},"Before comparing anything, get an accurate picture of how many business and private miles you actually drive. Almost everyone guesses this badly, usually overestimating business use.",[12,9148,9149],{},"Milesheet keeps each vehicle separate and splits the miles as you go, so when the company car conversation comes round you are choosing on your own numbers.",[24,9151,518],{"id":517},[137,9153,9154,9159,9164,9169],{},[140,9155,9156],{},[524,9157,4211],{"href":555,"rel":9158},[528],[140,9160,9161],{},[524,9162,536],{"href":534,"rel":9163},[528],[140,9165,9166],{},[524,9167,529],{"href":526,"rel":9168},[528],[140,9170,9171],{},[524,9172,1817],{"href":1815,"rel":9173},[528],[566,9175],{},[12,9177,9178],{},[571,9179,9180],{},"General information, not tax advice. Benefit-in-kind percentages are set years ahead and change: check the current tables for the tax year you are choosing in.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":9182},[9183,9184,9185,9186,9187,9188],{"id":8926,"depth":576,"text":8927},{"id":8966,"depth":576,"text":8967},{"id":9092,"depth":576,"text":9093},{"id":9112,"depth":576,"text":9113},{"id":9142,"depth":576,"text":9143},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-12-04","List price, CO2 and the benefit-in-kind percentage do more to your take-home than the car does to your commute.","\u002Fshots\u002Fvehicles.png","Several vehicles kept side by side in Milesheet, each with its own economy",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fchoosing-a-company-car-the-numbers",{"title":8912,"description":9190},"blog\u002Fchoosing-a-company-car-the-numbers",[4248,9198,9199],"benefit in kind","business cars","j1wW2WNVozdyJY7VwbTLcNRv1r4qLziqeN2W4Pr5mwE",{"id":9202,"title":9203,"author":7,"body":9204,"category":2858,"date":9451,"description":9452,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":9453,"imageAlt":9454,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":9455,"navigation":595,"path":9456,"readTime":1462,"seo":9457,"stem":9458,"tags":9459,"__hash__":9462},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-milesheet-has-no-account.md","Why Milesheet has no account, and what that costs us",{"type":9,"value":9205,"toc":9442},[9206,9209,9212,9216,9219,9222,9225,9229,9232,9264,9267,9271,9289,9293,9413,9416,9420,9423,9426,9430,9433,9435],[12,9207,9208],{},"There is no sign-up screen in Milesheet. There is no server holding your journeys, no password, and no way for us to see where you have driven, because there is nothing to see it with.",[12,9210,9211],{},"That was a deliberate choice, and it is not a free one.",[24,9213,9215],{"id":9214},"what-a-location-log-actually-is","What a location log actually is",[12,9217,9218],{},"A mileage tracker knows where you live, where you work, who your clients are, when you are away from the house and how long for. It is one of the most sensitive datasets an ordinary person generates, and it is generated automatically, in the background, for years.",[12,9220,9221],{},"The industry norm is to sync all of that to a server so it can be restored, shared and analysed. That is a genuine convenience. It also means a breach at a company you have never thought about exposes a map of your life.",[12,9223,9224],{},"We decided the right amount of your location data for us to hold was none.",[24,9226,9228],{"id":9227},"what-we-gave-up","What we gave up",[12,9230,9231],{},"Being honest about the trade:",[137,9233,9234,9240,9246,9252,9258],{},[140,9235,9236,9239],{},[19,9237,9238],{},"No cross-device sync out of the box."," Your journeys live on the phone that recorded them.",[140,9241,9242,9245],{},[19,9243,9244],{},"No web dashboard."," There is no server to serve one.",[140,9247,9248,9251],{},[19,9249,9250],{},"No \"log in on your new phone and it is all there\"."," You restore from a backup file instead.",[140,9253,9254,9257],{},[19,9255,9256],{},"No usage analytics."," We genuinely do not know which features are used most, which makes the app harder to improve.",[140,9259,9260,9263],{},[19,9261,9262],{},"No password reset",", because there is nothing to reset, which means if you lose the phone and the backup, the data is gone.",[12,9265,9266],{},"That last one is the real cost, and it is why the app nags about backups.",[24,9268,9270],{"id":9269},"what-you-get","What you get",[137,9272,9273,9276,9279,9282],{},[140,9274,9275],{},"No account to create, verify, or remember",[140,9277,9278],{},"Nothing to breach, because there is no central store",[140,9280,9281],{},"No subscription, because there is no server to pay for, hence one payment",[140,9283,9284,9285,9288],{},"Exports that go ",[19,9286,9287],{},"only"," where you point them: your own Files folder, your own cloud drive, your own NAS",[24,9290,9292],{"id":9291},"the-trade-stated-plainly","The trade, stated plainly",[29,9294,9295,9307],{},[32,9296,9297],{},[35,9298,9299,9301,9304],{},[38,9300],{},[38,9302,9303],{},"With an account",[38,9305,9306],{},"Milesheet's way",[51,9308,9309,9320,9331,9342,9352,9363,9375,9388,9400],{},[35,9310,9311,9314,9316],{},[56,9312,9313],{},"Sign-up required",[56,9315,67],{},[56,9317,9318],{},[19,9319,80],{},[35,9321,9322,9325,9327],{},[56,9323,9324],{},"Your locations on someone's server",[56,9326,67],{},[56,9328,9329],{},[19,9330,80],{},[35,9332,9333,9336,9339],{},[56,9334,9335],{},"Restore on a new phone",[56,9337,9338],{},"Automatic",[56,9340,9341],{},"From a backup file you keep",[35,9343,9344,9347,9350],{},[56,9345,9346],{},"Web dashboard",[56,9348,9349],{},"Usually",[56,9351,80],{},[35,9353,9354,9357,9360],{},[56,9355,9356],{},"Cross-device sync",[56,9358,9359],{},"Built in",[56,9361,9362],{},"Via your own cloud folder",[35,9364,9365,9368,9370],{},[56,9366,9367],{},"Usage analytics informing the app",[56,9369,67],{},[56,9371,9372,9374],{},[19,9373,80],{},", we cannot see anything",[35,9376,9377,9380,9383],{},[56,9378,9379],{},"Breach exposes your movements",[56,9381,9382],{},"Possible",[56,9384,9385],{},[19,9386,9387],{},"Nothing to breach",[35,9389,9390,9393,9395],{},[56,9391,9392],{},"Subscription needed to fund servers",[56,9394,9349],{},[56,9396,9397],{},[19,9398,9399],{},"No servers, one payment",[35,9401,9402,9405,9408],{},[56,9403,9404],{},"Lose phone and backup",[56,9406,9407],{},"Recoverable",[56,9409,9410],{},[19,9411,9412],{},"Data is gone",[12,9414,9415],{},"The last row is the real cost, and it is why the app keeps mentioning backups.",[24,9417,9419],{"id":9418},"where-your-data-does-go-if-you-ask-it-to","Where your data does go, if you ask it to",[12,9421,9422],{},"Sync is opt-in and it is yours. Point it at iCloud Drive, a folder in Files, or a WebDAV server on your own network, and Milesheet writes always-current CSVs and a full backup there. Each destination reports whether it actually worked, because a silent sync failure is worse than none.",[12,9424,9425],{},"Nothing is uploaded anywhere else, at any point, for any reason.",[24,9427,9429],{"id":9428},"the-one-thing-to-do","The one thing to do",[12,9431,9432],{},"Take a backup, and put it somewhere that is not the phone. That is the price of not having a server, and it takes about fifteen seconds.",[24,9434,518],{"id":517},[137,9436,9437],{},[140,9438,9439],{},[524,9440,564],{"href":562,"rel":9441},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":9443},[9444,9445,9446,9447,9448,9449,9450],{"id":9214,"depth":576,"text":9215},{"id":9227,"depth":576,"text":9228},{"id":9269,"depth":576,"text":9270},{"id":9291,"depth":576,"text":9292},{"id":9418,"depth":576,"text":9419},{"id":9428,"depth":576,"text":9429},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-11-27","Every mileage app wants a login. Here is what we gave up by not having one, and what you get in return.","\u002Fshots\u002Fsettings.png","Milesheet settings. No account, because there is nothing to sign in to",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-milesheet-has-no-account",{"title":9203,"description":9452},"blog\u002Fwhy-milesheet-has-no-account",[8702,9460,9461],"privacy","design","PaHqQsaxZvZ3OaVejva_hf6vwjo5GWDM97Bc7nP6N0U",{"id":9464,"title":9465,"author":7,"body":9466,"category":587,"date":9653,"description":9654,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":8695,"imageAlt":9655,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":9656,"navigation":595,"path":9657,"readTime":1462,"seo":9658,"stem":9659,"tags":9660,"__hash__":9663},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-volunteers-and-charity.md","Driving for a charity: what volunteers can claim",{"type":9,"value":9467,"toc":9644},[9468,9474,9477,9481,9488,9491,9495,9498,9504,9508,9588,9591,9595,9598,9601,9605,9608,9611,9615,9618,9620,9637,9639],[4986,9469,9470],{},[12,9471,9472,4993],{},[19,9473,4992],{},[12,9475,9476],{},"Community transport, hospital lifts, meals rounds, ferrying kit to fixtures. A great deal of charitable work happens in private cars, and much of it is quietly subsidised by the drivers.",[24,9478,9480],{"id":9479},"reimbursement-not-a-claim-against-tax","Reimbursement, not a claim against tax",[12,9482,9483,9484,9487],{},"The important distinction: as a volunteer you are not an employee, and you are generally not claiming tax relief. What you are doing is being ",[19,9485,9486],{},"reimbursed by the organisation"," for costs you incurred on its behalf.",[12,9489,9490],{},"That is a different mechanism with a simpler test. If the charity reimburses your actual motoring costs for volunteer journeys, and the payment does no more than cover them, it is not income and there is nothing to tax.",[24,9492,9494],{"id":9493},"where-the-approved-rates-come-in","Where the approved rates come in",[12,9496,9497],{},"Charities commonly reimburse at HMRC's approved mileage rates, 45p a mile for the first 10,000 miles, then 25p, because those rates are already accepted as a reasonable proxy for the cost of running a car. Paying at or below them keeps the arrangement clean.",[12,9499,9500,9501,9503],{},"Pay a volunteer ",[19,9502,163],{}," than the approved rates and the excess starts to look like earnings rather than reimbursement, with the consequences that implies for both sides.",[24,9505,9507],{"id":9506},"reimbursement-versus-a-claim","Reimbursement versus a claim",[29,9509,9510,9522],{},[32,9511,9512],{},[35,9513,9514,9516,9519],{},[38,9515],{},[38,9517,9518],{},"Volunteer",[38,9520,9521],{},"Employee",[51,9523,9524,9534,9545,9555,9566,9579],{},[35,9525,9526,9529,9532],{},[56,9527,9528],{},"Relationship",[56,9530,9531],{},"Reimbursed by the organisation",[56,9533,1316],{},[35,9535,9536,9539,9542],{},[56,9537,9538],{},"Mechanism",[56,9540,9541],{},"Repayment of actual costs",[56,9543,9544],{},"Approved mileage payments",[35,9546,9547,9550,9553],{},[56,9548,9549],{},"Tax if paid at or below approved rates",[56,9551,9552],{},"Not taxable",[56,9554,9552],{},[35,9556,9557,9560,9563],{},[56,9558,9559],{},"Tax if paid above",[56,9561,9562],{},"Starts to look like earnings",[56,9564,9565],{},"Excess is taxable",[35,9567,9568,9571,9576],{},[56,9569,9570],{},"Tax relief if paid nothing",[56,9572,9573],{},[19,9574,9575],{},"Generally none",[56,9577,9578],{},"Mileage Allowance Relief available",[35,9580,9581,9583,9586],{},[56,9582,8117],{},[56,9584,9585],{},"Per-journey log",[56,9587,9585],{},[12,9589,9590],{},"The row that surprises people is the fifth: a volunteer paid nothing generally has no relief to\nclaim, unlike an employee.",[24,9592,9594],{"id":9593},"the-thing-that-trips-organisations-up","The thing that trips organisations up",[12,9596,9597],{},"Reimbursement needs to be for journeys actually made. A flat monthly payment to a volunteer driver, unconnected to any record of mileage, is not a reimbursement of costs. It is a payment, and it may be taxable.",[12,9599,9600],{},"The fix is unglamorous: a per-journey record showing the date, the route, the purpose and the distance. Exactly the same evidence a business claim needs, for exactly the same reason.",[24,9602,9604],{"id":9603},"if-you-are-the-volunteer","If you are the volunteer",[12,9606,9607],{},"Keep the record even if the charity currently pays nothing. Small organisations often do not realise volunteers are absorbing real money, and a year of logged journeys with a total attached is a far better conversation-starter than a feeling that you are out of pocket.",[12,9609,9610],{},"It also means that if a reimbursement policy does appear, you can claim from the date it starts rather than from the date you began writing things down.",[24,9612,9614],{"id":9613},"insurance-briefly","Insurance, briefly",[12,9616,9617],{},"Check that your policy covers voluntary work. Some insurers treat it as social, domestic and pleasure; others want it declaring, particularly if you are carrying members of the public. Most do not charge for it, but almost all want to be asked.",[24,9619,518],{"id":517},[137,9621,9622,9627,9632],{},[140,9623,9624],{},[524,9625,529],{"href":526,"rel":9626},[528],[140,9628,9629],{},[524,9630,536],{"href":534,"rel":9631},[528],[140,9633,9634],{},[524,9635,543],{"href":541,"rel":9636},[528],[566,9638],{},[12,9640,9641],{},[571,9642,9643],{},"General information, not tax advice. Charities should check their own reimbursement policy against current guidance.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":9645},[9646,9647,9648,9649,9650,9651,9652],{"id":9479,"depth":576,"text":9480},{"id":9493,"depth":576,"text":9494},{"id":9506,"depth":576,"text":9507},{"id":9593,"depth":576,"text":9594},{"id":9603,"depth":576,"text":9604},{"id":9613,"depth":576,"text":9614},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-11-20","Volunteer drivers are not employees, the rates are not quite the same conversation, and a lot of people are out of pocket unnecessarily.","Sorting journeys in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-volunteers-and-charity",{"title":9465,"description":9654},"blog\u002Fmileage-for-volunteers-and-charity",[602,9661,9662],"volunteering","charity","gRiR0GLqtUMBshWmglbNo6VX8Uzu1_oIFRRaupApmlU",{"id":9665,"title":9666,"author":7,"body":9667,"category":587,"date":9960,"description":9961,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":9962,"imageAlt":9963,"imageCredit":9964,"imageCreditUrl":9965,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":9966,"navigation":595,"path":9967,"readTime":1462,"seo":9968,"stem":9969,"tags":9970,"__hash__":9972},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fcontractors-and-business-travel.md","Contracting: the travel rules that cost the most to get wrong",{"type":9,"value":9668,"toc":9951},[9669,9672,9676,9684,9687,9691,9698,9703,9722,9725,9729,9813,9817,9877,9881,9884,9901,9904,9908,9911,9917,9920,9922,9944,9946],[12,9670,9671],{},"Contracting produces exactly the pattern the temporary workplace rules were written for, and exactly the ambiguity that makes them expensive.",[24,9673,9675],{"id":9674},"the-basic-position","The basic position",[12,9677,634,9678,9680,9681,9683],{},[19,9679,637],{}," is business travel. Travel to a ",[19,9682,623],{}," is commuting and is not claimable.",[12,9685,9686],{},"For a contractor moving between client sites, most engagements start out looking temporary, which is why the travel is usually claimable, and why it is worth understanding when that stops being true.",[24,9688,9690],{"id":9689},"the-24-month-rule-applied-to-a-contract","The 24-month rule, applied to a contract",[12,9692,9693,9694,9697],{},"A workplace ceases to be temporary once you have attended, or ",[19,9695,9696],{},"expect to attend",", for more than 24 months, where attendance is for a significant part of your working time.",[12,9699,9700,9701,3123],{},"The word that matters is ",[571,9702,648],{},[137,9704,9705,9708,9715],{},[140,9706,9707],{},"A twelve-month contract, expected to be twelve months: temporary. Travel claimable.",[140,9709,9710,9711,9714],{},"A three-year contract, known on day one: ",[19,9712,9713],{},"permanent from day one",". No claimable travel at all, not even for the first 24 months.",[140,9716,9717,9718,9721],{},"A twelve-month contract extended twice, where at month 20 it becomes clear it will run past two years: travel stops being claimable ",[19,9719,9720],{},"from the moment the expectation changed",", not at month 24.",[12,9723,9724],{},"That third case is the one that catches people, because nothing visible happens on the day the position changes.",[24,9726,9728],{"id":9727},"how-the-engagement-shape-changes-the-answer","How the engagement shape changes the answer",[29,9730,9731,9745],{},[32,9732,9733],{},[35,9734,9735,9738,9741,9743],{},[38,9736,9737],{},"Engagement",[38,9739,9740],{},"Expected length",[38,9742,3166],{},[38,9744,3169],{},[51,9746,9747,9759,9771,9785,9801],{},[35,9748,9749,9752,9755,9757],{},[56,9750,9751],{},"6-month contract",[56,9753,9754],{},"6 months",[56,9756,67],{},[56,9758,3181],{},[35,9760,9761,9764,9767,9769],{},[56,9762,9763],{},"12-month, extended to 18",[56,9765,9766],{},"18 months",[56,9768,67],{},[56,9770,3181],{},[35,9772,9773,9776,9779,9782],{},[56,9774,9775],{},"12-month, extended to 30 at month 20",[56,9777,9778],{},"Over 24",[56,9780,9781],{},"Until month 20",[56,9783,9784],{},"Up to the extension only",[35,9786,9787,9790,9793,9797],{},[56,9788,9789],{},"36-month contract from the outset",[56,9791,9792],{},"36 months",[56,9794,9795],{},[19,9796,80],{},[56,9798,9799],{},[19,9800,6713],{},[35,9802,9803,9806,9809,9811],{},[56,9804,9805],{},"30 months, one day a fortnight",[56,9807,9808],{},"Over 24, low attendance",[56,9810,67],{},[56,9812,3181],{},[24,9814,9816],{"id":9815},"which-route-the-claim-takes","Which route the claim takes",[29,9818,9819,9831],{},[32,9820,9821],{},[35,9822,9823,9826,9828],{},[38,9824,9825],{},"Structure",[38,9827,9538],{},[38,9829,9830],{},"Typical restriction",[51,9832,9833,9844,9855,9866],{},[35,9834,9835,9838,9841],{},[56,9836,9837],{},"Own limited company",[56,9839,9840],{},"Company reimburses at approved rates, tax-free",[56,9842,9843],{},"Record must support it",[35,9845,9846,9849,9852],{},[56,9847,9848],{},"Umbrella",[56,9850,9851],{},"Expenses generally restricted",[56,9853,9854],{},"Usually not claimable under SDC",[35,9856,9857,9860,9863],{},[56,9858,9859],{},"Agency PAYE",[56,9861,9862],{},"Similar restrictions",[56,9864,9865],{},"Usually not claimable",[35,9867,9868,9871,9874],{},[56,9869,9870],{},"Self-employed, direct",[56,9872,9873],{},"Simplified expenses or actual costs",[56,9875,9876],{},"Choice is per vehicle",[24,9878,9880],{"id":9879},"umbrella-limited-company-or-agency-payroll","Umbrella, limited company, or agency payroll",[12,9882,9883],{},"The mechanics of the claim differ:",[137,9885,9886,9891,9896],{},[140,9887,9888,9890],{},[19,9889,9837],{},": the company reimburses you at approved mileage rates, tax-free, and deducts the cost. You are an employee of your own company for this purpose.",[140,9892,9893,9895],{},[19,9894,9848],{},": expenses are generally restricted, and travel to a workplace under supervision, direction or control is usually not claimable at all.",[140,9897,9898,9900],{},[19,9899,9859],{},": similar restrictions apply.",[12,9902,9903],{},"The underlying travel rules do not change; what changes is whether there is a route to claim through.",[24,9905,9907],{"id":9906},"the-record-is-the-defence","The record is the defence",[12,9909,9910],{},"Contractor travel claims are looked at more often than most, because the sums are larger and the temporary-workplace question is genuinely arguable. A contemporaneous journey log, recorded as you drive, not reconstructed at year end, is the difference between a position and an assertion.",[12,9912,9913,9914,9916],{},"Record every journey, tag the client site as ",[19,9915,2619],{}," while it is genuinely temporary, and if a contract extends past the point where you expect to be there more than two years, change the tag from that date. The history stays, the claim adjusts, and the record shows exactly when your expectation changed and why.",[12,9918,9919],{},"That last part is worth more than it sounds. \"I stopped claiming in month 20 because the second extension was signed\" is a defensible story with a date attached.",[24,9921,518],{"id":517},[137,9923,9924,9929,9934,9939],{},[140,9925,9926],{},[524,9927,997],{"href":995,"rel":9928},[528],[140,9930,9931],{},[524,9932,1004],{"href":1002,"rel":9933},[528],[140,9935,9936],{},[524,9937,543],{"href":541,"rel":9938},[528],[140,9940,9941],{},[524,9942,564],{"href":562,"rel":9943},[528],[566,9945],{},[12,9947,9948],{},[571,9949,9950],{},"General information, not tax advice. Contractor travel is fact-sensitive and the umbrella position in particular has changed over time: take advice on your own arrangement.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":9952},[9953,9954,9955,9956,9957,9958,9959],{"id":9674,"depth":576,"text":9675},{"id":9689,"depth":576,"text":9690},{"id":9727,"depth":576,"text":9728},{"id":9815,"depth":576,"text":9816},{"id":9879,"depth":576,"text":9880},{"id":9906,"depth":576,"text":9907},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-11-13","Site-based work, the 24-month clock, and why the first day of a contract can decide whether any of the travel is claimable.","\u002Fblog\u002Fcontractors-and-business-travel.jpg","A modern glass office building","Photo by Kiran891, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=134351811",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fcontractors-and-business-travel",{"title":9666,"description":9961},"blog\u002Fcontractors-and-business-travel",[9971,637,602],"contractors","Nzwp27kGN8ncGCSUT_aNW4W6CV_PxgtuKBmDhwojN7w",{"id":9974,"title":9975,"author":7,"body":9976,"category":587,"date":10170,"description":10171,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":9191,"imageAlt":10172,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":10173,"navigation":595,"path":10174,"readTime":1462,"seo":10175,"stem":10176,"tags":10177,"__hash__":10179},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fpool-cars-the-rules.md","Pool cars: the rules that make one work",{"type":9,"value":9977,"toc":10162},[9978,9981,9983,9986,10011,10014,10018,10024,10030,10034,10095,10098,10102,10109,10112,10115,10119,10133,10136,10138,10155,10157],[12,9979,9980],{},"A pool car is a company vehicle available to several employees for business use, with no taxable benefit on anyone. It is a genuinely useful arrangement, and it fails more often than it works because the conditions are stricter than people assume.",[24,9982,3514],{"id":3513},[12,9984,9985],{},"To be a pool car, essentially all of the following must hold:",[137,9987,9988,9994,9999,10006],{},[140,9989,9990,9991],{},"It is ",[19,9992,9993],{},"available to, and actually used by, more than one employee",[140,9995,9990,9996],{},[19,9997,9998],{},"not ordinarily used by one employee to the exclusion of others",[140,10000,10001,10002,10005],{},"Any ",[19,10003,10004],{},"private use is merely incidental"," to business use",[140,10007,9990,10008],{},[19,10009,10010],{},"not normally kept overnight at or near an employee's home",[12,10012,10013],{},"Miss one and it stops being a pool car, and a benefit-in-kind charge lands on whoever it was available to, which is usually a considerably worse outcome than the arrangement was trying to avoid.",[24,10015,10017],{"id":10016},"the-two-that-break-most-arrangements","The two that break most arrangements",[12,10019,10020,10023],{},[19,10021,10022],{},"\"Merely incidental\" private use."," This is a high bar and it is not the same as \"a bit of private use\". The classic example that qualifies is taking the car home the night before an early start to a distant meeting. The private journey exists only because of the business one. Popping to the shops in it does not qualify, however small the detour.",[12,10025,10026,10029],{},[19,10027,10028],{},"The overnight test."," A car parked at an employee's house most nights is not a pool car, whatever the policy document says. HMRC looks at what actually happened, and a pattern is easy to see.",[24,10031,10033],{"id":10032},"the-conditions-and-what-fails-them","The conditions, and what fails them",[29,10035,10036,10049],{},[32,10037,10038],{},[35,10039,10040,10043,10046],{},[38,10041,10042],{},"Condition",[38,10044,10045],{},"Passes",[38,10047,10048],{},"Fails",[51,10050,10051,10062,10073,10084],{},[35,10052,10053,10056,10059],{},[56,10054,10055],{},"Used by more than one employee",[56,10057,10058],{},"Five staff share it",[56,10060,10061],{},"One person always takes it",[35,10063,10064,10067,10070],{},[56,10065,10066],{},"Not ordinarily used by one to the exclusion of others",[56,10068,10069],{},"Booked out by whoever needs it",[56,10071,10072],{},"Effectively assigned to the sales manager",[35,10074,10075,10078,10081],{},[56,10076,10077],{},"Private use merely incidental",[56,10079,10080],{},"Home the night before a 6am departure",[56,10082,10083],{},"Weekly supermarket run",[35,10085,10086,10089,10092],{},[56,10087,10088],{},"Not normally kept overnight at a home",[56,10090,10091],{},"Parked at the depot",[56,10093,10094],{},"On a drive four nights a week",[12,10096,10097],{},"Miss any one and the benefit-in-kind charge lands on whoever the car was available to, which is\nusually far worse than the arrangement was avoiding.",[24,10099,10101],{"id":10100},"proving-it","Proving it",[12,10103,10104,10105,10108],{},"The burden is on the employer, and the evidence expected is a ",[19,10106,10107],{},"mileage log per journey",": date, driver, from, to, purpose and distance.",[12,10110,10111],{},"\"It is a pool car\" is a claim. A log showing six different drivers, all journeys business, and the car at the premises overnight is proof.",[12,10113,10114],{},"This is precisely the sort of record nobody keeps until they need it, and it cannot be reconstructed afterwards, which is why pool car arrangements tend to collapse under the first question rather than the tenth.",[24,10116,10118],{"id":10117},"practical-setup","Practical setup",[137,10120,10121,10124,10127,10130],{},[140,10122,10123],{},"Keep the car at business premises overnight, and record where it was kept",[140,10125,10126],{},"Log every journey with the driver named",[140,10128,10129],{},"Have a written policy prohibiting private use, and be able to show it was followed rather than just written",[140,10131,10132],{},"Review the log periodically for the pattern of one person using it exclusively, which creeps in without anyone deciding it should",[12,10134,10135],{},"Milesheet keeps each vehicle separate with its own journey history, so a pool vehicle's log is a complete record of who went where. The evidence the arrangement stands or falls on.",[24,10137,518],{"id":517},[137,10139,10140,10145,10150],{},[140,10141,10142],{},[524,10143,536],{"href":534,"rel":10144},[528],[140,10146,10147],{},[524,10148,4211],{"href":555,"rel":10149},[528],[140,10151,10152],{},[524,10153,997],{"href":995,"rel":10154},[528],[566,10156],{},[12,10158,10159],{},[571,10160,10161],{},"General information, not tax advice. Pool car status is tested on the facts: if you are relying on it, get the arrangement reviewed.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":10163},[10164,10165,10166,10167,10168,10169],{"id":3513,"depth":576,"text":3514},{"id":10016,"depth":576,"text":10017},{"id":10032,"depth":576,"text":10033},{"id":10100,"depth":576,"text":10101},{"id":10117,"depth":576,"text":10118},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-11-06","A genuine pool car carries no benefit-in-kind charge. Most cars businesses call pool cars are not pool cars.","Vehicles kept separately in Milesheet, each with its own journey history",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fpool-cars-the-rules",{"title":9975,"description":10171},"blog\u002Fpool-cars-the-rules",[10178,9199,602],"pool cars","5p0wrB2keW7H0dp3zhSGqzJERqE2pECzCrsJj55Ca3Y",{"id":10181,"title":10182,"author":7,"body":10183,"category":2858,"date":10399,"description":10400,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":2861,"imageAlt":10401,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":10402,"navigation":595,"path":10403,"readTime":576,"seo":10404,"stem":10405,"tags":10406,"__hash__":10407},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fgetting-a-year-of-history-in.md","Getting a year of driving into Milesheet after the fact",{"type":9,"value":10184,"toc":10391},[10185,10188,10192,10197,10200,10203,10216,10220,10223,10227,10230,10254,10261,10265,10362,10365,10369,10372,10374],[12,10186,10187],{},"Almost nobody starts recording on 6 April. Most people start when something prompts them. A tax bill, an accountant's email, a realisation that a year of driving went unrecorded. The half-year behind you is still worth recovering.",[24,10189,10191],{"id":10190},"if-you-have-a-csv-from-another-app","If you have a CSV from another app",[12,10193,10194,10195,3123],{},"The quickest route. Export from the old app, then ",[19,10196,2789],{},[12,10198,10199],{},"Milesheet reads most formats because you map the columns yourself: which one is the date, which is the distance, which are the start and end places. Only date and distance are required. Duplicates of trips you already have are skipped, so importing twice does not double your mileage.",[12,10201,10202],{},"Check two things afterwards:",[137,10204,10205,10210],{},[140,10206,10207,10209],{},[19,10208,2594],{}," If the old app exported kilometres and you told Milesheet miles, everything is 60% too small and the claim with it.",[140,10211,10212,10215],{},[19,10213,10214],{},"Classification."," Some exports carry business\u002Fpersonal, some do not. If not, everything lands unclassified and you sort it in the Classify deck.",[24,10217,10219],{"id":10218},"if-you-have-a-spreadsheet","If you have a spreadsheet",[12,10221,10222],{},"Same route. Save it as CSV, map the columns. A spreadsheet with dates, distances and a note of where you went imports as well as any app export.",[24,10224,10226],{"id":10225},"if-you-have-nothing-but-a-diary-and-a-bank-statement","If you have nothing but a diary and a bank statement",[12,10228,10229],{},"Harder, and worth being honest about: what you can reconstruct is not as strong as a contemporaneous record. But it is far better than nothing, and there are more anchors than people realise.",[137,10231,10232,10237,10243,10248],{},[140,10233,10234,10236],{},[19,10235,6529],{}," gives dates and destinations for meetings",[140,10238,10239,10242],{},[19,10240,10241],{},"Invoices"," tell you which client you visited and when",[140,10244,10245,10247],{},[19,10246,6545],{}," put you at a place on a date, and the odometer readings between them tell you how far the car actually went",[140,10249,10250,10253],{},[19,10251,10252],{},"Odometer readings"," at MOT are recorded and give you a total for the year",[12,10255,10256,10257,10260],{},"Add the journeys you can evidence by hand, ",[19,10258,10259],{},"Trips → +",", and leave out the ones you genuinely cannot. A shorter honest log beats a longer invented one, and a reconstructed claim that agrees with your invoices and fuel receipts is defensible in a way that a round number is not.",[24,10262,10264],{"id":10263},"what-each-source-can-give-you","What each source can give you",[29,10266,10267,10280],{},[32,10268,10269],{},[35,10270,10271,10274,10277],{},[38,10272,10273],{},"Source",[38,10275,10276],{},"Gives you",[38,10278,10279],{},"Strength",[51,10281,10282,10296,10307,10318,10327,10337,10348],{},[35,10283,10284,10287,10290],{},[56,10285,10286],{},"CSV from another app",[56,10288,10289],{},"Dates, distances, often places",[56,10291,10292,10295],{},[19,10293,10294],{},"Strongest",", contemporaneous",[35,10297,10298,10301,10304],{},[56,10299,10300],{},"Spreadsheet you kept",[56,10302,10303],{},"Whatever you recorded",[56,10305,10306],{},"Strong if kept as you went",[35,10308,10309,10312,10315],{},[56,10310,10311],{},"Calendar",[56,10313,10314],{},"Dates and destinations of meetings",[56,10316,10317],{},"Good corroboration",[35,10319,10320,10322,10325],{},[56,10321,10241],{},[56,10323,10324],{},"Which client, which week",[56,10326,10317],{},[35,10328,10329,10331,10334],{},[56,10330,6545],{},[56,10332,10333],{},"Where you were, when",[56,10335,10336],{},"Places you at a location on a date",[35,10338,10339,10342,10345],{},[56,10340,10341],{},"Odometer at MOT",[56,10343,10344],{},"Total miles for the year",[56,10346,10347],{},"Bounds the whole reconstruction",[35,10349,10350,10353,10356],{},[56,10351,10352],{},"Memory alone",[56,10354,10355],{},"Very little",[56,10357,10358,10361],{},[19,10359,10360],{},"Weakest",", avoid relying on it",[12,10363,10364],{},"A reconstruction that agrees with three of these is defensible. One built only from the last row is\nnot, and is better left out.",[24,10366,10368],{"id":10367},"then-close-the-gap-for-good","Then close the gap for good",[12,10370,10371],{},"Once the history is in, turn on departure detection so the recording stops depending on you remembering. The reason to do this today rather than in April is that this is the exact situation you are trying not to repeat.",[24,10373,518],{"id":517},[137,10375,10376,10381,10386],{},[140,10377,10378],{},[524,10379,564],{"href":562,"rel":10380},[528],[140,10382,10383],{},[524,10384,543],{"href":541,"rel":10385},[528],[140,10387,10388],{},[524,10389,529],{"href":526,"rel":10390},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":10392},[10393,10394,10395,10396,10397,10398],{"id":10190,"depth":576,"text":10191},{"id":10218,"depth":576,"text":10219},{"id":10225,"depth":576,"text":10226},{"id":10263,"depth":576,"text":10264},{"id":10367,"depth":576,"text":10368},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-10-30","You started in October and the tax year began in April. Here is how to make the first half of the year count.","Import and export options in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fgetting-a-year-of-history-in",{"title":10182,"description":10400},"blog\u002Fgetting-a-year-of-history-in",[8702,2868,1466],"FKwU9UMJkEuv_YMFYPdnvzy0SWWgvsDGHX48hFChIis",{"id":10409,"title":10410,"author":7,"body":10411,"category":1828,"date":10558,"description":10559,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":10560,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":10561,"navigation":595,"path":10562,"readTime":576,"seo":10563,"stem":10564,"tags":10565,"__hash__":10566},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdesignated-driver-economics.md","The economics of always being the one who drives",{"type":9,"value":10412,"toc":10550},[10413,10419,10422,10425,10429,10432,10447,10453,10456,10458,10461,10511,10514,10518,10521,10525,10528,10531,10533,10536,10538],[4986,10414,10415],{},[12,10416,10417,4993],{},[19,10418,4992],{},[12,10420,10421],{},"Every friendship group has one. The person with the estate car, or the one who does not drink, or the one who simply offered once and has been offering ever since.",[12,10423,10424],{},"It is a nice thing to be. It is also, quietly, an expensive one.",[24,10426,10428],{"id":10427},"the-number","The number",[12,10430,10431],{},"Say a 30-mile round trip out and back, twice a month, in a car doing a real 42 mpg with fuel at 145p.",[137,10433,10434,10440],{},[140,10435,10436,10437],{},"60 miles a month is about 6.5 litres, roughly ",[19,10438,10439],{},"£9.40",[140,10441,10442,10443,10446],{},"Over a year, about ",[19,10444,10445],{},"£113"," in fuel alone",[12,10448,10449,10450,3123],{},"That is only the consumable. Add the share of tyres, servicing and depreciation those 720 miles used and the true figure is comfortably double. HMRC reckons the whole cost of running a car at 45p a mile, which would put 720 miles at ",[19,10451,10452],{},"£324",[12,10454,10455],{},"Nobody is suggesting you invoice your friends at HMRC rates. But it is worth knowing that \"just petrol money\" is roughly a third of what the lift actually costs.",[24,10457,3384],{"id":3383},[12,10459,10460],{},"Two 30-mile round trips a month, in a 42 mpg car at 145p:",[29,10462,10463,10475],{},[32,10464,10465],{},[35,10466,10467,10469,10472],{},[38,10468],{},[38,10470,10471],{},"Fuel only",[38,10473,10474],{},"At HMRC's 45p (full running cost)",[51,10476,10477,10488,10497],{},[35,10478,10479,10482,10485],{},[56,10480,10481],{},"Per trip",[56,10483,10484],{},"£4.70",[56,10486,10487],{},"£13.50",[35,10489,10490,10493,10495],{},[56,10491,10492],{},"Per month",[56,10494,10439],{},[56,10496,3253],{},[35,10498,10499,10503,10507],{},[56,10500,10501],{},[19,10502,2280],{},[56,10504,10505],{},[19,10506,10445],{},[56,10508,10509],{},[19,10510,10452],{},[12,10512,10513],{},"Fuel is roughly a third of what the lift actually costs once tyres, servicing and depreciation are\ncounted. Nobody is suggesting you charge friends the full 45p, but \"just petrol money\" is not the\nsame as breaking even, and it is worth knowing which one you are doing.",[24,10515,10517],{"id":10516},"why-nobody-offers","Why nobody offers",[12,10519,10520],{},"Not meanness. It is that the cost is invisible. Passengers see a car that was going there anyway; the driver sees a fuel gauge that moves slightly faster than it used to. Neither has a number, so nothing gets said.",[24,10522,10524],{"id":10523},"making-it-easy-to-settle","Making it easy to settle",[12,10526,10527],{},"The fix is a figure rather than a conversation. Milesheet records the journey, costs it from your car's actual measured economy rather than a guess, and splits it between whoever was in the car, either everyone including you, or the passengers covering the fuel.",[12,10529,10530],{},"Then send the journey as a PDF. It shows the route, the distance and the cost, and it is much easier to respond to than \"do you want to chuck me something for petrol?\".",[24,10532,8873],{"id":8872},[12,10534,10535],{},"Different rules entirely. If you carried colleagues on a genuine business journey, HMRC's passenger payment of 5p a mile per person exists, though for employees it only helps if the employer actually pays it.",[24,10537,518],{"id":517},[137,10539,10540,10545],{},[140,10541,10542],{},[524,10543,529],{"href":526,"rel":10544},[528],[140,10546,10547],{},[524,10548,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":10549},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":10551},[10552,10553,10554,10555,10556,10557],{"id":10427,"depth":576,"text":10428},{"id":3383,"depth":576,"text":3384},{"id":10516,"depth":576,"text":10517},{"id":10523,"depth":576,"text":10524},{"id":8872,"depth":576,"text":8873},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-10-23","If you are the designated driver every time, you are subsidising the evening. What that is actually worth, and how to raise it without being awkward.","Journeys and their real costs in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdesignated-driver-economics",{"title":10410,"description":10559},"blog\u002Fdesignated-driver-economics",[5256,8908,1840],"KqcXI6ewAEfPOPq-DA2fTmthBmwErYhfqEPvlXHpsII",{"id":10568,"title":10569,"author":7,"body":10570,"category":587,"date":10743,"description":10744,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":9191,"imageAlt":10745,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":10746,"navigation":595,"path":10747,"readTime":576,"seo":10748,"stem":10749,"tags":10750,"__hash__":10752},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fclean-air-zones-city-by-city.md","Clean air zones: which cities charge, and who pays",{"type":9,"value":10571,"toc":10735},[10572,10579,10583,10609,10612,10615,10619,10622,10667,10670,10674,10677,10680,10684,10687,10693,10699,10703,10706,10709,10711,10728,10730],[12,10573,10574,10575,10578],{},"There is no national clean air scheme. Each zone is set up by its local authority, and the crucial variable is which ",[19,10576,10577],{},"class"," it is, because that decides which vehicles pay.",[24,10580,10582],{"id":10581},"the-classes","The classes",[137,10584,10585,10591,10597,10603],{},[140,10586,10587,10590],{},[19,10588,10589],{},"Class A",": buses, coaches, taxis and private hire only",[140,10592,10593,10596],{},[19,10594,10595],{},"Class B",": adds heavy goods vehicles",[140,10598,10599,10602],{},[19,10600,10601],{},"Class C",": adds vans and minibuses",[140,10604,10605,10608],{},[19,10606,10607],{},"Class D",": adds cars",[12,10610,10611],{},"The jump from C to D is the one that matters to most drivers. In a class C zone, a compliant van pays nothing and a non-compliant one pays; a private car pays nothing at all regardless. In a class D zone, cars are in scope.",[12,10613,10614],{},"London's arrangements are separate again: the congestion charge and ULEZ are distinct schemes with their own boundaries, hours and rules, and being compliant for one says nothing about the other.",[24,10616,10618],{"id":10617},"what-non-compliance-costs-over-a-year","What non-compliance costs over a year",[12,10620,10621],{},"A van making three trips a week into a class C zone charging £9 a day:",[29,10623,10624,10637],{},[32,10625,10626],{},[35,10627,10628,10631,10634],{},[38,10629,10630],{},"Trips per week",[38,10632,10633],{},"Weeks",[38,10635,10636],{},"Annual charge",[51,10638,10639,10649,10658],{},[35,10640,10641,10643,10646],{},[56,10642,3412],{},[56,10644,10645],{},"46",[56,10647,10648],{},"£414",[35,10650,10651,10653,10655],{},[56,10652,4819],{},[56,10654,10645],{},[56,10656,10657],{},"£1,242",[35,10659,10660,10662,10664],{},[56,10661,4847],{},[56,10663,10645],{},[56,10665,10666],{},"£2,070",[12,10668,10669],{},"Against that, the cost of replacing the van with a compliant one, which is why emissions standards\nrather than mileage have driven fleet replacement in charging cities.",[24,10671,10673],{"id":10672},"compliance-not-age","Compliance, not age",[12,10675,10676],{},"The test is emissions standard, not the year on the plate. Broadly, diesels need to meet Euro 6 and petrols Euro 4 to avoid charges in most zones. A well-kept 2016 diesel may be compliant; a 2014 one probably is not.",[12,10678,10679],{},"Check the specific vehicle rather than assuming from its age. A registration lookup takes seconds and the answer is binary.",[24,10681,10683],{"id":10682},"what-it-means-for-a-business","What it means for a business",[12,10685,10686],{},"Two practical consequences.",[12,10688,10689,10692],{},[19,10690,10691],{},"Route and vehicle choice become a cost decision."," If you run more than one vehicle, the same job can cost £0 or £12.50 depending on which one you take. Over a year of city work that is a real number, and it is one people discover retrospectively on a statement.",[12,10694,10695,10698],{},[19,10696,10697],{},"The charges are claimable, but only per journey."," A clean air charge on a business journey is a legitimate expense, claimed separately from mileage. The identical charge incurred commuting to your permanent workplace is not.",[24,10700,10702],{"id":10701},"keep-them-attached-to-the-journey","Keep them attached to the journey",[12,10704,10705],{},"Charges are usually paid online, often days after the drive, sometimes in a batch covering several trips. By the time it appears on a statement it is a reference number with no context, and working out which of six charges were business is guesswork.",[12,10707,10708],{},"Milesheet takes charges as a cost on the trip they belong to, with a photo of the confirmation, and carries them into the monthly statement beside the mileage. The claimable ones stay identifiable because they never became a list of anonymous payments.",[24,10710,518],{"id":517},[137,10712,10713,10718,10723],{},[140,10714,10715],{},[524,10716,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":10717},[528],[140,10719,10720],{},[524,10721,536],{"href":534,"rel":10722},[528],[140,10724,10725],{},[524,10726,1817],{"href":1815,"rel":10727},[528],[566,10729],{},[12,10731,10732],{},[571,10733,10734],{},"General information, not tax advice. Zone boundaries, classes and charges are set locally and change: check the operating authority.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":10736},[10737,10738,10739,10740,10741,10742],{"id":10581,"depth":576,"text":10582},{"id":10617,"depth":576,"text":10618},{"id":10672,"depth":576,"text":10673},{"id":10682,"depth":576,"text":10683},{"id":10701,"depth":576,"text":10702},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-10-16","Not every zone charges every vehicle. The class of the zone decides whether your car, van or taxi pays anything at all.","Separate vehicles with their own records in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fclean-air-zones-city-by-city",{"title":10569,"description":10744},"blog\u002Fclean-air-zones-city-by-city",[6058,2175,10751],"business driving","HNYMQ6PdfV6IOUasoPzvl1nrylr1Bqn3qPPS16qKRuU",{"id":10754,"title":10755,"author":7,"body":10756,"category":587,"date":11064,"description":11065,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":11066,"imageAlt":11067,"imageCredit":11068,"imageCreditUrl":11069,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":11070,"navigation":595,"path":11071,"readTime":1462,"seo":11072,"stem":11073,"tags":11074,"__hash__":11076},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-tradespeople.md","Mileage for trades: eleven drops a day and no time to write anything down",{"type":9,"value":10757,"toc":11055},[10758,10764,10767,10771,10782,10785,10789,10888,10891,10895,10901,10907,10913,10919,10923,10997,11004,11008,11014,11018,11021,11024,11026,11048,11050],[4986,10759,10760],{},[12,10761,10762,4993],{},[19,10763,4992],{},[12,10765,10766],{},"A plumber doing six calls in a day covers more claimable mileage than an office worker does in a fortnight. They are also the least likely to have recorded any of it, for the obvious reason: nobody stops between jobs to write down a four-mile hop.",[24,10768,10770],{"id":10769},"what-that-costs","What that costs",[12,10772,10773,10774,10777,10778,10781],{},"Six local calls averaging five miles between them is 30 miles a day. Over 230 working days that is roughly ",[19,10775,10776],{},"6,900 business miles",", about ",[19,10779,10780],{},"£3,100"," of allowance at the approved rates.",[12,10783,10784],{},"The miles between jobs are the ones that go missing. The long run to the merchant gets remembered; eleven short hops do not.",[24,10786,10788],{"id":10787},"what-a-working-day-adds-up-to","What a working day adds up to",[29,10790,10791,10809],{},[32,10792,10793],{},[35,10794,10795,10798,10801,10804,10807],{},[38,10796,10797],{},"Calls per day",[38,10799,10800],{},"Miles between",[38,10802,10803],{},"Daily",[38,10805,10806],{},"Annual (230 days)",[38,10808,3240],{},[51,10810,10811,10826,10840,10856,10872],{},[35,10812,10813,10815,10817,10820,10823],{},[56,10814,4833],{},[56,10816,4861],{},[56,10818,10819],{},"24",[56,10821,10822],{},"5,520",[56,10824,10825],{},"£2,484",[35,10827,10828,10830,10832,10834,10837],{},[56,10829,4861],{},[56,10831,4847],{},[56,10833,5086],{},[56,10835,10836],{},"6,900",[56,10838,10839],{},"£3,105",[35,10841,10842,10845,10847,10850,10853],{},[56,10843,10844],{},"8",[56,10846,4833],{},[56,10848,10849],{},"32",[56,10851,10852],{},"7,360",[56,10854,10855],{},"£3,312",[35,10857,10858,10861,10863,10866,10869],{},[56,10859,10860],{},"11",[56,10862,4833],{},[56,10864,10865],{},"44",[56,10867,10868],{},"10,120",[56,10870,10871],{},"£4,530",[35,10873,10874,10877,10879,10882,10885],{},[56,10875,10876],{},"14",[56,10878,4819],{},[56,10880,10881],{},"42",[56,10883,10884],{},"9,660",[56,10886,10887],{},"£4,347",[12,10889,10890],{},"Plus the merchant runs, which are business travel and rarely recorded.",[24,10892,10894],{"id":10893},"the-mistakes-that-cost-most","The mistakes that cost most",[12,10896,10897,10900],{},[19,10898,10899],{},"Recording the day, not the journeys."," \"Tuesday: 40 miles\" is an estimate. It cannot be checked against anything, and it is the pattern most likely to draw a question.",[12,10902,10903,10906],{},[19,10904,10905],{},"Forgetting the merchant run."," A trip to the wholesaler mid-job is business travel. So is the trip to collect a part, and the one back.",[12,10908,10909,10912],{},[19,10910,10911],{},"Treating the first and last journeys as commuting by default."," If you have no permanent workplace, you go from home directly to whichever site is next, the position is different from an employee driving to a fixed office. It is worth establishing which you are, because it changes the first and last journey of every working day, every day.",[12,10914,10915,10918],{},[19,10916,10917],{},"Not separating the van."," If you run a van and a car, they need to be separate records with separate economy. Mixed together, neither figure means anything.",[24,10920,10922],{"id":10921},"which-journeys-count-in-a-trade","Which journeys count in a trade",[29,10924,10925,10933],{},[32,10926,10927],{},[35,10928,10929,10931],{},[38,10930,718],{},[38,10932,721],{},[51,10934,10935,10944,10953,10962,10972,10981,10990],{},[35,10936,10937,10940],{},[56,10938,10939],{},"Home → first job of the day (no fixed base)",[56,10941,10942],{},[19,10943,784],{},[35,10945,10946,10949],{},[56,10947,10948],{},"Home → depot or workshop you attend daily",[56,10950,10951,4545],{},[19,10952,80],{},[35,10954,10955,10958],{},[56,10956,10957],{},"Job → job",[56,10959,10960],{},[19,10961,67],{},[35,10963,10964,10967],{},[56,10965,10966],{},"Job → merchant for parts → job",[56,10968,10969,10971],{},[19,10970,67],{},", both legs",[35,10973,10974,10977],{},[56,10975,10976],{},"Depot → job",[56,10978,10979],{},[19,10980,67],{},[35,10982,10983,10986],{},[56,10984,10985],{},"Last job → home (no fixed base)",[56,10987,10988],{},[19,10989,784],{},[35,10991,10992,10995],{},[56,10993,10994],{},"Detour to collect lunch",[56,10996,854],{},[12,10998,10999,11000,11003],{},"Whether you have a permanent workplace decides the first and last journey of ",[19,11001,11002],{},"every working day",",\nwhich over a year is the largest single item on the list.",[24,11005,11007],{"id":11006},"the-rate-question-for-a-van","The rate question for a van",[12,11009,11010,11011,11013],{},"Vans use the same 45p and 25p rates as cars, which suits an economical small van and can undercook a big one working hard. If your vehicle is thirsty, high-mileage and expensive to maintain, ",[19,11012,1949],{}," may be worth more, but the choice is close to permanent per vehicle, so do the arithmetic before defaulting to the simple option.",[24,11015,11017],{"id":11016},"recording-without-stopping","Recording without stopping",[12,11019,11020],{},"This is the case for automatic recording rather than a notebook. Milesheet notices you leaving where you parked, records the drive, and stops when you have been still for a few minutes, so eleven drops arrive as eleven journeys, each with its own distance and route.",[12,11022,11023],{},"At the end of the week the whole lot sorts in a minute with a few swipes, and tagging your regular merchants and repeat customers means most of it sorts itself.",[24,11025,518],{"id":517},[137,11027,11028,11033,11038,11043],{},[140,11029,11030],{},[524,11031,529],{"href":526,"rel":11032},[528],[140,11034,11035],{},[524,11036,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":11037},[528],[140,11039,11040],{},[524,11041,997],{"href":995,"rel":11042},[528],[140,11044,11045],{},[524,11046,564],{"href":562,"rel":11047},[528],[566,11049],{},[12,11051,11052],{},[571,11053,11054],{},"General information, not tax advice. Whether you have a permanent workplace is fact-specific and matters a lot here: take advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":11056},[11057,11058,11059,11060,11061,11062,11063],{"id":10769,"depth":576,"text":10770},{"id":10787,"depth":576,"text":10788},{"id":10893,"depth":576,"text":10894},{"id":10921,"depth":576,"text":10922},{"id":11006,"depth":576,"text":11007},{"id":11016,"depth":576,"text":11017},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-10-09","The people with the most business mileage are the least able to record it as it happens. That is a solvable problem.","\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-tradespeople.jpg","Hand tools laid out on a workbench","Photo by The World is a Stage, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fstocksnap.io\u002Fphoto\u002Fconstruction-tools-EJZBX7UMTV",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-tradespeople",{"title":10755,"description":11065},"blog\u002Fmileage-for-tradespeople",[11075,3979,5660],"trades","YX5_RzRESpAd17Uq69T0bjNEJXUSFoc0qLSZ59jcodM",{"id":11078,"title":11079,"author":7,"body":11080,"category":587,"date":11249,"description":11250,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":2861,"imageAlt":11251,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":11252,"navigation":595,"path":11253,"readTime":1462,"seo":11254,"stem":11255,"tags":11256,"__hash__":11258},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-and-vat.md","VAT and mileage: the bit most businesses miss",{"type":9,"value":11081,"toc":11241},[11082,11088,11095,11099,11102,11111,11114,11118,11121,11167,11170,11174,11181,11184,11187,11191,11194,11197,11201,11207,11210,11212,11234,11236],[4986,11083,11084],{},[12,11085,11086,4993],{},[19,11087,4992],{},[12,11089,11090,11091,11094],{},"A VAT-registered business paying employees approved mileage rates can usually reclaim the VAT on the ",[19,11092,11093],{},"fuel element"," of those payments. A surprising number do not, because the mechanism is not obvious and the paperwork requirement is easy to fail.",[24,11096,11098],{"id":11097},"what-you-can-reclaim","What you can reclaim",[12,11100,11101],{},"Not the VAT on 45p. The 45p covers the whole cost of running the car, insurance, servicing, depreciation, and most of that carries no reclaimable VAT.",[12,11103,11104,11105,11107,11108,11110],{},"What you can reclaim is the VAT contained in the ",[19,11106,1838],{}," part of the mileage payment. HMRC's ",[19,11109,389],{}," are the accepted way of identifying how much of the payment is fuel.",[12,11112,11113],{},"So the calculation runs: business miles × the relevant advisory fuel rate = the fuel element; the VAT fraction of that is what you reclaim.",[24,11115,11117],{"id":11116},"the-calculation-worked","The calculation, worked",[12,11119,11120],{},"10,000 business miles, employees reimbursed at the approved 45p, with an advisory fuel rate of 14p\na mile (illustrative, check the current table):",[29,11122,11123,11131],{},[32,11124,11125],{},[35,11126,11127,11129],{},[38,11128,1668],{},[38,11130,1739],{},[51,11132,11133,11141,11149,11159],{},[35,11134,11135,11138],{},[56,11136,11137],{},"Mileage paid to employees",[56,11139,11140],{},"10,000 × 45p = £4,500",[35,11142,11143,11146],{},[56,11144,11145],{},"Fuel element (advisory rate)",[56,11147,11148],{},"10,000 × 14p = £1,400",[35,11150,11151,11154],{},[56,11152,11153],{},"VAT fraction of the fuel element (1\u002F6 at 20%)",[56,11155,11156],{},[19,11157,11158],{},"£233.33",[35,11160,11161,11164],{},[56,11162,11163],{},"Fuel receipts you must hold",[56,11165,11166],{},"At least £1,400 worth",[12,11168,11169],{},"The last row is the condition that defeats most businesses: the reclaim is only supportable if the\npurchases can be evidenced.",[24,11171,11173],{"id":11172},"the-condition-that-catches-people","The condition that catches people",[12,11175,11176,11177,11180],{},"You must hold ",[19,11178,11179],{},"VAT receipts for fuel"," to support the claim.",[12,11182,11183],{},"That is the part businesses fail. The employee bought the fuel, kept no receipt, and the business has a mileage claim it cannot support with purchase evidence. HMRC's position is that you need enough fuel receipts to cover the VAT being reclaimed, not receipt-by-receipt matching to journeys, but enough purchases to show the fuel was actually bought.",[12,11185,11186],{},"The practical answer is to ask staff to keep fuel receipts even though they are claiming mileage rather than fuel. It feels redundant to them and it is the difference between reclaiming and not.",[24,11188,11190],{"id":11189},"the-rates-move-quarterly","The rates move quarterly",[12,11192,11193],{},"Advisory Fuel Rates are revised every three months. A calculation using last year's figures is wrong, and consistently wrong in a direction someone will eventually notice.",[12,11195,11196],{},"Build the current rate into whatever produces the claim rather than remembering to update it.",[24,11198,11200],{"id":11199},"scale-charges-briefly","Scale charges, briefly",[12,11202,11203,11204,11206],{},"If the business pays for ",[19,11205,9099],{}," fuel as well, there is a separate mechanism, the road fuel scale charge, which lets you reclaim input tax on all fuel and account for output tax on the private element based on the vehicle's CO2. Whether that is better than simply not reclaiming on private fuel depends on the ratio of business to private mileage.",[12,11208,11209],{},"Either way, the number you need first is the split between business and private miles, which is a record-keeping question long before it is a VAT one.",[24,11211,518],{"id":517},[137,11213,11214,11219,11224,11229],{},[140,11215,11216],{},[524,11217,4211],{"href":555,"rel":11218},[528],[140,11220,11221],{},[524,11222,529],{"href":526,"rel":11223},[528],[140,11225,11226],{},[524,11227,536],{"href":534,"rel":11228},[528],[140,11230,11231],{},[524,11232,564],{"href":562,"rel":11233},[528],[566,11235],{},[12,11237,11238],{},[571,11239,11240],{},"General information, not tax or VAT advice. VAT on motoring is detailed and the treatment depends on your business: take advice before reclaiming.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":11242},[11243,11244,11245,11246,11247,11248],{"id":11097,"depth":576,"text":11098},{"id":11116,"depth":576,"text":11117},{"id":11172,"depth":576,"text":11173},{"id":11189,"depth":576,"text":11190},{"id":11199,"depth":576,"text":11200},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-10-02","If you are VAT registered and paying mileage, there is input tax buried in the fuel element, but only if you keep the receipts.","CSV and PDF exports in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-and-vat",{"title":11079,"description":11250},"blog\u002Fmileage-and-vat",[11257,602,10751],"vat","fK7JB5Ncza8AC9Fw8yMzaK7sXTBUTgnz7jN3dQNGKUc",{"id":11260,"title":11261,"author":7,"body":11262,"category":2858,"date":11458,"description":11459,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":8695,"imageAlt":11460,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":11461,"navigation":595,"path":11462,"readTime":576,"seo":11463,"stem":11464,"tags":11465,"__hash__":11467},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-the-swipe-deck-is-for.md","Why sorting trips is a card deck and not a list",{"type":9,"value":11263,"toc":11450},[11264,11267,11271,11274,11277,11281,11284,11310,11313,11317,11404,11407,11411,11417,11423,11429,11433,11436,11438],[12,11265,11266],{},"Recording drives is the easy half of a mileage app. Any phone can do it. The half that decides whether anyone still uses the thing in March is deciding which drives were work.",[24,11268,11270],{"id":11269},"why-lists-fail","Why lists fail",[12,11272,11273],{},"Most mileage apps present the backlog as a list with a dropdown on each row. It is a perfectly logical design and almost nobody finishes it.",[12,11275,11276],{},"The reasons are consistent. A list shows how much is left, which is discouraging. Each row demands a decision without giving you enough to make it. A date and a distance do not tell you what a journey was. And the interaction is precise: find the row, hit the small control, choose from a menu, move on. Precision is fine at a desk and awful on a sofa.",[24,11278,11280],{"id":11279},"why-a-deck-works","Why a deck works",[12,11282,11283],{},"One journey at a time, with its route drawn on a map, and a gesture rather than a target.",[137,11285,11286,11292,11298,11304],{},[140,11287,11288,11291],{},[19,11289,11290],{},"The map is the memory aid."," People do not remember 14 August. They remember the shape of a drive to Bristol and back.",[140,11293,11294,11297],{},[19,11295,11296],{},"One card is not a backlog."," You cannot see how many are left, so you do not stop because it looked like a lot.",[140,11299,11300,11303],{},[19,11301,11302],{},"A swipe is imprecise on purpose."," It works one-handed, on a sofa, while something else is on.",[140,11305,11306,11309],{},[19,11307,11308],{},"It is reversible."," Every swipe has an undo, so being wrong costs nothing and you stop hesitating.",[12,11311,11312],{},"The measure of success is that a week of driving takes under a minute. Below that threshold people do it. Above it, they intend to.",[24,11314,11316],{"id":11315},"why-the-list-loses","Why the list loses",[29,11318,11319,11331],{},[32,11320,11321],{},[35,11322,11323,11325,11328],{},[38,11324],{},[38,11326,11327],{},"List with dropdowns",[38,11329,11330],{},"Card deck",[51,11332,11333,11343,11356,11369,11379,11391],{},[35,11334,11335,11338,11341],{},[56,11336,11337],{},"Shows how much is left",[56,11339,11340],{},"Yes, discouraging",[56,11342,80],{},[35,11344,11345,11348,11351],{},[56,11346,11347],{},"Memory aid per item",[56,11349,11350],{},"Date and distance",[56,11352,11353],{},[19,11354,11355],{},"The route on a map",[35,11357,11358,11361,11364],{},[56,11359,11360],{},"Interaction",[56,11362,11363],{},"Precise tap on a small control",[56,11365,11366],{},[19,11367,11368],{},"A swipe",[35,11370,11371,11374,11377],{},[56,11372,11373],{},"One-handed on a sofa",[56,11375,11376],{},"Awkward",[56,11378,67],{},[35,11380,11381,11384,11386],{},[56,11382,11383],{},"Undo",[56,11385,2067],{},[56,11387,11388],{},[19,11389,11390],{},"Every action",[35,11392,11393,11396,11399],{},[56,11394,11395],{},"Time for a week of driving",[56,11397,11398],{},"Several minutes",[56,11400,11401],{},[19,11402,11403],{},"Under a minute",[12,11405,11406],{},"The last row is the only one that matters. Below a minute people do it; above it they intend to.",[24,11408,11410],{"id":11409},"what-makes-it-faster-still","What makes it faster still",[12,11412,11413,11416],{},[19,11414,11415],{},"Tagged places."," Once the office and your regular sites are tagged, most cards arrive with the answer suggested and an Auto-sort button clears them together.",[12,11418,11419,11422],{},[19,11420,11421],{},"Bulk selection",", for when a fortnight away has left a genuine pile: hold one trip, tick the rest, file them all at once.",[12,11424,11425,11428],{},[19,11426,11427],{},"Commuting excluded automatically",", once home and workplace are tagged, so the journeys that were never claimable stop occupying your attention.",[24,11430,11432],{"id":11431},"the-unglamorous-point","The unglamorous point",[12,11434,11435],{},"None of this is clever technology. It is the recognition that the hard part of a mileage log is not measurement, it is the two seconds of human judgement per journey, and that the whole thing lives or dies on making those two seconds cheap enough that they happen.",[24,11437,518],{"id":517},[137,11439,11440,11445],{},[140,11441,11442],{},[524,11443,564],{"href":562,"rel":11444},[528],[140,11446,11447],{},[524,11448,543],{"href":541,"rel":11449},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":11451},[11452,11453,11454,11455,11456,11457],{"id":11269,"depth":576,"text":11270},{"id":11279,"depth":576,"text":11280},{"id":11315,"depth":576,"text":11316},{"id":11409,"depth":576,"text":11410},{"id":11431,"depth":576,"text":11432},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-09-25","The design decision that determines whether anyone actually keeps a mileage log.","The Classify deck in Milesheet, one journey at a time",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-the-swipe-deck-is-for",{"title":11261,"description":11459},"blog\u002Fwhat-the-swipe-deck-is-for",[8702,9461,11466],"sorting","SB34UX9MfC7VkAc4uP2vc27M6LpTdTKwiBv0L2jgSiQ",{"id":11469,"title":11470,"author":7,"body":11471,"category":587,"date":11669,"description":11670,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":8494,"imageAlt":11671,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":11672,"navigation":595,"path":11673,"readTime":1462,"seo":11674,"stem":11675,"tags":11676,"__hash__":11678},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fsalary-sacrifice-and-electric-cars.md","Salary sacrifice car schemes: what to check before you sign",{"type":9,"value":11472,"toc":11661},[11473,11479,11482,11486,11489,11492,11495,11499,11576,11580,11586,11592,11598,11604,11608,11611,11614,11617,11621,11627,11630,11632,11654,11656],[4986,11474,11475],{},[12,11476,11477,4993],{},[19,11478,4992],{},[12,11480,11481],{},"Salary sacrifice car schemes have become common, largely because the tax treatment of low-emission cars makes them work in a way they do not for petrol and diesel.",[24,11483,11485],{"id":11484},"why-electric-changes-the-arithmetic","Why electric changes the arithmetic",[12,11487,11488],{},"Under a sacrifice arrangement you give up salary in exchange for a car. Normally the tax advantage is largely neutralised. You are taxed on the higher of the salary given up or the benefit value.",[12,11490,11491],{},"Ultra-low-emission vehicles are treated differently: the comparison to salary given up does not apply in the same way, so the charge is based on the car's benefit value, which for an electric car is a small percentage of list price.",[12,11493,11494],{},"The result is that you swap taxed salary for a car taxed at a low rate, and the saving can be substantial, often enough that the net cost of a new EV is comparable to running an older car you already own.",[24,11496,11498],{"id":11497},"the-questions-and-why-each-one-matters","The questions, and why each one matters",[29,11500,11501,11510],{},[32,11502,11503],{},[35,11504,11505,11508],{},[38,11506,11507],{},"Question",[38,11509,916],{},[51,11511,11512,11520,11528,11536,11544,11552,11560,11568],{},[35,11513,11514,11517],{},[56,11515,11516],{},"How long is the term?",[56,11518,11519],{},"Two to four years, and hard to unwind",[35,11521,11522,11525],{},[56,11523,11524],{},"What happens if I leave?",[56,11526,11527],{},"Some schemes insure it, some pass the cost to you",[35,11529,11530,11533],{},[56,11531,11532],{},"What is the mileage limit?",[56,11534,11535],{},"Excess charges erode the saving",[35,11537,11538,11541],{},[56,11539,11540],{},"What does it do to my pension?",[56,11542,11543],{},"Contributions are often salary-linked",[35,11545,11546,11549],{},[56,11547,11548],{},"Will it affect a mortgage application?",[56,11550,11551],{},"Lenders assess on gross salary",[35,11553,11554,11557],{},[56,11555,11556],{},"Does it affect statutory pay?",[56,11558,11559],{},"Maternity and sick pay can be salary-linked",[35,11561,11562,11565],{},[56,11563,11564],{},"What is the benefit-in-kind percentage?",[56,11566,11567],{},"It is scheduled to rise over time",[35,11569,11570,11573],{},[56,11571,11572],{},"Which rate applies to business mileage?",[56,11574,11575],{},"Advisory, not 45p",[24,11577,11579],{"id":11578},"what-to-check-before-signing","What to check before signing",[12,11581,11582,11585],{},[19,11583,11584],{},"The term."," Typically two to four years. Sacrifice arrangements are much harder to unwind than a subscription. Leaving the employer, going on extended leave, or a change in circumstances can trigger early termination charges that are real money.",[12,11587,11588,11591],{},[19,11589,11590],{},"What happens if you leave."," This is the single question people fail to ask. Some schemes have insurance covering it, some pass the cost to you.",[12,11593,11594,11597],{},[19,11595,11596],{},"The effect on everything salary-linked."," Reducing gross pay can affect pension contributions, mortgage affordability assessments, statutory maternity pay, and anything else calculated from salary. The car saving is visible; these are not.",[12,11599,11600,11603],{},[19,11601,11602],{},"The mileage allowance."," The lease has a mileage limit and excess charges. If your driving is heavier than you think, and most people underestimate, that erodes the saving.",[24,11605,11607],{"id":11606},"the-bit-that-connects-to-your-mileage-log","The bit that connects to your mileage log",[12,11609,11610],{},"That last point is worth dwelling on, because it is the one you can actually answer with data rather than guesswork.",[12,11612,11613],{},"Before you commit to a mileage band for three years, look at what you genuinely drove last year. Most people are surprised in one direction or the other, and being surprised after signing costs pence per mile for the length of the term.",[12,11615,11616],{},"If you have been recording journeys, that number already exists. If you have not, a year of records before the next scheme window is worth more than any amount of estimating.",[24,11618,11620],{"id":11619},"business-mileage-on-a-sacrifice-car","Business mileage on a sacrifice car",[12,11622,11623,11624,11626],{},"The car is a company car for tax purposes, so approved mileage rates do not apply. Business mileage is reimbursed at ",[19,11625,389],{},", or the advisory electricity rate for a fully electric car, not at 45p.",[12,11628,11629],{},"Claiming 45p on a sacrifice car is a common and expensive error.",[24,11631,518],{"id":517},[137,11633,11634,11639,11644,11649],{},[140,11635,11636],{},[524,11637,4211],{"href":555,"rel":11638},[528],[140,11640,11641],{},[524,11642,536],{"href":534,"rel":11643},[528],[140,11645,11646],{},[524,11647,529],{"href":526,"rel":11648},[528],[140,11650,11651],{},[524,11652,1817],{"href":1815,"rel":11653},[528],[566,11655],{},[12,11657,11658],{},[571,11659,11660],{},"General information, not tax or financial advice. Salary sacrifice affects more than your car: take advice on the whole picture before committing.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":11662},[11663,11664,11665,11666,11667,11668],{"id":11484,"depth":576,"text":11485},{"id":11497,"depth":576,"text":11498},{"id":11578,"depth":576,"text":11579},{"id":11606,"depth":576,"text":11607},{"id":11619,"depth":576,"text":11620},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-09-18","The tax treatment makes electric cars unusually attractive through sacrifice. The commitment is longer than most people focus on.","The claim calculator in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fsalary-sacrifice-and-electric-cars",{"title":11470,"description":11670},"blog\u002Fsalary-sacrifice-and-electric-cars",[11677,5462,9199],"salary sacrifice","NmTxpuxDOZKHt6WxX3Tze9HXTJcyu2mIKrJSubYAfYA",{"id":11680,"title":11681,"author":7,"body":11682,"category":1828,"date":11895,"description":11896,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":11897,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":11898,"navigation":595,"path":11899,"readTime":576,"seo":11900,"stem":11901,"tags":11902,"__hash__":11903},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fsplitting-a-festival-run.md","Four people, one car, a field: splitting a festival run",{"type":9,"value":11683,"toc":11887},[11684,11687,11691,11694,11718,11729,11732,11736,11739,11785,11832,11836,11839,11850,11853,11857,11860,11863,11867,11870,11873,11875],[12,11685,11686],{},"Festivals are the worst case for shared travel costs and the best case for sorting it out in advance. Long distance, a full car, expensive parking, and a return journey undertaken by four people who are in no condition to do arithmetic.",[24,11688,11690],{"id":11689},"count-everything-not-just-the-fuel","Count everything, not just the fuel",[12,11692,11693],{},"The fuel is usually the smaller half. A realistic list:",[137,11695,11696,11701,11707,11712],{},[140,11697,11698,11700],{},[19,11699,7141],{}," both ways",[140,11702,11703,11706],{},[19,11704,11705],{},"Car parking",", which at a large event is frequently £30-50",[140,11708,11709,11711],{},[19,11710,1866],{}," if the route has any",[140,11713,11714,11717],{},[19,11715,11716],{},"Clean air or congestion charges"," on the way through a city",[12,11719,11720,11721,11724,11725,11728],{},"A 250-mile round trip in a car doing a real 40 mpg is about 28 litres, roughly ",[19,11722,11723],{},"£41"," at 145p. Add £40 parking and the trip is ",[19,11726,11727],{},"£81"," before anyone has bought a ticket.",[12,11730,11731],{},"Split four ways that is £20 each. Split three ways with the driver exempt, £27 each. Both are defensible; the gap between them is what causes the argument.",[24,11733,11735],{"id":11734},"a-worked-example","A worked example",[12,11737,11738],{},"Four people, 250-mile round trip, 40 mpg car, 145p a litre, big-event parking:",[29,11740,11741,11749],{},[32,11742,11743],{},[35,11744,11745,11747],{},[38,11746,8776],{},[38,11748,1969],{},[51,11750,11751,11759,11767,11774],{},[35,11752,11753,11756],{},[56,11754,11755],{},"Fuel (28.4 litres)",[56,11757,11758],{},"£41.20",[35,11760,11761,11764],{},[56,11762,11763],{},"Event parking, weekend",[56,11765,11766],{},"£40.00",[35,11768,11769,11772],{},[56,11770,11771],{},"Tolls \u002F charges en route",[56,11773,8800],{},[35,11775,11776,11780],{},[56,11777,11778],{},[19,11779,7255],{},[56,11781,11782],{},[19,11783,11784],{},"£81-£96",[29,11786,11787,11800],{},[32,11788,11789],{},[35,11790,11791,11794,11797],{},[38,11792,11793],{},"Split",[38,11795,11796],{},"Driver",[38,11798,11799],{},"Each passenger",[51,11801,11802,11812,11821],{},[35,11803,11804,11807,11810],{},[56,11805,11806],{},"Four ways, equally",[56,11808,11809],{},"£20.25",[56,11811,11809],{},[35,11813,11814,11817,11819],{},[56,11815,11816],{},"Three passengers cover it",[56,11818,431],{},[56,11820,3253],{},[35,11822,11823,11826,11829],{},[56,11824,11825],{},"Passengers cover parking, all share fuel",[56,11827,11828],{},"£10.30",[56,11830,11831],{},"£23.63",[24,11833,11835],{"id":11834},"agree-it-in-the-group-chat-before","Agree it in the group chat, before",[12,11837,11838],{},"The three questions, answered while everyone is still keen:",[875,11840,11841,11844,11847],{},[140,11842,11843],{},"Fuel only, or fuel plus parking and tolls?",[140,11845,11846],{},"Does the driver pay a share?",[140,11848,11849],{},"What if someone drops out: split by head on the day, or by seat committed?",[12,11851,11852],{},"Two minutes of typing in advance, versus a stilted conversation in a queue for the exit at midnight.",[24,11854,11856],{"id":11855},"why-the-driver-deserves-the-exemption-more-here","Why the driver deserves the exemption more here",[12,11858,11859],{},"Under normal circumstances \"everyone including the driver splits it\" is the fairer default. A festival run is the case where it is worth reconsidering, because the driver is also the person who is not drinking, is loading and unloading the car, and is driving home tired at the end of it.",[12,11861,11862],{},"Whichever way you go, decide it rather than defaulting to it.",[24,11864,11866],{"id":11865},"have-the-number-ready","Have the number ready",[12,11868,11869],{},"The reason this becomes awkward is that nobody has a figure, so it becomes an estimate, and estimates feel arbitrary in both directions.",[12,11871,11872],{},"Milesheet records the drive, costs it from your car's real economy rather than the brochure figure, lets you add the parking and tolls onto the journey, and splits the total between however many were in the car. Then send the journey as a PDF, route, distance, cost, split, which settles it without a conversation.",[24,11874,518],{"id":517},[137,11876,11877,11882],{},[140,11878,11879],{},[524,11880,2496],{"href":2494,"rel":11881},[528],[140,11883,11884],{},[524,11885,2503],{"href":2501,"rel":11886},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":11888},[11889,11890,11891,11892,11893,11894],{"id":11689,"depth":576,"text":11690},{"id":11734,"depth":576,"text":11735},{"id":11834,"depth":576,"text":11835},{"id":11855,"depth":576,"text":11856},{"id":11865,"depth":576,"text":11866},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-09-11","The trip where costs are highest, plans change most, and nobody has any signal to work anything out.","A long journey recorded in Milesheet, ready to split",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fsplitting-a-festival-run",{"title":11681,"description":11896},"blog\u002Fsplitting-a-festival-run",[5256,8908,5257],"IKp4qgjVEF6xdWy_ysUVcRmsOEB7VoScqcfZxKxz3NY",{"id":11905,"title":11906,"author":7,"body":11907,"category":12182,"date":12183,"description":12184,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":12185,"imageAlt":12186,"imageCredit":12187,"imageCreditUrl":12188,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":12189,"navigation":595,"path":12190,"readTime":1462,"seo":12191,"stem":12192,"tags":12193,"__hash__":12197},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fsmart-motorways-what-the-rules-are.md","Smart motorways: what the rules actually are",{"type":9,"value":11908,"toc":12172},[11909,11912,11916,11922,11928,11934,11941,11945,12008,12011,12015,12078,12082,12085,12088,12092,12095,12099,12102,12108,12114,12120,12124,12127,12130,12133,12135,12165,12167],[12,11910,11911],{},"The government halted the rollout of new smart motorway schemes in 2023, but the ones already built have not gone anywhere. Anyone driving for work in England will use them regularly, and the rules are not always obvious.",[24,11913,11915],{"id":11914},"the-three-types","The three types",[12,11917,11918,11921],{},[19,11919,11920],{},"All lane running (ALR)."," The hard shoulder has been permanently converted to a running lane. There is no hard shoulder at all, only emergency areas at intervals. This is the type that generated the controversy.",[12,11923,11924,11927],{},[19,11925,11926],{},"Dynamic hard shoulder."," The hard shoulder opens as a running lane at busy times and closes otherwise. Whether you may use it depends entirely on the overhead signs.",[12,11929,11930,11933],{},[19,11931,11932],{},"Controlled motorway."," The hard shoulder stays a hard shoulder, but variable speed limits apply. The least contentious version, and much the most common on approaches to cities.",[12,11935,11936,11937,11940],{},"The important consequence: ",[19,11938,11939],{},"you cannot tell which type you are on by looking at the road."," You have to read the signs.",[24,11942,11944],{"id":11943},"telling-the-three-types-apart","Telling the three types apart",[29,11946,11947,11963],{},[32,11948,11949],{},[35,11950,11951,11954,11957,11960],{},[38,11952,11953],{},"Type",[38,11955,11956],{},"Hard shoulder",[38,11958,11959],{},"How you know",[38,11961,11962],{},"What to do if you stop",[51,11964,11965,11979,11993],{},[35,11966,11967,11970,11973,11976],{},[56,11968,11969],{},"Controlled motorway",[56,11971,11972],{},"Kept as hard shoulder",[56,11974,11975],{},"Variable limits, hard shoulder present",[56,11977,11978],{},"Use the hard shoulder",[35,11980,11981,11984,11987,11990],{},[56,11982,11983],{},"Dynamic hard shoulder",[56,11985,11986],{},"Open at busy times",[56,11988,11989],{},"Signs say whether lane 1 is open",[56,11991,11992],{},"Depends on whether it is running",[35,11994,11995,11998,12002,12005],{},[56,11996,11997],{},"All lane running",[56,11999,12000],{},[19,12001,6713],{},[56,12003,12004],{},"No hard shoulder anywhere; emergency areas only",[56,12006,12007],{},"Emergency area, or stay belted and call 999",[12,12009,12010],{},"You cannot tell which you are on from the road surface. The signs are the only reliable indicator.",[24,12012,12014],{"id":12013},"what-the-signs-mean","What the signs mean",[29,12016,12017,12030],{},[32,12018,12019],{},[35,12020,12021,12024,12027],{},[38,12022,12023],{},"Sign",[38,12025,12026],{},"Meaning",[38,12028,12029],{},"Enforceable?",[51,12031,12032,12045,12057,12068],{},[35,12033,12034,12037,12040],{},[56,12035,12036],{},"Red X over a lane",[56,12038,12039],{},"Lane closed, do not drive in it",[56,12041,12042,12044],{},[19,12043,67],{},", by camera",[35,12046,12047,12050,12053],{},[56,12048,12049],{},"Speed in a red ring",[56,12051,12052],{},"Mandatory limit",[56,12054,12055],{},[19,12056,67],{},[35,12058,12059,12062,12065],{},[56,12060,12061],{},"Speed without a red ring",[56,12063,12064],{},"Advisory",[56,12066,12067],{},"No, but there is a reason for it",[35,12069,12070,12073,12076],{},[56,12071,12072],{},"Blank gantry",[56,12074,12075],{},"No restriction in force",[56,12077,205],{},[24,12079,12081],{"id":12080},"the-red-x-is-not-advisory","The red X is not advisory",[12,12083,12084],{},"A red X above a lane means that lane is closed. Driving in it is an offence, enforced by camera, and the reason it is closed is frequently a stopped vehicle you cannot yet see.",[12,12086,12087],{},"Vehicles have been detected in closed lanes at very high rates on some stretches. Assume the sign knows something you do not.",[24,12089,12091],{"id":12090},"speed-limits-on-gantries-are-mandatory","Speed limits on gantries are mandatory",[12,12093,12094],{},"A speed limit displayed in a red ring on a gantry is a legal limit, not a suggestion, and it is enforced. A limit without the red ring is advisory. Most drivers do not know there is a difference.",[24,12096,12098],{"id":12097},"if-you-break-down","If you break down",[12,12100,12101],{},"This is the part worth reading before you need it.",[12,12103,12104,12107],{},[19,12105,12106],{},"If you can reach an emergency area or exit",", do so, even on a flat tyre. Damage to a wheel is cheaper than the alternative.",[12,12109,12110,12113],{},[19,12111,12112],{},"If you can get to the left verge",", do that, exit the vehicle by the left-hand doors, and get behind the barrier.",[12,12115,12116,12119],{},[19,12117,12118],{},"If you cannot move and are in a live lane",". Hazard lights on, stay belted in with headrests up, and call 999. Getting out into a live lane is the most dangerous option available. This is the exact reverse of the advice for a traditional hard shoulder, and it is the bit that catches people who learned to drive before ALR existed.",[24,12121,12123],{"id":12122},"what-it-means-if-you-drive-for-work","What it means if you drive for work",[12,12125,12126],{},"Two practical things.",[12,12128,12129],{},"Emergency areas on older ALR stretches can be a mile or more apart, though newer standards brought them closer. If a warning light appears, take the next exit rather than pressing on to the next services.",[12,12131,12132],{},"And keep the vehicle in a condition that makes a live-lane stop unlikely: tyres, fuel, oil, coolant. A breakdown on an ALR motorway is a much worse event than the same breakdown on a conventional one, which makes routine maintenance a safety measure rather than an expense.",[24,12134,518],{"id":517},[137,12136,12137,12144,12151,12158],{},[140,12138,12139],{},[524,12140,12143],{"href":12141,"rel":12142},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fguidance\u002Fthe-highway-code\u002Fmotorways-253-to-273",[528],"Motorways (rules 253 to 273) (The Highway Code)",[140,12145,12146],{},[524,12147,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":12149},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fguidance\u002Fthe-highway-code",[528],"The Highway Code",[140,12152,12153],{},[524,12154,12157],{"href":12155,"rel":12156},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fguidance\u002Fthe-highway-code\u002Fannex-6-vehicle-maintenance-safety-and-security",[528],"Annex 6: vehicle maintenance, safety and security (The Highway Code)",[140,12159,12160],{},[524,12161,12164],{"href":12162,"rel":12163},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fspeed-limits",[528],"Speed limits (GOV.UK)",[566,12166],{},[12,12168,12169],{},[571,12170,12171],{},"General road safety information. Always follow the signs and signals in force at the time.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":12173},[12174,12175,12176,12177,12178,12179,12180,12181],{"id":11914,"depth":576,"text":11915},{"id":11943,"depth":576,"text":11944},{"id":12013,"depth":576,"text":12014},{"id":12080,"depth":576,"text":12081},{"id":12090,"depth":576,"text":12091},{"id":12097,"depth":576,"text":12098},{"id":12122,"depth":576,"text":12123},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"Driving & the law","2025-09-04","New schemes were cancelled, but hundreds of miles remain. What a red X means, where the refuges are, and what to do if you stop in a live lane.","\u002Fblog\u002Fsmart-motorways-what-the-rules-are.jpg","Overhead motorway gantry with signal heads","Photo by DeFacto, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Flicenses\u002Fby-sa\u002F2.5\u002F",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fsmart-motorways-what-the-rules-are",{"title":11906,"description":12184},"blog\u002Fsmart-motorways-what-the-rules-are",[12194,12195,12196],"smart motorways","road safety","highway code","-BKIbJeaibMRyoj9e84LMcgk5bvx8trBzWdE2O-SMVI",{"id":12199,"title":12200,"author":7,"body":12201,"category":12182,"date":12569,"description":12570,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":12571,"imageAlt":12572,"imageCredit":12573,"imageCreditUrl":12574,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":12575,"navigation":595,"path":12576,"readTime":1462,"seo":12577,"stem":12578,"tags":12579,"__hash__":12581},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fspeed-limits-vans-and-towing.md","Your van is not allowed to do 70 on that road",{"type":9,"value":12202,"toc":12559},[12203,12206,12210,12217,12234,12239,12254,12259,12273,12276,12280,12385,12388,12391,12395,12406,12409,12413,12416,12468,12471,12475,12478,12498,12502,12505,12511,12517,12521,12524,12526,12552,12554],[12,12204,12205],{},"This is the most widely broken rule on British roads that almost nobody knows they are breaking.",[24,12207,12209],{"id":12208},"the-national-speed-limits","The national speed limits",[12,12211,12212,12213,12216],{},"For a ",[19,12214,12215],{},"car or motorcycle",":",[137,12218,12219,12224,12229],{},[140,12220,12221,12222],{},"Single carriageway: ",[19,12223,6941],{},[140,12225,12226,12227],{},"Dual carriageway: ",[19,12228,6962],{},[140,12230,12231,12232],{},"Motorway: ",[19,12233,6962],{},[12,12235,12212,12236,12216],{},[19,12237,12238],{},"car-derived van or goods vehicle up to 7.5 tonnes",[137,12240,12241,12246,12250],{},[140,12242,12221,12243],{},[19,12244,12245],{},"50 mph",[140,12247,12226,12248],{},[19,12249,6941],{},[140,12251,12231,12252],{},[19,12253,6962],{},[12,12255,12212,12256,12216],{},[19,12257,12258],{},"car or van towing a trailer or caravan",[137,12260,12261,12265,12269],{},[140,12262,12221,12263],{},[19,12264,12245],{},[140,12266,12226,12267],{},[19,12268,6941],{},[140,12270,12231,12271],{},[19,12272,6941],{},[12,12274,12275],{},"So a van on a national-speed-limit single carriageway is limited to 50, not 60. On a dual carriageway it is 60, not 70. Both are enforceable and both are routinely ignored by drivers who genuinely believe the derestricted sign means the same thing to them as to a car.",[24,12277,12279],{"id":12278},"the-table-to-keep-in-your-head","The table to keep in your head",[29,12281,12282,12300],{},[32,12283,12284],{},[35,12285,12286,12288,12291,12294,12297],{},[38,12287,40],{},[38,12289,12290],{},"Built-up area",[38,12292,12293],{},"Single carriageway",[38,12295,12296],{},"Dual carriageway",[38,12298,12299],{},"Motorway",[51,12301,12302,12322,12335,12353,12372],{},[35,12303,12304,12307,12309,12313,12318],{},[56,12305,12306],{},"Car or motorcycle",[56,12308,5086],{},[56,12310,12311],{},[19,12312,3250],{},[56,12314,12315],{},[19,12316,12317],{},"70",[56,12319,12320],{},[19,12321,12317],{},[35,12323,12324,12327,12329,12331,12333],{},[56,12325,12326],{},"Car-derived van",[56,12328,5086],{},[56,12330,3250],{},[56,12332,12317],{},[56,12334,12317],{},[35,12336,12337,12340,12342,12347,12351],{},[56,12338,12339],{},"Van or goods vehicle up to 7.5t",[56,12341,5086],{},[56,12343,12344],{},[19,12345,12346],{},"50",[56,12348,12349],{},[19,12350,3250],{},[56,12352,12317],{},[35,12354,12355,12358,12360,12364,12368],{},[56,12356,12357],{},"Car or van towing",[56,12359,5086],{},[56,12361,12362],{},[19,12363,12346],{},[56,12365,12366],{},[19,12367,3250],{},[56,12369,12370],{},[19,12371,3250],{},[35,12373,12374,12377,12379,12381,12383],{},[56,12375,12376],{},"Goods vehicle over 7.5t",[56,12378,5086],{},[56,12380,6988],{},[56,12382,12346],{},[56,12384,3250],{},[12,12386,12387],{},"All figures in mph, and all assume the national speed limit applies. A posted limit always\noverrides them.",[12,12389,12390],{},"The rows that catch people are the two in the middle: a van on a derestricted single carriageway is\nlimited to 50, and towing anything drops you to 60 on the motorway.",[24,12392,12394],{"id":12393},"the-car-derived-van-exception","The car-derived van exception",[12,12396,12397,12398,12401,12402,12405],{},"There is a distinction that catches people. A ",[19,12399,12400],{},"car-derived van",", a vehicle based on a car, under two tonnes maximum laden weight, keeps ",[19,12403,12404],{},"car"," speed limits. A small panel van that looks similar but is not car-derived does not.",[12,12407,12408],{},"The V5C is the place to check. \"It's only a small van\" is not the test.",[24,12410,12412],{"id":12411},"what-the-difference-costs-in-time","What the difference costs in time",[12,12414,12415],{},"A 150-mile single-carriageway run:",[29,12417,12418,12432],{},[32,12419,12420],{},[35,12421,12422,12424,12427,12429],{},[38,12423,40],{},[38,12425,12426],{},"Limit",[38,12428,6928],{},[38,12430,12431],{},"Difference",[51,12433,12434,12444,12457],{},[35,12435,12436,12438,12440,12442],{},[56,12437,7279],{},[56,12439,6941],{},[56,12441,6997],{},[56,12443,205],{},[35,12445,12446,12449,12451,12454],{},[56,12447,12448],{},"Van",[56,12450,12245],{},[56,12452,12453],{},"3h 00m",[56,12455,12456],{},"+30 min",[35,12458,12459,12462,12464,12466],{},[56,12460,12461],{},"Towing",[56,12463,12245],{},[56,12465,12453],{},[56,12467,12456],{},[12,12469,12470],{},"Half an hour on a long A-road run is a real cost to a working day, and it is the reason the limit is\nso widely ignored. It is still the limit.",[24,12472,12474],{"id":12473},"towing-the-extra-rules","Towing: the extra rules",[12,12476,12477],{},"Beyond the speed limits, towing brings others that are easy to fall foul of:",[137,12479,12480,12486,12492],{},[140,12481,12482,12485],{},[19,12483,12484],{},"No towing in the outside lane"," of a motorway with three or more lanes, except where lanes are closed",[140,12487,12488,12491],{},[19,12489,12490],{},"Licence entitlement"," depends on when you passed your test and the weight of the combination",[140,12493,12494,12497],{},[19,12495,12496],{},"Noseweight and maximum towing limits"," for your specific vehicle, which are on the V5C and the towbar plate",[24,12499,12501],{"id":12500},"why-this-matters-more-if-you-drive-for-work","Why this matters more if you drive for work",[12,12503,12504],{},"Two reasons beyond the fine.",[12,12506,12507,12510],{},[19,12508,12509],{},"Points affect your job."," Drivers who need a licence for work, trades, deliveries, anyone with a company vehicle, are at more risk from accumulating points than the average motorist, because they are on the road far more.",[12,12512,12513,12516],{},[19,12514,12515],{},"Insurance and employer liability."," A speeding conviction while driving for work involves your employer as well as you, and can affect the business's insurance.",[24,12518,12520],{"id":12519},"the-dull-but-effective-answer","The dull but effective answer",[12,12522,12523],{},"Know your vehicle's category, and check the V5C rather than guessing from the shape of the bodywork. Then treat a derestricted sign on a single carriageway as 50 in a van, not 60, which is exactly the situation where everyone behind you will be certain you are wrong.",[24,12525,518],{"id":517},[137,12527,12528,12533,12540,12545],{},[140,12529,12530],{},[524,12531,12164],{"href":12162,"rel":12532},[528],[140,12534,12535],{},[524,12536,12539],{"href":12537,"rel":12538},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Ftowing-with-car",[528],"Towing with a car (GOV.UK)",[140,12541,12542],{},[524,12543,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":12544},[528],[140,12546,12547],{},[524,12548,12551],{"href":12549,"rel":12550},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fpenalty-points-endorsements",[528],"Penalty points (endorsements) (GOV.UK)",[566,12553],{},[12,12555,12556],{},[571,12557,12558],{},"General road safety information, not legal advice. Check your vehicle's classification on its V5C.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":12560},[12561,12562,12563,12564,12565,12566,12567,12568],{"id":12208,"depth":576,"text":12209},{"id":12278,"depth":576,"text":12279},{"id":12393,"depth":576,"text":12394},{"id":12411,"depth":576,"text":12412},{"id":12473,"depth":576,"text":12474},{"id":12500,"depth":576,"text":12501},{"id":12519,"depth":576,"text":12520},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-08-28","Vans and cars towing have lower national speed limits than cars, on single and dual carriageways. Most drivers have no idea.","\u002Fblog\u002Fspeed-limits-vans-and-towing.jpg","A car towing a caravan on a country road","Photo by Queensland State Archives, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=107569506",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fspeed-limits-vans-and-towing",{"title":12200,"description":12570},"blog\u002Fspeed-limits-vans-and-towing",[12580,5660,7840],"speed limits","JlKItkT2D1xw_REDo5OnWp3UbK6WJEEMEWU4LpfV_ys",{"id":12583,"title":12584,"author":7,"body":12585,"category":12182,"date":12886,"description":12887,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":12888,"imageAlt":12889,"imageCredit":12890,"imageCreditUrl":12891,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":12892,"navigation":595,"path":12893,"readTime":1462,"seo":12894,"stem":12895,"tags":12896,"__hash__":12899},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmobile-phone-law-driving.md","The phone rules are stricter than most drivers think",{"type":9,"value":12586,"toc":12876},[12587,12590,12594,12601,12608,12612,12618,12621,12625,12728,12732,12783,12787,12813,12816,12820,12823,12826,12830,12833,12836,12842,12848,12850,12869,12871],[12,12588,12589],{},"The law on handheld phones was tightened in 2022 to close a loophole, and the version most drivers carry in their heads is the old one.",[24,12591,12593],{"id":12592},"what-changed","What changed",[12,12595,12596,12597,12600],{},"Previously the offence was framed around ",[571,12598,12599],{},"interactive communication",", calling, texting. That left a gap: drivers caught taking photographs or scrolling through stored files argued, sometimes successfully, that they were not communicating.",[12,12602,12603,12604,12607],{},"The law now covers using a handheld device for ",[19,12605,12606],{},"almost any purpose"," while driving. Taking a photo, changing a playlist, checking a stored file, unlocking it to look at something, all are caught.",[24,12609,12611],{"id":12610},"the-penalty","The penalty",[12,12613,12614,12617],{},[19,12615,12616],{},"Six penalty points and a fine",", or a court appearance for more serious cases.",[12,12619,12620],{},"For a driver within two years of passing their test, six points means the licence is revoked and the test must be taken again. For anyone else it is half of a twelve-point ban in one offence.",[24,12622,12624],{"id":12623},"what-counts-and-what-does-not","What counts, and what does not",[29,12626,12627,12637],{},[32,12628,12629],{},[35,12630,12631,12634],{},[38,12632,12633],{},"Action while driving",[38,12635,12636],{},"Legal?",[51,12638,12639,12648,12657,12666,12675,12684,12693,12700,12707,12714,12721],{},[35,12640,12641,12644],{},[56,12642,12643],{},"Holding the phone to call",[56,12645,12646],{},[19,12647,80],{},[35,12649,12650,12653],{},[56,12651,12652],{},"Holding it to text",[56,12654,12655],{},[19,12656,80],{},[35,12658,12659,12662],{},[56,12660,12661],{},"Holding it to take a photo or video",[56,12663,12664],{},[19,12665,80],{},[35,12667,12668,12671],{},[56,12669,12670],{},"Holding it to change a playlist",[56,12672,12673],{},[19,12674,80],{},[35,12676,12677,12680],{},[56,12678,12679],{},"Holding it to check a stored file",[56,12681,12682],{},[19,12683,80],{},[35,12685,12686,12689],{},[56,12687,12688],{},"Unlocking it while stationary in traffic",[56,12690,12691],{},[19,12692,80],{},[35,12694,12695,12698],{},[56,12696,12697],{},"Phone in a cradle, used as a sat-nav",[56,12699,67],{},[35,12701,12702,12705],{},[56,12703,12704],{},"Hands-free call, phone in a cradle",[56,12706,67],{},[35,12708,12709,12712],{},[56,12710,12711],{},"Contactless payment, stationary, at a drive-through",[56,12713,67],{},[35,12715,12716,12719],{},[56,12717,12718],{},"Calling 999 where stopping is unsafe or impractical",[56,12720,67],{},[35,12722,12723,12726],{},[56,12724,12725],{},"Using it parked, with the engine off",[56,12727,67],{},[24,12729,12731],{"id":12730},"what-it-costs","What it costs",[29,12733,12734,12746],{},[32,12735,12736],{},[35,12737,12738,12740,12743],{},[38,12739,11796],{},[38,12741,12742],{},"Penalty",[38,12744,12745],{},"Effect",[51,12747,12748,12759,12772],{},[35,12749,12750,12753,12756],{},[56,12751,12752],{},"Held licence over 2 years",[56,12754,12755],{},"6 points + fine",[56,12757,12758],{},"Half of a ban in one offence",[35,12760,12761,12764,12766],{},[56,12762,12763],{},"Within 2 years of passing",[56,12765,12755],{},[56,12767,12768,12771],{},[19,12769,12770],{},"Licence revoked",", test again",[35,12773,12774,12777,12780],{},[56,12775,12776],{},"Repeat or serious cases",[56,12778,12779],{},"Court",[56,12781,12782],{},"Disqualification possible",[24,12784,12786],{"id":12785},"what-is-still-allowed","What is still allowed",[137,12788,12789,12795,12801,12807],{},[140,12790,12791,12794],{},[19,12792,12793],{},"Hands-free",", provided the phone is in a cradle and you are not holding it",[140,12796,12797,12800],{},[19,12798,12799],{},"Using it as a sat-nav",", again secured in a holder rather than in your hand",[140,12802,12803,12806],{},[19,12804,12805],{},"Contactless payment"," while stationary, at a drive-through for example",[140,12808,12809,12812],{},[19,12810,12811],{},"Calling 999 or 112"," in a genuine emergency where it is unsafe or impractical to stop",[12,12814,12815],{},"Note the important caveat on hands-free: it is legal, but you can still be prosecuted for careless or dangerous driving if the call is what caused you to drive badly. Legal is not the same as safe.",[24,12817,12819],{"id":12818},"stopped-at-lights-is-not-an-exemption","\"Stopped at lights\" is not an exemption",[12,12821,12822],{},"The offence applies while driving, and being stationary in traffic with the engine running still counts. So does queuing, and so does sitting at a red light.",[12,12824,12825],{},"If you genuinely need to use the phone, you have to be parked with the engine off.",[24,12827,12829],{"id":12828},"why-this-bites-harder-if-you-drive-for-work","Why this bites harder if you drive for work",[12,12831,12832],{},"People who drive for a living are exposed to this more than anyone: more hours on the road, more calls, more pressure to respond, and often a genuine work reason to look at the phone.",[12,12834,12835],{},"Two practical defences:",[12,12837,12838,12841],{},[19,12839,12840],{},"Set it up before you move."," Navigation entered, playlist chosen, phone in the cradle, before the handbrake comes off.",[12,12843,12844,12847],{},[19,12845,12846],{},"Use an app that does not need you."," Anything that requires interaction while driving is a liability. Milesheet records journeys automatically once departure detection is on. It starts when you set off and stops when you park, without being touched. That is a deliberate design choice rather than a convenience: a mileage log that needs a button pressed at the start of every drive is a mileage log that invites you to pick up your phone.",[24,12849,518],{"id":517},[137,12851,12852,12859,12864],{},[140,12853,12854],{},[524,12855,12858],{"href":12856,"rel":12857},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fusing-mobile-phones-when-driving-the-law",[528],"Using a phone, sat nav or other device when driving (GOV.UK)",[140,12860,12861],{},[524,12862,12551],{"href":12549,"rel":12863},[528],[140,12865,12866],{},[524,12867,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":12868},[528],[566,12870],{},[12,12872,12873],{},[571,12874,12875],{},"General road safety information, not legal advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":12877},[12878,12879,12880,12881,12882,12883,12884,12885],{"id":12592,"depth":576,"text":12593},{"id":12610,"depth":576,"text":12611},{"id":12623,"depth":576,"text":12624},{"id":12730,"depth":576,"text":12731},{"id":12785,"depth":576,"text":12786},{"id":12818,"depth":576,"text":12819},{"id":12828,"depth":576,"text":12829},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-08-21","Holding it at all is the offence now. Six points, and for newer drivers that is the licence.","\u002Fblog\u002Fmobile-phone-law-driving.jpg","A phone cradle mounted on a car windscreen","Photo by Donald Trung Quoc Don (Chữ Hán: 徵國單) - Wikimedia Commons.(Want to use this image?), CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=75120781",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmobile-phone-law-driving",{"title":12584,"description":12887},"blog\u002Fmobile-phone-law-driving",[12897,12898,12195],"mobile phones","penalty points","e0bh_2NfxLTZxICLURoO3IQkeR5rd9OBV31Yo-pfgGk",{"id":12901,"title":12902,"author":7,"body":12903,"category":12182,"date":13189,"description":13190,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1831,"imageAlt":13191,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":13192,"navigation":595,"path":13193,"readTime":1462,"seo":13194,"stem":13195,"tags":13196,"__hash__":13199},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Ftyres-tread-and-the-law.md","Tyres: the legal minimum, and why it is not the sensible one",{"type":9,"value":12904,"toc":13178},[12905,12908,12912,12926,12929,12932,12936,12942,12945,12949,12952,13040,13044,13104,13108,13111,13117,13121,13124,13127,13131,13134,13137,13141,13144,13146,13172,13174],[12,12906,12907],{},"Tyres are the only part of a car touching the road, and the only safety component with a legal minimum most drivers can check in two minutes with a 20p coin.",[24,12909,12911],{"id":12910},"the-legal-requirement","The legal requirement",[12,12913,12914,12915,12918,12919,12922,12923,3123],{},"For cars, the tread must be at least ",[19,12916,12917],{},"1.6mm"," across the ",[19,12920,12921],{},"central three-quarters"," of the tread, around the ",[19,12924,12925],{},"entire circumference",[12,12927,12928],{},"Two details people miss. It is the central three-quarters, so healthy-looking outer edges do not save an illegal middle. And it is the whole circumference, so one bald patch fails the whole tyre.",[12,12930,12931],{},"Tyres must also be correctly inflated, free from dangerous cuts or bulges, and suitable for the use.",[24,12933,12935],{"id":12934},"the-penalty-is-per-tyre","The penalty is per tyre",[12,12937,12938,12939,3123],{},"This is the part that surprises people: it is ",[19,12940,12941],{},"three penalty points and a fine per illegal tyre",[12,12943,12944],{},"Four illegal tyres is twelve points, which is a ban, arrived at in one roadside stop without exceeding a single speed limit.",[24,12946,12948],{"id":12947},"what-the-tread-depth-actually-costs-you","What the tread depth actually costs you",[12,12950,12951],{},"Wet braking from 50 mph, indicative stopping distances:",[29,12953,12954,12967],{},[32,12955,12956],{},[35,12957,12958,12961,12964],{},[38,12959,12960],{},"Tread depth",[38,12962,12963],{},"Status",[38,12965,12966],{},"Relative wet stopping distance",[51,12968,12969,12980,12991,13004,13015,13027],{},[35,12970,12971,12974,12977],{},[56,12972,12973],{},"8mm (new)",[56,12975,12976],{},"New",[56,12978,12979],{},"Baseline",[35,12981,12982,12985,12988],{},[56,12983,12984],{},"5mm",[56,12986,12987],{},"Good",[56,12989,12990],{},"Slightly longer",[35,12992,12993,12996,13001],{},[56,12994,12995],{},"3mm",[56,12997,12998],{},[19,12999,13000],{},"Recommended change point",[56,13002,13003],{},"Noticeably longer",[35,13005,13006,13009,13012],{},[56,13007,13008],{},"2mm",[56,13010,13011],{},"Legal, poor",[56,13013,13014],{},"Considerably longer",[35,13016,13017,13019,13024],{},[56,13018,12917],{},[56,13020,13021],{},[19,13022,13023],{},"Legal minimum",[56,13025,13026],{},"Substantially longer",[35,13028,13029,13032,13037],{},[56,13030,13031],{},"Below 1.6mm",[56,13033,13034],{},[19,13035,13036],{},"Illegal",[56,13038,13039],{},"3 points and a fine, per tyre",[24,13041,13043],{"id":13042},"the-penalty-stacks","The penalty stacks",[29,13045,13046,13059],{},[32,13047,13048],{},[35,13049,13050,13053,13056],{},[38,13051,13052],{},"Illegal tyres",[38,13054,13055],{},"Penalty points",[38,13057,13058],{},"Consequence",[51,13060,13061,13070,13079,13089],{},[35,13062,13063,13065,13067],{},[56,13064,3412],{},[56,13066,4819],{},[56,13068,13069],{},"Fine",[35,13071,13072,13074,13076],{},[56,13073,3425],{},[56,13075,4861],{},[56,13077,13078],{},"Fine; licence revoked if within 2 years of passing",[35,13080,13081,13083,13086],{},[56,13082,4819],{},[56,13084,13085],{},"9",[56,13087,13088],{},"Close to a ban",[35,13090,13091,13093,13098],{},[56,13092,4833],{},[56,13094,13095],{},[19,13096,13097],{},"12",[56,13099,13100,13103],{},[19,13101,13102],{},"Ban",", from a single roadside stop",[24,13105,13107],{"id":13106},"why-16mm-is-not-where-you-should-be-changing-them","Why 1.6mm is not where you should be changing them",[12,13109,13110],{},"The legal minimum is a floor, not a target. Wet braking performance falls off well before it, most testing shows meaningful deterioration below about 3mm, with stopping distances lengthening considerably by the time you reach the legal limit.",[12,13112,13113,13114,13116],{},"Many manufacturers and safety organisations recommend replacing at ",[19,13115,12995],{},". That is not an upsell so much as an acknowledgement that the legal minimum was set as an enforcement threshold, not as the point at which a tyre stops working well.",[24,13118,13120],{"id":13119},"the-20p-test","The 20p test",[12,13122,13123],{},"Insert a 20p coin into the main tread grooves. If the outer band of the coin is hidden, the tread is above roughly 1.6-1.8mm. If you can see the band, the tyre is at or near the limit and needs looking at properly with a depth gauge.",[12,13125,13126],{},"Do it at several points around the tyre and across its width, not once.",[24,13128,13130],{"id":13129},"pressure-which-costs-money-as-well-as-safety","Pressure, which costs money as well as safety",[12,13132,13133],{},"Under-inflated tyres wear faster at the edges, increase rolling resistance and cost fuel. Pressure drops naturally over time and falls further in cold weather, roughly 1-2 PSI for every 10°C.",[12,13135,13136],{},"Checking monthly is the single cheapest thing you can do for both safety and economy. If you keep a fill-up log, an unexplained dip in MPG across a couple of tanks is often exactly this.",[24,13138,13140],{"id":13139},"for-business-vehicles","For business vehicles",[12,13142,13143],{},"If you or your employees drive for work, tyre condition is part of the duty of care around work vehicles, not just an MOT question. A vehicle used for work is expected to be roadworthy every day, not on the day it was tested.",[24,13145,518],{"id":517},[137,13147,13148,13155,13160,13165],{},[140,13149,13150],{},[524,13151,13154],{"href":13152,"rel":13153},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fgetting-an-mot",[528],"Getting an MOT (GOV.UK)",[140,13156,13157],{},[524,13158,12157],{"href":12155,"rel":13159},[528],[140,13161,13162],{},[524,13163,12551],{"href":12549,"rel":13164},[528],[140,13166,13167],{},[524,13168,13171],{"href":13169,"rel":13170},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fcheck-mot-history",[528],"Check the MOT history of a vehicle (GOV.UK)",[566,13173],{},[12,13175,13176],{},[571,13177,12875],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":13179},[13180,13181,13182,13183,13184,13185,13186,13187,13188],{"id":12910,"depth":576,"text":12911},{"id":12934,"depth":576,"text":12935},{"id":12947,"depth":576,"text":12948},{"id":13042,"depth":576,"text":13043},{"id":13106,"depth":576,"text":13107},{"id":13119,"depth":576,"text":13120},{"id":13129,"depth":576,"text":13130},{"id":13139,"depth":576,"text":13140},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-08-14","1.6mm is the law. Braking distances start deteriorating well before that, and four illegal tyres is twelve points.","Economy tracked across tanks in Milesheet, where under-inflation shows up as a dip",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Ftyres-tread-and-the-law",{"title":12902,"description":13190},"blog\u002Ftyres-tread-and-the-law",[13197,13198,12195],"tyres","mot","N-b0UBD57MPnXrxQq5HpenDsWl12Txjq-c-oG-x58DY",{"id":13201,"title":13202,"author":7,"body":13203,"category":12182,"date":13477,"description":13478,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":13479,"imageAlt":13480,"imageCredit":13481,"imageCreditUrl":13482,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":13483,"navigation":595,"path":13484,"readTime":1462,"seo":13485,"stem":13486,"tags":13487,"__hash__":13489},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fhighway-code-hierarchy-of-road-users.md","The Highway Code changed, and most drivers never read it",{"type":9,"value":13204,"toc":13466},[13205,13208,13212,13223,13226,13229,13233,13309,13312,13316,13365,13368,13372,13379,13382,13386,13389,13407,13410,13414,13417,13420,13424,13427,13430,13434,13437,13439,13460,13462],[12,13206,13207],{},"The Highway Code was substantially revised in 2022. Unlike a speed limit change, nothing on the road looked different the next morning, so a great many drivers are still operating on the previous version.",[24,13209,13211],{"id":13210},"the-hierarchy-of-road-users","The hierarchy of road users",[12,13213,13214,13215,13218,13219,13222],{},"The central idea: those who can do the ",[19,13216,13217],{},"greatest harm"," bear the ",[19,13220,13221],{},"greatest responsibility"," to reduce the danger they pose.",[12,13224,13225],{},"The order runs roughly pedestrians, then cyclists, then horse riders, then motorcyclists, then cars and vans, then large goods vehicles. It does not remove anyone's responsibility for their own safety, and it does not give anyone right of way by default. What it does is set the expectation of who should be looking out for whom.",[12,13227,13228],{},"If you drive a van for work, you are further up that hierarchy than you may have realised.",[24,13230,13232],{"id":13231},"the-hierarchy-and-what-it-means-for-you","The hierarchy, and what it means for you",[29,13234,13235,13248],{},[32,13236,13237],{},[35,13238,13239,13242,13245],{},[38,13240,13241],{},"Road user",[38,13243,13244],{},"Position",[38,13246,13247],{},"Responsibility toward others",[51,13249,13250,13261,13270,13279,13288,13296],{},[35,13251,13252,13255,13258],{},[56,13253,13254],{},"Pedestrians",[56,13256,13257],{},"Most at risk",[56,13259,13260],{},"Least responsibility for others' safety",[35,13262,13263,13266,13268],{},[56,13264,13265],{},"Cyclists",[56,13267],{},[56,13269],{},[35,13271,13272,13275,13277],{},[56,13273,13274],{},"Horse riders",[56,13276],{},[56,13278],{},[35,13280,13281,13284,13286],{},[56,13282,13283],{},"Motorcyclists",[56,13285],{},[56,13287],{},[35,13289,13290,13292,13294],{},[56,13291,58],{},[56,13293],{},[56,13295],{},[35,13297,13298,13301,13304],{},[56,13299,13300],{},"Large goods vehicles",[56,13302,13303],{},"Greatest potential to harm",[56,13305,13306],{},[19,13307,13308],{},"Greatest responsibility",[12,13310,13311],{},"It does not give anyone automatic right of way, and it does not remove anyone's responsibility for\ntheir own safety. It sets the expectation of who looks out for whom.",[24,13313,13315],{"id":13314},"the-passing-distances","The passing distances",[29,13317,13318,13331],{},[32,13319,13320],{},[35,13321,13322,13325,13328],{},[38,13323,13324],{},"Passing",[38,13326,13327],{},"Minimum space",[38,13329,13330],{},"Maximum speed",[51,13332,13333,13344,13355],{},[35,13334,13335,13338,13341],{},[56,13336,13337],{},"Cyclist",[56,13339,13340],{},"1.5 m",[56,13342,13343],{},"up to 30 mph; more space above that",[35,13345,13346,13349,13352],{},[56,13347,13348],{},"Horse rider",[56,13350,13351],{},"2 m",[56,13353,13354],{},"10 mph",[35,13356,13357,13360,13362],{},[56,13358,13359],{},"Pedestrian in the road",[56,13361,13351],{},[56,13363,13364],{},"Low speed",[12,13366,13367],{},"If the space is not there, wait behind.",[24,13369,13371],{"id":13370},"priority-for-pedestrians-at-junctions","Priority for pedestrians at junctions",[12,13373,13374,13375,13378],{},"The change most likely to surprise: when turning into or out of a junction, you should ",[19,13376,13377],{},"give way to pedestrians crossing or waiting to cross"," the road you are turning into.",[12,13380,13381],{},"Previously the guidance only covered pedestrians already crossing. Now it includes those waiting. This is the one that produces confusion at every side road in the country, because half the drivers know about it and half do not.",[24,13383,13385],{"id":13384},"overtaking-cyclists-and-horses","Overtaking cyclists and horses",[12,13387,13388],{},"Clearer distances than the old \"give them plenty of room\":",[137,13390,13391,13396,13401],{},[140,13392,13393,13395],{},[19,13394,13265],{},": leave at least 1.5 metres at speeds up to 30 mph, and more above that",[140,13397,13398,13400],{},[19,13399,13274],{},": pass at no more than 10 mph, leaving at least 2 metres",[140,13402,13403,13406],{},[19,13404,13405],{},"Pedestrians walking in the road",": at least 2 metres, at low speed",[12,13408,13409],{},"You should wait behind rather than squeeze past if the space is not there.",[24,13411,13413],{"id":13412},"cyclists-riding-in-the-centre-of-the-lane","Cyclists riding in the centre of the lane",[12,13415,13416],{},"The Code now positively advises cyclists to ride in the centre of the lane in certain situations, quiet roads, slow traffic, approaching junctions, for visibility and safety.",[12,13418,13419],{},"This is not a cyclist being obstructive. It is them following the guidance, and a driver who understands that gets less angry at junctions.",[24,13421,13423],{"id":13422},"the-dutch-reach","The Dutch reach",[12,13425,13426],{},"Open the door with the hand furthest from it. That forces your shoulder round and your eyes over your shoulder, so you see the cyclist you were about to door.",[12,13428,13429],{},"It takes about a week to become automatic and it is the cheapest safety change on the list.",[24,13431,13433],{"id":13432},"why-it-matters-if-you-drive-for-work","Why it matters if you drive for work",[12,13435,13436],{},"The Code is used to establish standards of conduct in prosecutions and in civil claims. \"I didn't know it had changed\" is not a position anybody wants to be arguing from, and someone who drives 20,000 miles a year is far more likely to end up in the situation where it matters.",[24,13438,518],{"id":517},[137,13440,13441,13446,13453],{},[140,13442,13443],{},[524,13444,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":13445},[528],[140,13447,13448],{},[524,13449,13452],{"href":13450,"rel":13451},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fguidance\u002Fthe-highway-code\u002Fgeneral-rules-techniques-and-advice-for-all-drivers-and-riders-103-to-158",[528],"General rules, techniques and advice for all drivers and riders (103 to 158) (The Highway Code)",[140,13454,13455],{},[524,13456,13459],{"href":13457,"rel":13458},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fbrowse\u002Fdriving\u002Fhighway-code-road-safety",[528],"The Highway Code, road safety and vehicle rules (GOV.UK)",[566,13461],{},[12,13463,13464],{},[571,13465,12875],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":13467},[13468,13469,13470,13471,13472,13473,13474,13475,13476],{"id":13210,"depth":576,"text":13211},{"id":13231,"depth":576,"text":13232},{"id":13314,"depth":576,"text":13315},{"id":13370,"depth":576,"text":13371},{"id":13384,"depth":576,"text":13385},{"id":13412,"depth":576,"text":13413},{"id":13422,"depth":576,"text":13423},{"id":13432,"depth":576,"text":13433},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-08-07","A hierarchy of road users, priority for pedestrians at junctions, and the Dutch reach. Three years on, the changes are still news to people.","\u002Fblog\u002Fhighway-code-hierarchy-of-road-users.jpg","A traffic signal with a cycle symbol at a junction","Photo by MHM55, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=99155719",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fhighway-code-hierarchy-of-road-users",{"title":13202,"description":13478},"blog\u002Fhighway-code-hierarchy-of-road-users",[12196,12195,13488],"cyclists","TskF60EwCIOX6HSnnA9acV-5w5cDxFcslzXQkw2k8Pw",{"id":13491,"title":13492,"author":7,"body":13493,"category":12182,"date":13717,"description":13718,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":13719,"imageAlt":13720,"imageCredit":13721,"imageCreditUrl":13722,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":13723,"navigation":595,"path":13724,"readTime":576,"seo":13725,"stem":13726,"tags":13727,"__hash__":13728},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmot-and-roadworthiness-for-work-vehicles.md","An MOT is not proof your van was roadworthy",{"type":9,"value":13494,"toc":13708},[13495,13498,13502,13509,13512,13516,13519,13522,13526,13529,13540,13543,13547,13623,13626,13630,13633,13665,13669,13672,13675,13677,13701,13703],[12,13496,13497],{},"A valid MOT certificate proves a vehicle met the minimum standard on the day it was tested. It says nothing about the day you are driving it, which is the day that matters.",[24,13499,13501],{"id":13500},"what-the-test-is","What the test is",[12,13503,13504,13505,13508],{},"Cars, vans and most vehicles need their first MOT at ",[19,13506,13507],{},"three years old",", then annually. It checks the items on the test schedule, brakes, lights, tyres, suspension, emissions, structure, visibility, against a defined standard.",[12,13510,13511],{},"It is not a service, it does not check the engine's condition, and it does not predict anything.",[24,13513,13515],{"id":13514},"the-obligation-the-certificate-does-not-discharge","The obligation the certificate does not discharge",[12,13517,13518],{},"It is an offence to use a vehicle on a road in a dangerous or unroadworthy condition regardless of when it was tested. A certificate from eleven months ago is not a defence for a tyre that went below the limit last week.",[12,13520,13521],{},"For anyone driving for work this is the important half, because it is a continuing duty rather than an annual event.",[24,13523,13525],{"id":13524},"where-the-employer-comes-in","Where the employer comes in",[12,13527,13528],{},"If employees drive for work, their own vehicles included, the employer has duties around their safety while working. In practice that usually means being able to show:",[137,13530,13531,13534,13537],{},[140,13532,13533],{},"Vehicles used for work are maintained and roadworthy",[140,13535,13536],{},"Where employees use their own cars, there is a check that they are taxed, insured for business use and MOT'd",[140,13538,13539],{},"Drivers know they can report a defect without being penalised for the delay it causes",[12,13541,13542],{},"The grey-fleet case, staff using their own cars on company business, is the one most often overlooked, because nobody feels responsible for a vehicle they do not own.",[24,13544,13546],{"id":13545},"what-the-mot-does-and-does-not-cover","What the MOT does and does not cover",[29,13548,13549,13559],{},[32,13550,13551],{},[35,13552,13553,13556],{},[38,13554,13555],{},"Checked at MOT",[38,13557,13558],{},"Not checked at MOT",[51,13560,13561,13569,13577,13585,13593,13601,13609,13616],{},[35,13562,13563,13566],{},[56,13564,13565],{},"Brakes",[56,13567,13568],{},"Engine condition",[35,13570,13571,13574],{},[56,13572,13573],{},"Lights and indicators",[56,13575,13576],{},"Clutch and gearbox",[35,13578,13579,13582],{},[56,13580,13581],{},"Tyres and wheels",[56,13583,13584],{},"Oil and coolant level between services",[35,13586,13587,13590],{},[56,13588,13589],{},"Suspension",[56,13591,13592],{},"Cambelt",[35,13594,13595,13598],{},[56,13596,13597],{},"Steering",[56,13599,13600],{},"Air conditioning",[35,13602,13603,13606],{},[56,13604,13605],{},"Exhaust and emissions",[56,13607,13608],{},"Anything that fails the day after",[35,13610,13611,13614],{},[56,13612,13613],{},"Structure and corrosion",[56,13615],{},[35,13617,13618,13621],{},[56,13619,13620],{},"Visibility, wipers, washers",[56,13622],{},[12,13624,13625],{},"The right-hand column is why an MOT is not a service and not a guarantee.",[24,13627,13629],{"id":13628},"the-practical-routine","The practical routine",[12,13631,13632],{},"Daily or weekly walk-round checks catch nearly everything that matters and take two minutes:",[137,13634,13635,13641,13647,13653,13659],{},[140,13636,13637,13640],{},[19,13638,13639],{},"Tyres",": pressure, tread, damage",[140,13642,13643,13646],{},[19,13644,13645],{},"Lights",": all of them, which needs a second person or a reflective window",[140,13648,13649,13652],{},[19,13650,13651],{},"Fluids",": oil, coolant, screenwash",[140,13654,13655,13658],{},[19,13656,13657],{},"Glass and mirrors",": chips spread, and a chip in the swept area can fail an MOT",[140,13660,13661,13664],{},[19,13662,13663],{},"Wipers",": smearing is a visibility defect, not an annoyance",[24,13666,13668],{"id":13667},"keeping-the-evidence","Keeping the evidence",[12,13670,13671],{},"If something does happen, the useful thing is a record showing the vehicle was being looked after, not a certificate showing it passed a test last spring.",[12,13673,13674],{},"That is the same argument as the mileage log, for the same reason: contemporaneous records of what actually happened beat reconstructions. If you are already recording journeys per vehicle, you have the usage history to go with the maintenance one, which between them describe how hard the vehicle has been worked and when it was last looked at.",[24,13676,518],{"id":517},[137,13678,13679,13684,13689,13696],{},[140,13680,13681],{},[524,13682,13154],{"href":13152,"rel":13683},[528],[140,13685,13686],{},[524,13687,13171],{"href":13169,"rel":13688},[528],[140,13690,13691],{},[524,13692,13695],{"href":13693,"rel":13694},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fmot-reminder",[528],"Get an MOT reminder (GOV.UK)",[140,13697,13698],{},[524,13699,12157],{"href":12155,"rel":13700},[528],[566,13702],{},[12,13704,13705],{},[571,13706,13707],{},"General information, not legal advice. Employer duties around driving for work are detailed: take advice on your own obligations.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":13709},[13710,13711,13712,13713,13714,13715,13716],{"id":13500,"depth":576,"text":13501},{"id":13514,"depth":576,"text":13515},{"id":13524,"depth":576,"text":13525},{"id":13545,"depth":576,"text":13546},{"id":13628,"depth":576,"text":13629},{"id":13667,"depth":576,"text":13668},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-07-31","The test is one day a year. The obligation is every day, and for work vehicles it reaches the employer too.","\u002Fblog\u002Fmot-and-roadworthiness-for-work-vehicles.jpg","A mechanic working under the bonnet of a car","Photo by Shixart1985, CC BY","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=188690259",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmot-and-roadworthiness-for-work-vehicles",{"title":13492,"description":13718},"blog\u002Fmot-and-roadworthiness-for-work-vehicles",[13198,5660,10751],"Do3tA8U7J3Xx36yV0uxqGcv7Ev22du4hz3gpBb9xAfA",{"id":13730,"title":13731,"author":7,"body":13732,"category":587,"date":14053,"description":14054,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":14055,"imageAlt":14056,"imageCredit":14057,"imageCreditUrl":14058,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":14059,"navigation":595,"path":14060,"readTime":1462,"seo":14061,"stem":14062,"tags":14063,"__hash__":14066},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fuk-vs-us-mileage-rates.md","45p or 70 cents: how the UK and US pay for business miles",{"type":9,"value":13733,"toc":14043},[13734,13740,13743,13747,13760,13770,13773,13777,13782,13785,13788,13791,13795,13804,13812,13821,13825,13932,13936,13985,13988,13992,13995,13998,14001,14005,14008,14010,14036,14038],[4986,13735,13736],{},[12,13737,13738,4993],{},[19,13739,4992],{},[12,13741,13742],{},"Both countries let you deduct the cost of driving for work at a flat rate per mile. The mechanisms differ more than the numbers do.",[24,13744,13746],{"id":13745},"the-headline-rates","The headline rates",[12,13748,13749,13752,13753,13756,13757,13759],{},[19,13750,13751],{},"UK."," HMRC's approved mileage allowance payments: ",[19,13754,13755],{},"45p a mile"," for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, then ",[19,13758,472],{},". Unchanged since 2011.",[12,13761,13762,13765,13766,13769],{},[19,13763,13764],{},"US."," The IRS publishes a ",[19,13767,13768],{},"standard mileage rate"," for business use, revised annually and occasionally mid-year when fuel prices move sharply. It sits in the high-60s to low-70s of cents per mile.",[12,13771,13772],{},"At a rough exchange rate the two are not far apart on the first 10,000 miles. After that, the UK driver drops to 25p and the American does not drop at all.",[24,13774,13776],{"id":13775},"the-structural-difference-that-matters","The structural difference that matters",[12,13778,13779],{},[19,13780,13781],{},"The UK bands. The US does not.",[12,13783,13784],{},"HMRC's 10,000-mile threshold assumes that beyond a certain point your marginal cost per mile falls. That is true of some costs and not others. Fuel scales linearly, and so do tyres and servicing.",[12,13786,13787],{},"The IRS rate applies to every business mile at the same rate, all year. A US driver covering 30,000 business miles is paid the full rate on all of them; a UK driver on the same mileage gets 45p on a third and 25p on the rest, blending to about 32p.",[12,13789,13790],{},"For high-mileage drivers this is the single biggest difference between the two systems.",[24,13792,13794],{"id":13793},"who-claims-and-how","Who claims, and how",[12,13796,13797,13799,13800,13803],{},[19,13798,13751],{}," If your employer reimburses at or below the approved rate, the payment is tax-free and there is nothing to declare. Reimbursed below it, you claim ",[19,13801,13802],{},"Mileage Allowance Relief"," on the difference via Self Assessment or a P87. Self-employed, you deduct it as simplified expenses.",[12,13805,13806,13808,13809,13811],{},[19,13807,13764],{}," Employees have had a much harder time of it since unreimbursed employee expenses were suspended as an itemised deduction, for most employees, an unreimbursed business mile is simply not deductible. The standard mileage rate mainly benefits the ",[19,13810,3979],{},", and employees whose employers operate an accountable reimbursement plan.",[12,13813,13814,13815,13818,13819,3123],{},"So the UK system is more generous to ",[571,13816,13817],{},"employees",", and the US rate is more generous per mile to the ",[571,13820,3979],{},[24,13822,13824],{"id":13823},"the-two-systems-side-by-side","The two systems side by side",[29,13826,13827,13839],{},[32,13828,13829],{},[35,13830,13831,13833,13836],{},[38,13832],{},[38,13834,13835],{},"UK (HMRC)",[38,13837,13838],{},"US (IRS)",[51,13840,13841,13852,13866,13877,13892,13903,13913,13922],{},[35,13842,13843,13846,13849],{},[56,13844,13845],{},"Car rate",[56,13847,13848],{},"45p, then 25p",[56,13850,13851],{},"Single rate, high-60s to low-70s of cents",[35,13853,13854,13857,13862],{},[56,13855,13856],{},"Banded by annual mileage",[56,13858,13859,13861],{},[19,13860,67],{},", at 10,000",[56,13863,13864],{},[19,13865,80],{},[35,13867,13868,13871,13874],{},[56,13869,13870],{},"Rate changes",[56,13872,13873],{},"Unchanged since 2011",[56,13875,13876],{},"Revised annually",[35,13878,13879,13882,13887],{},[56,13880,13881],{},"Employees can claim shortfall",[56,13883,13884,13886],{},[19,13885,67],{},", Mileage Allowance Relief",[56,13888,13889],{},[19,13890,13891],{},"Largely no",[35,13893,13894,13897,13900],{},[56,13895,13896],{},"Self-employed can claim",[56,13898,13899],{},"Yes, simplified expenses",[56,13901,13902],{},"Yes, standard mileage rate",[35,13904,13905,13908,13911],{},[56,13906,13907],{},"Passenger payments",[56,13909,13910],{},"5p per passenger mile",[56,13912,6713],{},[35,13914,13915,13918,13920],{},[56,13916,13917],{},"Commuting deductible",[56,13919,80],{},[56,13921,80],{},[35,13923,13924,13927,13929],{},[56,13925,13926],{},"Contemporaneous record expected",[56,13928,67],{},[56,13930,13931],{},"Yes, explicitly",[24,13933,13935],{"id":13934},"at-30000-business-miles","At 30,000 business miles",[29,13937,13938,13950],{},[32,13939,13940],{},[35,13941,13942,13944,13947],{},[38,13943],{},[38,13945,13946],{},"UK",[38,13948,13949],{},"US",[51,13951,13952,13962,13971],{},[35,13953,13954,13957,13959],{},[56,13955,13956],{},"First 10,000",[56,13958,2954],{},[56,13960,13961],{},"Full rate on every mile",[35,13963,13964,13967,13969],{},[56,13965,13966],{},"Remaining 20,000",[56,13968,290],{},[56,13970,13961],{},[35,13972,13973,13977,13982],{},[56,13974,13975],{},[19,13976,192],{},[56,13978,13979],{},[19,13980,13981],{},"31.7p",[56,13983,13984],{},"Unchanged from the headline rate",[12,13986,13987],{},"The high-mileage self-employed driver does materially better in the US. The employee reimbursed\nbelow the approved rate does materially better in the UK.",[24,13989,13991],{"id":13990},"both-demand-the-same-evidence","Both demand the same evidence",[12,13993,13994],{},"This is where the two systems agree completely.",[12,13996,13997],{},"Both expect a contemporaneous log: date, destination, business purpose and distance. Both treat commuting as non-deductible. Both are sceptical of round numbers and reconstructions.",[12,13999,14000],{},"The IRS is, if anything, more explicit about wanting records made \"at or near the time\" of the journey. HMRC's expectation is the same in substance.",[24,14002,14004],{"id":14003},"the-practical-lesson","The practical lesson",[12,14006,14007],{},"Whichever side of the Atlantic you are on, the constraint is not the rate. It is whether you can evidence the miles. A generous rate applied to journeys you never recorded is worth nothing.",[24,14009,518],{"id":517},[137,14011,14012,14017,14022,14029],{},[140,14013,14014],{},[524,14015,529],{"href":526,"rel":14016},[528],[140,14018,14019],{},[524,14020,543],{"href":541,"rel":14021},[528],[140,14023,14024],{},[524,14025,14028],{"href":14026,"rel":14027},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.irs.gov\u002Ftax-professionals\u002Fstandard-mileage-rates",[528],"Standard mileage rates (IRS)",[140,14030,14031],{},[524,14032,14035],{"href":14033,"rel":14034},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.irs.gov\u002Ftaxtopics\u002Ftc510",[528],"Topic no. 510, Business use of car (IRS)",[566,14037],{},[12,14039,14040],{},[571,14041,14042],{},"General information for UK and US drivers, not tax advice. Rates change: check the current figure in the jurisdiction you are filing in.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":14044},[14045,14046,14047,14048,14049,14050,14051,14052],{"id":13745,"depth":576,"text":13746},{"id":13775,"depth":576,"text":13776},{"id":13793,"depth":576,"text":13794},{"id":13823,"depth":576,"text":13824},{"id":13934,"depth":576,"text":13935},{"id":13990,"depth":576,"text":13991},{"id":14003,"depth":576,"text":14004},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-07-24","Two countries, two systems, and a gap that is smaller than the exchange rate makes it look.","\u002Fblog\u002Fuk-vs-us-mileage-rates.jpg","Vehicles queuing at a border and toll plaza","Photo by 5of7, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=19089114",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fuk-vs-us-mileage-rates",{"title":13731,"description":14054},"blog\u002Fuk-vs-us-mileage-rates",[602,14064,14065],"irs","comparison","ZUFsksWgAsWzsVmM856x6Hzyhq8gZdiTaNa_rIcCjjc",{"id":14068,"title":14069,"author":7,"body":14070,"category":12182,"date":14348,"description":14349,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":14350,"imageAlt":14351,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":14352,"navigation":595,"path":14353,"readTime":1462,"seo":14354,"stem":14355,"tags":14356,"__hash__":14359},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-in-america-uk-driver.md","What a British driver notices in America",{"type":9,"value":14071,"toc":14336},[14072,14075,14079,14082,14085,14089,14092,14096,14099,14102,14106,14109,14112,14116,14119,14122,14126,14237,14241,14244,14286,14290,14293,14296,14300,14303,14305,14329,14331],[12,14073,14074],{},"Driving in the United States is easier than most British drivers expect and strange in ways they do not anticipate. The wrong side of the road stops being the hard part after about an hour. Everything below takes longer.",[24,14076,14078],{"id":14077},"turning-right-on-a-red-light","Turning right on a red light",[12,14080,14081],{},"In most states you may turn right at a red light after stopping, unless a sign forbids it. There is no British equivalent and it feels illegal for about a week.",[12,14083,14084],{},"The corollary is that traffic behind you expects it. Sitting at a red waiting for green when the way is clear will produce a horn.",[24,14086,14088],{"id":14087},"four-way-stops","Four-way stops",[12,14090,14091],{},"An intersection where every approach has a stop sign. Priority goes to whoever arrived first; simultaneous arrivals yield to the right. It works on a shared understanding rather than signage, and it works remarkably well until a British driver arrives and waits to be waved through.",[24,14093,14095],{"id":14094},"undertaking-is-normal","Undertaking is normal",[12,14097,14098],{},"On a multi-lane freeway, passing on either side is generally permitted and universally practised. Lane discipline of the British \"keep left unless overtaking\" kind largely does not exist.",[12,14100,14101],{},"This is the single biggest adjustment. You must check both sides before changing lanes, every time, because someone will be there.",[24,14103,14105],{"id":14104},"the-speeds-are-lower-than-you-think","The speeds are lower than you think",[12,14107,14108],{},"Interstate limits are commonly 65-75 mph, higher in parts of the west. Enforcement varies enormously by state and by county, and radar is genuinely everywhere in some places.",[12,14110,14111],{},"Distances, though, are on another scale entirely. A drive that would cross England is an afternoon between two cities in Texas.",[24,14113,14115],{"id":14114},"fuel-is-cheap-and-the-cars-drink-it","Fuel is cheap and the cars drink it",[12,14117,14118],{},"Petrol, gasoline, is a fraction of the UK price, largely because the tax component is far smaller. That funds a fleet that is bigger and thirstier, and it makes MPG a much less emotive subject than it is here.",[12,14120,14121],{},"Note that US gallons are smaller than imperial ones: a US MPG figure is about 83% of the UK equivalent for the same car. A \"30 mpg\" American car is roughly 36 mpg in British terms.",[24,14123,14125],{"id":14124},"the-differences-that-catch-people","The differences that catch people",[29,14127,14128,14138],{},[32,14129,14130],{},[35,14131,14132,14134,14136],{},[38,14133],{},[38,14135,13946],{},[38,14137,13949],{},[51,14139,14140,14153,14166,14177,14190,14200,14211,14224],{},[35,14141,14142,14145,14148],{},[56,14143,14144],{},"Turning right on red",[56,14146,14147],{},"Never",[56,14149,14150],{},[19,14151,14152],{},"Usually permitted after stopping",[35,14154,14155,14158,14161],{},[56,14156,14157],{},"Overtaking",[56,14159,14160],{},"Offside only, keep left",[56,14162,14163],{},[19,14164,14165],{},"Either side, normal practice",[35,14167,14168,14171,14174],{},[56,14169,14170],{},"Lane discipline",[56,14172,14173],{},"Keep left unless overtaking",[56,14175,14176],{},"Largely absent",[35,14178,14179,14182,14185],{},[56,14180,14181],{},"Unsignalled crossroads",[56,14183,14184],{},"Rare",[56,14186,14187],{},[19,14188,14189],{},"Four-way stops, first to arrive goes",[35,14191,14192,14195,14197],{},[56,14193,14194],{},"Motorway limits",[56,14196,6962],{},[56,14198,14199],{},"65-75, higher in parts of the west",[35,14201,14202,14205,14208],{},[56,14203,14204],{},"Junction numbering",[56,14206,14207],{},"Sequential",[56,14209,14210],{},"By milepost",[35,14212,14213,14216,14219],{},[56,14214,14215],{},"Fuel price",[56,14217,14218],{},"High, mostly tax",[56,14220,14221],{},[19,14222,14223],{},"A fraction of UK prices",[35,14225,14226,14229,14232],{},[56,14227,14228],{},"Gallon",[56,14230,14231],{},"Imperial, 4.546 L",[56,14233,14234],{},[19,14235,14236],{},"US, 3.785 L",[24,14238,14240],{"id":14239},"converting-the-mpg-figures","Converting the MPG figures",[12,14242,14243],{},"A US gallon is smaller, so US MPG figures understate by about 17% in British terms:",[29,14245,14246,14256],{},[32,14247,14248],{},[35,14249,14250,14253],{},[38,14251,14252],{},"US MPG",[38,14254,14255],{},"Equivalent UK MPG",[51,14257,14258,14265,14272,14279],{},[35,14259,14260,14263],{},[56,14261,14262],{},"20",[56,14264,10819],{},[35,14266,14267,14270],{},[56,14268,14269],{},"25",[56,14271,5086],{},[35,14273,14274,14276],{},[56,14275,5086],{},[56,14277,14278],{},"36",[35,14280,14281,14283],{},[56,14282,6988],{},[56,14284,14285],{},"48",[24,14287,14289],{"id":14288},"the-roads-themselves-are-a-different-philosophy","The roads themselves are a different philosophy",[12,14291,14292],{},"The Interstate system was built to a consistent national standard, largely in open country, with long distances between exits and generous geometry. British motorways were retro-fitted into a small, densely populated island where the land was already spoken for.",[12,14294,14295],{},"That explains a great deal about both networks: why American exits are numbered by milepost and ours are numbered sequentially, why their junctions are enormous and ours are tight, and why we run smart motorways to add capacity where they would simply have added lanes.",[24,14297,14299],{"id":14298},"if-any-of-it-is-business-travel","If any of it is business travel",[12,14301,14302],{},"If you drive abroad on business in your own vehicle, the mileage is claimable at the same UK approved rates. A business mile is a business mile wherever it was driven. Hire cars are a different matter, as the cost of the hire is the expense rather than a per-mile rate.",[24,14304,518],{"id":517},[137,14306,14307,14314,14319,14324],{},[140,14308,14309],{},[524,14310,14313],{"href":14311,"rel":14312},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.fhwa.dot.gov\u002Finterstate\u002F",[528],"The Interstate Highway System (FHWA)",[140,14315,14316],{},[524,14317,14028],{"href":14026,"rel":14318},[528],[140,14320,14321],{},[524,14322,529],{"href":526,"rel":14323},[528],[140,14325,14326],{},[524,14327,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":14328},[528],[566,14330],{},[12,14332,14333],{},[571,14334,14335],{},"General information. Traffic law in the US varies by state: check the rules where you are driving.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":14337},[14338,14339,14340,14341,14342,14343,14344,14345,14346,14347],{"id":14077,"depth":576,"text":14078},{"id":14087,"depth":576,"text":14088},{"id":14094,"depth":576,"text":14095},{"id":14104,"depth":576,"text":14105},{"id":14114,"depth":576,"text":14115},{"id":14124,"depth":576,"text":14125},{"id":14239,"depth":576,"text":14240},{"id":14288,"depth":576,"text":14289},{"id":14298,"depth":576,"text":14299},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-07-17","Right on red, four-way stops, undertaking as standard, and roads built on an entirely different assumption.","\u002Fshots\u002Ftrack.png","Recording a drive in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-in-america-uk-driver",{"title":14069,"description":14349},"blog\u002Fdriving-in-america-uk-driver",[14357,14065,14358],"usa","driving abroad","Oh3zcoz9Z1ygBzNi_Fq72jq6o5ZTmePYl1CaU0P01Go",{"id":14361,"title":14362,"author":7,"body":14363,"category":12182,"date":14623,"description":14624,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":14625,"imageAlt":14626,"imageCredit":14627,"imageCreditUrl":14628,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":14629,"navigation":595,"path":14630,"readTime":1462,"seo":14631,"stem":14632,"tags":14633,"__hash__":14636},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-britain-barely-tolls-its-roads.md","Why Britain barely tolls its motorways",{"type":9,"value":14364,"toc":14613},[14365,14368,14372,14398,14401,14405,14477,14481,14538,14542,14545,14548,14552,14555,14558,14562,14565,14568,14572,14575,14578,14580,14606,14608],[12,14366,14367],{},"Britain has thousands of miles of motorway and almost none of it is tolled. That is unusual, and it is a deliberate choice rather than an accident.",[24,14369,14371],{"id":14370},"what-we-actually-charge-for","What we actually charge for",[137,14373,14374,14380,14386,14392],{},[140,14375,14376,14379],{},[19,14377,14378],{},"The M6 Toll",": the country's only tolled motorway, a privately operated relief route around Birmingham",[140,14381,14382,14385],{},[19,14383,14384],{},"The Dartford Crossing",": charged, but paid online or by account rather than at a barrier",[140,14387,14388,14391],{},[19,14389,14390],{},"A handful of estuarial crossings and tunnels",", generally locally operated",[140,14393,14394,14397],{},[19,14395,14396],{},"Congestion and clean air charges"," in cities, which are a different instrument entirely. They charge for entering an area, not for using a road",[12,14399,14400],{},"The Severn crossings were tolled for decades and the charges were removed in December 2018, which remains the largest single reduction in road charging the UK has seen.",[24,14402,14404],{"id":14403},"what-britain-actually-charges-for","What Britain actually charges for",[29,14406,14407,14418],{},[32,14408,14409],{},[35,14410,14411,14414,14416],{},[38,14412,14413],{},"Charge",[38,14415,11953],{},[38,14417,1975],{},[51,14419,14420,14431,14442,14453,14466],{},[35,14421,14422,14425,14428],{},[56,14423,14424],{},"M6 Toll",[56,14426,14427],{},"Tolled motorway",[56,14429,14430],{},"The only one",[35,14432,14433,14436,14439],{},[56,14434,14435],{},"Dartford Crossing",[56,14437,14438],{},"Crossing charge",[56,14440,14441],{},"Free-flow, pay by midnight the next day",[35,14443,14444,14447,14450],{},[56,14445,14446],{},"Various estuarial crossings and tunnels",[56,14448,14449],{},"Local",[56,14451,14452],{},"Operator-set",[35,14454,14455,14458,14463],{},[56,14456,14457],{},"Severn crossings",[56,14459,14460],{},[19,14461,14462],{},"Removed in December 2018",[56,14464,14465],{},"Previously tolled for decades",[35,14467,14468,14471,14474],{},[56,14469,14470],{},"Congestion charge, ULEZ, clean air zones",[56,14472,14473],{},"Area charges",[56,14475,14476],{},"Charge for entering an area, not using a road",[24,14478,14480],{"id":14479},"britain-and-america-compared","Britain and America compared",[29,14482,14483,14493],{},[32,14484,14485],{},[35,14486,14487,14489,14491],{},[38,14488],{},[38,14490,13946],{},[38,14492,13949],{},[51,14494,14495,14506,14517,14527],{},[35,14496,14497,14500,14503],{},[56,14498,14499],{},"Tolled motorway mileage",[56,14501,14502],{},"Almost none",[56,14504,14505],{},"Extensive, especially the northeast",[35,14507,14508,14511,14514],{},[56,14509,14510],{},"How roads are funded",[56,14512,14513],{},"General taxation, fuel duty, VED",[56,14515,14516],{},"Federal and state funds, plus toll bonds",[35,14518,14519,14522,14524],{},[56,14520,14521],{},"Per-journey decision to avoid a charge",[56,14523,14184],{},[56,14525,14526],{},"Common",[35,14528,14529,14532,14535],{},[56,14530,14531],{},"Transponder accounts",[56,14533,14534],{},"Minimal",[56,14536,14537],{},"Widespread",[24,14539,14541],{"id":14540},"how-the-roads-are-paid-for-instead","How the roads are paid for instead",[12,14543,14544],{},"Through general taxation, with vehicle excise duty and fuel duty raising revenue at national level. Fuel duty in particular means every mile driven contributes, without any of the infrastructure a toll requires.",[12,14546,14547],{},"The consequence: no barriers, no accounts, no queues, and no per-journey decision about whether to take the road. It is administratively cheap and politically settled.",[24,14549,14551],{"id":14550},"the-american-contrast","The American contrast",[12,14553,14554],{},"The US has an extensive network of tolled turnpikes, particularly in the northeast, often predating the Interstate system and funded by bonds serviced from the tolls themselves.",[12,14556,14557],{},"That model puts the cost on the users of a specific road rather than on drivers generally. It also produces electronic tolling accounts, transponders and the small industry that surrounds them. Plus the genuine phenomenon of choosing a slower free route to avoid a charge, which barely exists in Britain.",[24,14559,14561],{"id":14560},"the-bit-that-is-quietly-changing","The bit that is quietly changing",[12,14563,14564],{},"Fuel duty is a per-litre tax, and electric vehicles do not buy litres. As the fleet electrifies, the revenue that funds the roads declines while the roads carry the same traffic.",[12,14566,14567],{},"Every serious discussion of how to replace it comes back to charging for road use in some form, which is why road pricing keeps reappearing in policy debate. Whatever replaces fuel duty is likely to be more like a toll than less.",[24,14569,14571],{"id":14570},"what-it-means-for-a-business-driver-today","What it means for a business driver today",[12,14573,14574],{},"The charges that do exist are claimable when the journey is business: crossings, tolls, congestion and clean air charges, all separately from the mileage rate, which covers running the vehicle rather than the right to drive it somewhere.",[12,14576,14577],{},"Keep them attached to the journey rather than as anonymous line items on a statement, because whether each one is claimable depends on where you were going.",[24,14579,518],{"id":517},[137,14581,14582,14589,14596,14601],{},[140,14583,14584],{},[524,14585,14588],{"href":14586,"rel":14587},"https:\u002F\u002Fnationalhighways.co.uk\u002F",[528],"National Highways",[140,14590,14591],{},[524,14592,14595],{"href":14593,"rel":14594},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fgovernment\u002Fcollections\u002Froad-investment-strategy",[528],"Road Investment Strategy (GOV.UK)",[140,14597,14598],{},[524,14599,1817],{"href":1815,"rel":14600},[528],[140,14602,14603],{},[524,14604,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":14605},[528],[566,14607],{},[12,14609,14610],{},[571,14611,14612],{},"General information, not tax advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":14614},[14615,14616,14617,14618,14619,14620,14621,14622],{"id":14370,"depth":576,"text":14371},{"id":14403,"depth":576,"text":14404},{"id":14479,"depth":576,"text":14480},{"id":14540,"depth":576,"text":14541},{"id":14550,"depth":576,"text":14551},{"id":14560,"depth":576,"text":14561},{"id":14570,"depth":576,"text":14571},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-07-10","One tolled motorway, a handful of crossings, and a funding model completely unlike the American turnpike.","\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-britain-barely-tolls-its-roads.jpg","An empty dual carriageway stretching ahead","Photo by Tabl-trai, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=47364323",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-britain-barely-tolls-its-roads",{"title":14362,"description":14624},"blog\u002Fwhy-britain-barely-tolls-its-roads",[14634,14635,14065],"tolls","roads","NU7Ez1EqvdGSLAqnYBth1SG0A4ot9_DQKU2r_dglN6Y",{"id":14638,"title":14639,"author":7,"body":14640,"category":12182,"date":14857,"description":14858,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":14859,"imageAlt":14860,"imageCredit":14861,"imageCreditUrl":14862,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":14863,"navigation":595,"path":14864,"readTime":1462,"seo":14865,"stem":14866,"tags":14867,"__hash__":14869},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-uk-road-schemes-take-decades.md","Why a road scheme takes twenty years in Britain",{"type":9,"value":14641,"toc":14847},[14642,14645,14649,14656,14659,14663,14674,14677,14681,14769,14772,14776,14779,14782,14786,14789,14792,14796,14799,14802,14806,14809,14812,14814,14840,14842],[12,14643,14644],{},"Anyone who drives the same corridor for years watches the same bottleneck get discussed, consulted on, designed, challenged and deferred. Here is why that is structural rather than incompetence.",[24,14646,14648],{"id":14647},"how-major-roads-get-funded","How major roads get funded",[12,14650,14651,14652,14655],{},"England's strategic road network, motorways and major A roads, is run by National Highways and funded through ",[19,14653,14654],{},"Road Investment Strategies",": multi-year settlements setting out what will be built in a defined period.",[12,14657,14658],{},"That has an obvious upside: a pipeline with money attached rather than annual guesswork. It also means a scheme that misses a period waits for the next one, which is measured in years rather than months.",[24,14660,14662],{"id":14661},"then-the-consent-process","Then the consent process",[12,14664,14665,14666,14669,14670,14673],{},"A large road scheme is a ",[19,14667,14668],{},"Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project"," and needs a ",[19,14671,14672],{},"Development Consent Order"," rather than ordinary planning permission. That process involves statutory consultation, an examination, and a decision by the Secretary of State.",[12,14675,14676],{},"It is designed to be thorough, and it is. It also means a scheme can be consented and then challenged in the courts, quashed, reworked and re-decided, each round taking a year or more.",[24,14678,14680],{"id":14679},"where-the-years-actually-go","Where the years actually go",[29,14682,14683,14693],{},[32,14684,14685],{},[35,14686,14687,14690],{},[38,14688,14689],{},"Stage",[38,14691,14692],{},"Typically",[51,14694,14695,14703,14711,14719,14726,14733,14741,14749,14761],{},[35,14696,14697,14700],{},[56,14698,14699],{},"Identified as a problem",[56,14701,14702],{},"Years of local pressure",[35,14704,14705,14708],{},[56,14706,14707],{},"Included in a Road Investment Strategy",[56,14709,14710],{},"Waits for the next funding period",[35,14712,14713,14716],{},[56,14714,14715],{},"Options consultation",[56,14717,14718],{},"1-2 years",[35,14720,14721,14724],{},[56,14722,14723],{},"Preferred route announced",[56,14725,205],{},[35,14727,14728,14731],{},[56,14729,14730],{},"Statutory consultation and design",[56,14732,14718],{},[35,14734,14735,14738],{},[56,14736,14737],{},"Development Consent Order examination",[56,14739,14740],{},"~1 year",[35,14742,14743,14746],{},[56,14744,14745],{},"Decision by the Secretary of State",[56,14747,14748],{},"Months",[35,14750,14751,14756],{},[56,14752,14753],{},[19,14754,14755],{},"Legal challenge, if any",[56,14757,14758],{},[19,14759,14760],{},"Adds a year or more, possibly a redetermination",[35,14762,14763,14766],{},[56,14764,14765],{},"Construction",[56,14767,14768],{},"2-5 years for a major scheme",[12,14770,14771],{},"Almost none of that elapsed time is building. It is deciding exactly what to build and obtaining\npermission for it.",[24,14773,14775],{"id":14774},"the-a303-as-the-standard-example","The A303 as the standard example",[12,14777,14778],{},"The route past Stonehenge has been a recognised bottleneck for generations. Proposals to improve it, including a tunnel past the monument, have been made, consulted on, consented, challenged, redetermined and revisited over a period spanning decades.",[12,14780,14781],{},"The competing interests are genuine rather than procedural: a World Heritage Site, an internationally significant archaeological landscape, and a road that turns the south-west into a summer car park every year.",[24,14783,14785],{"id":14784},"the-lower-thames-crossing","The Lower Thames Crossing",[12,14787,14788],{},"The other perennial. The Dartford Crossing carries far more traffic than it was designed for, and a second crossing further east has been the proposed answer for a long time. It is one of the largest road proposals in the country and has been through years of consultation and consenting.",[12,14790,14791],{},"Both cases show the same pattern: the case for doing something is not seriously disputed, and almost all the elapsed time goes on deciding exactly what and getting permission for it.",[24,14793,14795],{"id":14794},"smart-motorways-as-the-alternative-that-was-tried","Smart motorways as the alternative that was tried",[12,14797,14798],{},"Part of the appeal of smart motorways was precisely that they added capacity within the existing footprint. No land acquisition, no consent for a new route, much faster to deliver.",[12,14800,14801],{},"That trade was reconsidered after safety concerns, and the rollout of new schemes was halted in 2023. Which puts the network back to the older options: build new, or manage demand.",[24,14803,14805],{"id":14804},"what-it-means-for-someone-who-drives-for-a-living","What it means for someone who drives for a living",[12,14807,14808],{},"Practically: the corridor that is congested today will probably still be congested in five years, so plan around it rather than waiting for it to be fixed.",[12,14810,14811],{},"And keep your own data. If a route consistently costs you an hour, that is worth knowing precisely. A year of recorded journeys tells you what a bottleneck actually costs your business, which is a better basis for changing how you work than a general sense of frustration.",[24,14813,518],{"id":517},[137,14815,14816,14821,14826,14833],{},[140,14817,14818],{},[524,14819,14595],{"href":14593,"rel":14820},[528],[140,14822,14823],{},[524,14824,14588],{"href":14586,"rel":14825},[528],[140,14827,14828],{},[524,14829,14832],{"href":14830,"rel":14831},"https:\u002F\u002Fnationalhighways.co.uk\u002Four-roads\u002F",[528],"Our roads (National Highways)",[140,14834,14835],{},[524,14836,14839],{"href":14837,"rel":14838},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gov.uk\u002Fgovernment\u002Forganisations\u002Fdepartment-for-transport",[528],"Department for Transport (GOV.UK)",[566,14841],{},[12,14843,14844],{},[571,14845,14846],{},"General information on UK roads policy. Scheme status changes: check National Highways for the current position on any specific project.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":14848},[14849,14850,14851,14852,14853,14854,14855,14856],{"id":14647,"depth":576,"text":14648},{"id":14661,"depth":576,"text":14662},{"id":14679,"depth":576,"text":14680},{"id":14774,"depth":576,"text":14775},{"id":14784,"depth":576,"text":14785},{"id":14794,"depth":576,"text":14795},{"id":14804,"depth":576,"text":14805},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-07-03","Road Investment Strategies, development consent, and the reason the A303 has been a plan for longer than most drivers have held a licence.","\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-uk-road-schemes-take-decades.jpg","Heavy plant machinery at a road construction site","Photo by FBenjr123, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=115220311",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhy-uk-road-schemes-take-decades",{"title":14639,"description":14858},"blog\u002Fwhy-uk-road-schemes-take-decades",[14635,14868,8501],"infrastructure","okD3PwQ2ypMLEGtNdrEUNjLQDCd95dkK5WdTEAS_uok",{"id":14871,"title":14872,"author":7,"body":14873,"category":12182,"date":15037,"description":15038,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":15039,"imageAlt":15040,"imageCredit":15041,"imageCreditUrl":15042,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":15043,"navigation":595,"path":15044,"readTime":576,"seo":15045,"stem":15046,"tags":15047,"__hash__":15049},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdartford-crossing-and-dart-charge.md","The Dartford Crossing: how the charge works and what it costs a business",{"type":9,"value":14874,"toc":15027},[14875,14878,14882,14885,14891,14895,14898,14901,14905,14955,14959,14962,14965,14969,14972,14976,14983,14986,14989,14993,14996,14998,15020,15022],[12,14876,14877],{},"The Dartford Crossing is the busiest estuarial crossing in the country and the one most likely to generate an unexpected penalty for a business, because the way you pay for it is not obvious from the road.",[24,14879,14881],{"id":14880},"there-is-no-barrier","There is no barrier",[12,14883,14884],{},"The barriers were removed and replaced with free-flow charging. You drive through; cameras read the plate; you pay afterwards.",[12,14886,14887,14888],{},"That is a considerable improvement on queuing to hand over coins, and it introduces a failure mode that did not previously exist: ",[19,14889,14890],{},"it is entirely possible to use the crossing without realising you owe anything.",[24,14892,14894],{"id":14893},"the-deadline-is-the-trap","The deadline is the trap",[12,14896,14897],{},"The charge must be paid by midnight the day after you cross. Miss it and a penalty charge notice follows, which is an order of magnitude more than the crossing itself.",[12,14899,14900],{},"For someone who crosses occasionally this is a genuine risk. Particularly a driver who used the crossing years ago when there were barriers and has no reason to think anything is owed.",[24,14902,14904],{"id":14903},"what-it-costs-to-get-it-wrong","What it costs to get it wrong",[29,14906,14907,14916],{},[32,14908,14909],{},[35,14910,14911,14913],{},[38,14912,3163],{},[38,14914,14915],{},"Outcome",[51,14917,14918,14926,14937,14947],{},[35,14919,14920,14923],{},[56,14921,14922],{},"Paid by midnight the day after",[56,14924,14925],{},"Standard charge",[35,14927,14928,14931],{},[56,14929,14930],{},"Account holder",[56,14932,14933,14936],{},[19,14934,14935],{},"Lower"," rate, paid automatically",[35,14938,14939,14942],{},[56,14940,14941],{},"Not paid in time",[56,14943,14944,14946],{},[19,14945,5770],{},", many times the crossing",[35,14948,14949,14952],{},[56,14950,14951],{},"Repeated unpaid crossings",[56,14953,14954],{},"Multiple penalties, escalating",[24,14956,14958],{"id":14957},"the-fix-for-anyone-crossing-regularly","The fix, for anyone crossing regularly",[12,14960,14961],{},"Open an account. Payments come off automatically, the rate is lower than the one-off charge, and the failure mode disappears entirely.",[12,14963,14964],{},"If you run a fleet or several drivers, an account covering multiple vehicles removes the problem of a driver not knowing whether the crossing was paid for.",[24,14966,14968],{"id":14967},"charging-hours","Charging hours",[12,14970,14971],{},"The charge applies during defined hours and not overnight. That makes an early or late crossing genuinely free, which is worth knowing if your schedule is flexible, though the reason it is free overnight is the reason the crossing is bearable overnight.",[24,14973,14975],{"id":14974},"claiming-it","Claiming it",[12,14977,14978,14979,14982],{},"A Dartford charge incurred on a ",[19,14980,14981],{},"business journey"," is a claimable expense, separate from the mileage rate, exactly like a toll or a parking charge. The mileage rate covers running the vehicle, not the right to cross the river.",[12,14984,14985],{},"The same charge on a personal trip, or on a commute to a permanent workplace, is not claimable.",[12,14987,14988],{},"Because the charge is paid after the event and often in a batch, it arrives on a statement as a payment with a reference and no context. Attaching it to the journey it belongs to at the time, as a cost on that trip, with the confirmation, is what keeps it identifiable when you need to separate the business ones.",[24,14990,14992],{"id":14991},"and-the-longer-term-picture","And the longer-term picture",[12,14994,14995],{},"The crossing carries far more traffic than it was designed for, which is why a second crossing further east has been proposed and worked on for years. Nothing about that changes what you owe today.",[24,14997,518],{"id":517},[137,14999,15000,15005,15010,15015],{},[140,15001,15002],{},[524,15003,14588],{"href":14586,"rel":15004},[528],[140,15006,15007],{},[524,15008,14832],{"href":14830,"rel":15009},[528],[140,15011,15012],{},[524,15013,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":15014},[528],[140,15016,15017],{},[524,15018,536],{"href":534,"rel":15019},[528],[566,15021],{},[12,15023,15024],{},[571,15025,15026],{},"General information, not tax advice. Charges and hours are set by the operator and change: check the current position before you travel.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":15028},[15029,15030,15031,15032,15033,15034,15035,15036],{"id":14880,"depth":576,"text":14881},{"id":14893,"depth":576,"text":14894},{"id":14903,"depth":576,"text":14904},{"id":14957,"depth":576,"text":14958},{"id":14967,"depth":576,"text":14968},{"id":14974,"depth":576,"text":14975},{"id":14991,"depth":576,"text":14992},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-06-26","There is no barrier, the charge is not a toll booth, and missing the deadline turns £2.50 into a penalty.","\u002Fblog\u002Fdartford-crossing-and-dart-charge.jpg","A road bridge crossing a wide river","Photo by rpchmi, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Flicenses\u002Fby-sa\u002F3.0\u002F",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdartford-crossing-and-dart-charge",{"title":14872,"description":15038},"blog\u002Fdartford-crossing-and-dart-charge",[15048,14634,10751],"dartford","lCIDPobGYnXueDQKM_vHWLozTuWZEAw9oTp5pDaUf9g",{"id":15051,"title":15052,"author":7,"body":15053,"category":12182,"date":15276,"description":15277,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":15278,"imageAlt":15279,"imageCredit":15280,"imageCreditUrl":15042,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":15281,"navigation":595,"path":15282,"readTime":576,"seo":15283,"stem":15284,"tags":15285,"__hash__":15288},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Flondon-driving-for-work.md","Driving into London for work: the charges, stacked",{"type":9,"value":15054,"toc":15267},[15055,15058,15062,15068,15074,15080,15085,15089,15092,15171,15174,15178,15181,15184,15188,15191,15194,15208,15211,15215,15221,15224,15228,15231,15234,15236,15260,15262],[12,15056,15057],{},"London is the most expensive place in Britain to arrive by car, and the charges are cumulative rather than alternative. Working out what a trip actually costs means adding several separate schemes together.",[24,15059,15061],{"id":15060},"they-are-different-schemes","They are different schemes",[12,15063,15064,15067],{},[19,15065,15066],{},"Congestion charge."," A daily charge for driving within the central zone during charging hours. Paying it says nothing about emissions.",[12,15069,15070,15073],{},[19,15071,15072],{},"ULEZ."," A daily charge for driving a non-compliant vehicle within a much larger zone, operating almost continuously. Paying it says nothing about congestion.",[12,15075,15076,15079],{},[19,15077,15078],{},"They stack."," A non-compliant vehicle in the central zone during charging hours pays both, on the same day, for the same trip.",[12,15081,15082,15084],{},[19,15083,1860],{}," is separate again, and in central London routinely exceeds both charges combined.",[24,15086,15088],{"id":15087},"how-the-charges-stack","How the charges stack",[12,15090,15091],{},"A single day driving into central London during charging hours:",[29,15093,15094,15108],{},[32,15095,15096],{},[35,15097,15098,15100,15102,15105],{},[38,15099,40],{},[38,15101,1872],{},[38,15103,15104],{},"ULEZ",[38,15106,15107],{},"Total before parking",[51,15109,15110,15122,15136,15147,15160],{},[35,15111,15112,15115,15117,15119],{},[56,15113,15114],{},"Compliant car",[56,15116,5944],{},[56,15118,431],{},[56,15120,15121],{},"Congestion only",[35,15123,15124,15127,15129,15131],{},[56,15125,15126],{},"Non-compliant car",[56,15128,5944],{},[56,15130,5944],{},[56,15132,15133],{},[19,15134,15135],{},"Both",[35,15137,15138,15141,15143,15145],{},[56,15139,15140],{},"Compliant van",[56,15142,5944],{},[56,15144,431],{},[56,15146,15121],{},[35,15148,15149,15152,15154,15156],{},[56,15150,15151],{},"Non-compliant van",[56,15153,5944],{},[56,15155,5944],{},[56,15157,15158],{},[19,15159,15135],{},[35,15161,15162,15165,15167,15169],{},[56,15163,15164],{},"Fully electric",[56,15166,5944],{},[56,15168,431],{},[56,15170,15121],{},[12,15172,15173],{},"They are separate schemes with separate tests. Paying one says nothing about the other.",[24,15175,15177],{"id":15176},"compliance-is-about-emissions-standard-not-age","Compliance is about emissions standard, not age",[12,15179,15180],{},"Broadly, diesels need to meet Euro 6 and petrols Euro 4 to avoid ULEZ charges. Check the specific vehicle rather than assuming from the year. The answer is binary and takes seconds to look up.",[12,15182,15183],{},"For a business running older vans, this is the single largest ongoing cost of London work, and it is the reason fleet replacement decisions in the south-east have been driven by emissions standards rather than mileage for several years.",[24,15185,15187],{"id":15186},"the-arithmetic-against-the-train","The arithmetic against the train",[12,15189,15190],{},"For a single person going to a single meeting, the train usually wins comfortably once you add charges and parking.",[12,15192,15193],{},"It stops being obvious when:",[137,15195,15196,15199,15202,15205],{},[140,15197,15198],{},"You are carrying tools, stock or equipment",[140,15200,15201],{},"There are several of you in the vehicle",[140,15203,15204],{},"You have multiple stops across a day that public transport connects badly",[140,15206,15207],{},"The journey is outside the times the railway is useful",[12,15209,15210],{},"That is genuinely a calculation rather than a rule, and it is one worth doing with real numbers rather than assumptions.",[24,15212,15214],{"id":15213},"what-is-claimable","What is claimable",[12,15216,15217,15218,15220],{},"If the journey is business travel, the congestion charge, the ULEZ charge and the parking are all claimable costs ",[19,15219,5898],{}," to the mileage. The mileage rate covers running the vehicle; it does not cover the right to bring it into central London.",[12,15222,15223],{},"If the journey is your commute to a permanent workplace, none of it is claimable, however painful.",[24,15225,15227],{"id":15226},"keeping-it-straight","Keeping it straight",[12,15229,15230],{},"Charges are paid online, often days later, sometimes as an auto-pay batch. On a statement they are indistinguishable from one another and from personal trips.",[12,15232,15233],{},"Attaching each charge to the journey it belongs to, with the date, destination and reason, is what makes the business ones identifiable later. Milesheet takes them as costs on the trip alongside a photo of the confirmation, and carries them into the monthly statement next to the mileage.",[24,15235,518],{"id":517},[137,15237,15238,15245,15250,15255],{},[140,15239,15240],{},[524,15241,15244],{"href":15242,"rel":15243},"https:\u002F\u002Ftfl.gov.uk\u002Fmodes\u002Fdriving\u002F",[528],"Driving (Transport for London)",[140,15246,15247],{},[524,15248,536],{"href":534,"rel":15249},[528],[140,15251,15252],{},[524,15253,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":15254},[528],[140,15256,15257],{},[524,15258,543],{"href":541,"rel":15259},[528],[566,15261],{},[12,15263,15264],{},[571,15265,15266],{},"General information, not tax advice. TfL charges, zones and hours change: check the current position before travelling.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":15268},[15269,15270,15271,15272,15273,15274,15275],{"id":15060,"depth":576,"text":15061},{"id":15087,"depth":576,"text":15088},{"id":15176,"depth":576,"text":15177},{"id":15186,"depth":576,"text":15187},{"id":15213,"depth":576,"text":15214},{"id":15226,"depth":576,"text":15227},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-06-19","Congestion charge, ULEZ, parking and the arithmetic that often makes the train cheaper, and sometimes does not.","\u002Fblog\u002Flondon-driving-for-work.jpg","London buses in traffic on a city street","Photo by Umezo KAMATA, CC BY-SA",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Flondon-driving-for-work",{"title":15052,"description":15277},"blog\u002Flondon-driving-for-work",[15286,15287,6057],"london","congestion charge","jIDY_vjojF2mT6h_taf_BEhrmCtDnN06sSrA1WGj1MA",{"id":15290,"title":15291,"author":7,"body":15292,"category":12182,"date":15471,"description":15472,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1458,"imageAlt":15473,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":15474,"navigation":595,"path":15475,"readTime":576,"seo":15476,"stem":15477,"tags":15478,"__hash__":15480},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fm6-toll-is-it-worth-it.md","Is the M6 Toll worth it?",{"type":9,"value":15293,"toc":15462},[15294,15297,15301,15307,15310,15313,15317,15320,15323,15326,15330,15333,15403,15407,15410,15413,15415,15421,15424,15428,15431,15433,15455,15457],[12,15295,15296],{},"The M6 Toll runs around the east of Birmingham as a relief route for the M6 through the conurbation. It is privately operated, it is the only tolled motorway in the country, and it is famously quiet.",[24,15298,15300],{"id":15299},"what-you-are-buying","What you are buying",[12,15302,15303,15304,3123],{},"Not distance. The two routes are broadly comparable in mileage. You are buying ",[19,15305,15306],{},"predictability",[12,15308,15309],{},"The M6 through Birmingham is one of the most congested stretches in the country and its journey time varies enormously by time of day and by luck. The toll road's traffic volumes are low enough that it rarely does.",[12,15311,15312],{},"So the question is not \"how much time does it save\" but \"how much is it worth not to find out\".",[24,15314,15316],{"id":15315},"the-arithmetic-for-a-business","The arithmetic for a business",[12,15318,15319],{},"Take a car toll of a few pounds against a saving that might be anything from nothing at three in the morning to an hour at half past four on a Friday.",[12,15321,15322],{},"If your time is chargeable, the calculation is straightforward. An hour of a tradesperson's or consultant's time is worth several multiples of the toll, so anything above a token saving pays for itself. If you are driving to something with a fixed start time, a client, a court, a flight, the value is not the average saving but the removal of the tail risk.",[12,15324,15325],{},"If you are driving your own time on a Sunday, it is usually not worth it.",[24,15327,15329],{"id":15328},"when-it-pays-for-itself","When it pays for itself",[12,15331,15332],{},"Assuming a car toll of around £8 and chargeable time:",[29,15334,15335,15348],{},[32,15336,15337],{},[35,15338,15339,15342,15345],{},[38,15340,15341],{},"Your time is worth",[38,15343,15344],{},"Break-even saving",[38,15346,15347],{},"Typical verdict",[51,15349,15350,15360,15371,15381,15391],{},[35,15351,15352,15355,15357],{},[56,15353,15354],{},"£0 (own time, weekend)",[56,15356,14147],{},[56,15358,15359],{},"Take the M6",[35,15361,15362,15365,15368],{},[56,15363,15364],{},"£25\u002Fhr",[56,15366,15367],{},"19 min",[56,15369,15370],{},"Often worth it at peak",[35,15372,15373,15376,15378],{},[56,15374,15375],{},"£50\u002Fhr",[56,15377,4801],{},[56,15379,15380],{},"Usually worth it",[35,15382,15383,15386,15388],{},[56,15384,15385],{},"£100\u002Fhr",[56,15387,4828],{},[56,15389,15390],{},"Almost always worth it",[35,15392,15393,15396,15398],{},[56,15394,15395],{},"Fixed appointment you cannot miss",[56,15397,205],{},[56,15399,15400],{},[19,15401,15402],{},"Worth it for the certainty alone",[24,15404,15406],{"id":15405},"the-bit-people-get-wrong","The bit people get wrong",[12,15408,15409],{},"Comparing the toll against the fuel saved. The fuel difference between the two routes is small and can go either way. The toll road is not appreciably shorter.",[12,15411,15412],{},"The toll is not buying you fuel. It is buying you time and certainty, and it should be judged against what those are worth on that particular trip.",[24,15414,14975],{"id":14974},[12,15416,15417,15418,15420],{},"A toll paid on a ",[19,15419,14981],{}," is a claimable expense, separate from the mileage rate. The mileage rate covers running the vehicle; the toll is the cost of using that particular road.",[12,15422,15423],{},"Keep it attached to the journey. A toll on your commute to a permanent workplace is not claimable, and a statement showing six tolls does not tell you which were which.",[24,15425,15427],{"id":15426},"the-wider-point-about-tolling","The wider point about tolling",[12,15429,15430],{},"The M6 Toll is a useful demonstration of what tolled British motorways would feel like: reliably clear, and used by a minority. Whether that is a good outcome depends on what you think roads are for, which is roughly the debate that will follow fuel duty as the fleet electrifies.",[24,15432,518],{"id":517},[137,15434,15435,15440,15445,15450],{},[140,15436,15437],{},[524,15438,14588],{"href":14586,"rel":15439},[528],[140,15441,15442],{},[524,15443,14832],{"href":14830,"rel":15444},[528],[140,15446,15447],{},[524,15448,1437],{"href":1435,"rel":15449},[528],[140,15451,15452],{},[524,15453,536],{"href":534,"rel":15454},[528],[566,15456],{},[12,15458,15459],{},[571,15460,15461],{},"General information, not tax advice. Toll prices are set by the operator and change.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":15463},[15464,15465,15466,15467,15468,15469,15470],{"id":15299,"depth":576,"text":15300},{"id":15315,"depth":576,"text":15316},{"id":15328,"depth":576,"text":15329},{"id":15405,"depth":576,"text":15406},{"id":14974,"depth":576,"text":14975},{"id":15426,"depth":576,"text":15427},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-06-12","Britain's only tolled motorway, the time it actually saves, and the arithmetic for someone whose hours are chargeable.","Journey times and distances recorded in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fm6-toll-is-it-worth-it",{"title":15291,"description":15472},"blog\u002Fm6-toll-is-it-worth-it",[15479,14634,10751],"m6 toll","8DSeUiRg-z1J8-YGpaeJH2qw6b3o_EIVrfvVmUAHYhM",{"id":15482,"title":15483,"author":7,"body":15484,"category":12182,"date":15690,"description":15691,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":15692,"imageAlt":15693,"imageCredit":15694,"imageCreditUrl":15695,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":15696,"navigation":595,"path":15697,"readTime":576,"seo":15698,"stem":15699,"tags":15700,"__hash__":15703},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Faverage-speed-cameras-and-roadworks.md","Average speed cameras: how they actually work",{"type":9,"value":15485,"toc":15681},[15486,15489,15491,15494,15497,15501,15507,15513,15519,15525,15529,15612,15616,15619,15625,15631,15635,15638,15641,15644,15648,15651,15653,15675,15677],[12,15487,15488],{},"Average speed enforcement has become the default on motorway roadworks and on a growing number of permanent stretches. It behaves differently from a fixed camera, and most of what drivers believe about it is folklore.",[24,15490,3374],{"id":3373},[12,15492,15493],{},"Cameras at two or more points read your number plate and timestamp it. Divide the distance between them by the elapsed time and you have your average speed over that section.",[12,15495,15496],{},"There is no flash, there is nothing to see, and slowing down for the camera you can see achieves nothing because your speed at any one point is not what is being measured.",[24,15498,15500],{"id":15499},"the-myths","The myths",[12,15502,15503,15506],{},[19,15504,15505],{},"\"Change lanes and it can't track you.\""," It can. Modern systems read plates across all lanes and match entry to exit regardless of which lane you used.",[12,15508,15509,15512],{},[19,15510,15511],{},"\"There's a grace period so you can make it up.\""," There is generally a small tolerance, as with any enforcement, but it is not a licence to speed for half the section and crawl the rest. The average is the average.",[12,15514,15515,15518],{},[19,15516,15517],{},"\"They're switched off at night.\""," Assume they are not.",[12,15520,15521,15524],{},[19,15522,15523],{},"\"They're only in roadworks.\""," Increasingly not. Several permanent stretches use them, and they are common on rural A roads with poor safety records.",[24,15526,15528],{"id":15527},"fixed-versus-average-speed-cameras","Fixed versus average speed cameras",[29,15530,15531,15543],{},[32,15532,15533],{},[35,15534,15535,15537,15540],{},[38,15536],{},[38,15538,15539],{},"Fixed camera",[38,15541,15542],{},"Average speed",[51,15544,15545,15559,15570,15581,15591,15601],{},[35,15546,15547,15550,15553],{},[56,15548,15549],{},"What it measures",[56,15551,15552],{},"Speed at one point",[56,15554,15555,15556],{},"Speed over a ",[19,15557,15558],{},"section",[35,15560,15561,15564,15566],{},[56,15562,15563],{},"Slowing down for it works",[56,15565,67],{},[56,15567,15568],{},[19,15569,80],{},[35,15571,15572,15575,15577],{},[56,15573,15574],{},"Changing lanes defeats it",[56,15576,80],{},[56,15578,15579],{},[19,15580,80],{},[35,15582,15583,15586,15589],{},[56,15584,15585],{},"Visible when triggered",[56,15587,15588],{},"Often a flash",[56,15590,487],{},[35,15592,15593,15596,15598],{},[56,15594,15595],{},"Typical section length",[56,15597,205],{},[56,15599,15600],{},"Hundreds of metres to several miles",[35,15602,15603,15606,15609],{},[56,15604,15605],{},"Common location",[56,15607,15608],{},"Accident spots",[56,15610,15611],{},"Roadworks, rural A roads",[24,15613,15615],{"id":15614},"why-roadworks-use-them","Why roadworks use them",[12,15617,15618],{},"Two reasons that are worth understanding rather than resenting.",[12,15620,15621,15624],{},[19,15622,15623],{},"Workforce safety."," People are working feet from live traffic, often behind nothing more than a cone line. The 50 mph limit exists because of them.",[12,15626,15627,15630],{},[19,15628,15629],{},"Throughput."," Counter-intuitively, a uniform lower speed can move more vehicles through a constrained section than a higher speed with stop-start bunching. Smooth flow beats fast flow when capacity is the constraint.",[24,15632,15634],{"id":15633},"for-anyone-driving-for-work","For anyone driving for work",[12,15636,15637],{},"Two practical points.",[12,15639,15640],{},"Points are worse for people who drive for a living, because exposure is higher and because a licence may be a condition of the job. A single average-speed section is a very easy way to collect three points on a stretch you have driven safely for twenty minutes.",[12,15642,15643],{},"And roadwork sections are long. Setting cruise control at the limit is the whole answer. It removes the drift that catches people, which is almost never deliberate speeding but a gradual creep back up after the first mile.",[24,15645,15647],{"id":15646},"the-journey-time-cost","The journey-time cost",[12,15649,15650],{},"If a route regularly puts you through a long 50 limit, that is a real and repeated cost to your working day. Worth knowing precisely rather than approximately: a year of recorded journeys tells you what a corridor actually costs in time, which is a better basis for changing route or timing than a general sense that it is bad.",[24,15652,518],{"id":517},[137,15654,15655,15660,15665,15670],{},[140,15656,15657],{},[524,15658,12164],{"href":12162,"rel":15659},[528],[140,15661,15662],{},[524,15663,12143],{"href":12141,"rel":15664},[528],[140,15666,15667],{},[524,15668,12551],{"href":12549,"rel":15669},[528],[140,15671,15672],{},[524,15673,14588],{"href":14586,"rel":15674},[528],[566,15676],{},[12,15678,15679],{},[571,15680,12875],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":15682},[15683,15684,15685,15686,15687,15688,15689],{"id":3373,"depth":576,"text":3374},{"id":15499,"depth":576,"text":15500},{"id":15527,"depth":576,"text":15528},{"id":15614,"depth":576,"text":15615},{"id":15633,"depth":576,"text":15634},{"id":15646,"depth":576,"text":15647},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-06-05","Not a flash, not one camera, and the myths about lane-changing are wrong. What they measure and why roadworks use them.","\u002Fblog\u002Faverage-speed-cameras-and-roadworks.jpg","A car on a rural road lined with trees","Photo by Torsten Bätge, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=1466521",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Faverage-speed-cameras-and-roadworks",{"title":15483,"description":15691},"blog\u002Faverage-speed-cameras-and-roadworks",[15701,15702,12195],"speed cameras","roadworks","p4Oj_51rWNNUZKcvFGLkI8zuWVjbr1c42FBiCqxn-qA",{"id":15705,"title":15706,"author":7,"body":15707,"category":12182,"date":15914,"description":15915,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":9191,"imageAlt":15916,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":15917,"navigation":595,"path":15918,"readTime":576,"seo":15919,"stem":15920,"tags":15921,"__hash__":15925},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-licence-checks-for-employers.md","Checking that your drivers can actually drive",{"type":9,"value":15708,"toc":15905},[15709,15712,15716,15719,15722,15726,15733,15736,15740,15805,15808,15811,15831,15834,15838,15845,15848,15865,15868,15872,15875,15877,15899,15901],[12,15710,15711],{},"If people drive as part of their job, someone should be checking that they are entitled to. In a lot of small businesses, nobody is.",[24,15713,15715],{"id":15714},"the-paper-counterpart-is-long-gone","The paper counterpart is long gone",[12,15717,15718],{},"The paper counterpart to the photocard licence was abolished in 2015. Endorsements are held on DVLA's record, not on anything the driver can hand you.",[12,15720,15721],{},"That means asking to see a licence tells you the person has a licence and shows you the photocard's expiry. It tells you nothing about points, disqualifications or the categories they actually hold.",[24,15723,15725],{"id":15724},"how-to-check-properly","How to check properly",[12,15727,15728,15729,15732],{},"The driver generates a ",[19,15730,15731],{},"share code"," from DVLA's online service and gives it to you, along with their driving licence number. That lets you view their record, categories, endorsements, disqualifications, with their consent.",[12,15734,15735],{},"Codes are time-limited and single-viewer, so the process is designed around the driver authorising each check rather than an employer holding standing access.",[24,15737,15739],{"id":15738},"what-each-method-actually-tells-you","What each method actually tells you",[29,15741,15742,15757],{},[32,15743,15744],{},[35,15745,15746,15748,15751,15754],{},[38,15747,5162],{},[38,15749,15750],{},"Shows categories",[38,15752,15753],{},"Shows points",[38,15755,15756],{},"Shows disqualifications",[51,15758,15759,15774,15786],{},[35,15760,15761,15764,15766,15770],{},[56,15762,15763],{},"Looking at the photocard",[56,15765,67],{},[56,15767,15768],{},[19,15769,80],{},[56,15771,15772],{},[19,15773,80],{},[35,15775,15776,15779,15781,15784],{},[56,15777,15778],{},"Paper counterpart",[56,15780,205],{},[56,15782,15783],{},"Abolished in 2015",[56,15785,205],{},[35,15787,15788,15793,15797,15801],{},[56,15789,15790],{},[19,15791,15792],{},"DVLA share code",[56,15794,15795],{},[19,15796,67],{},[56,15798,15799],{},[19,15800,67],{},[56,15802,15803],{},[19,15804,67],{},[24,15806,8586],{"id":15807},"how-often",[12,15809,15810],{},"There is no universal legal frequency, and the sensible answer is risk-based:",[137,15812,15813,15819,15825],{},[140,15814,15815,15818],{},[19,15816,15817],{},"Annually"," as a baseline for anyone who drives for work",[140,15820,15821,15824],{},[19,15822,15823],{},"More often"," for high-mileage drivers, anyone carrying passengers or goods, and anyone with existing points",[140,15826,15827,15830],{},[19,15828,15829],{},"On joining",", before they drive anything",[12,15832,15833],{},"Also worth having: a policy requiring drivers to tell you about new endorsements when they happen, rather than waiting to be checked.",[24,15835,15837],{"id":15836},"the-grey-fleet","The grey fleet",[12,15839,15840,15841,15844],{},"The bit most often missed. When an employee uses ",[19,15842,15843],{},"their own car"," on company business, the employer's duties do not disappear because the vehicle is not theirs.",[12,15846,15847],{},"In practice you want to be able to show, for each grey-fleet driver:",[137,15849,15850,15853,15859,15862],{},[140,15851,15852],{},"Valid licence with the right categories",[140,15854,15855,15858],{},[19,15856,15857],{},"Business use insurance",": social, domestic and pleasure plus commuting is not enough",[140,15860,15861],{},"Valid MOT where applicable",[140,15863,15864],{},"Some assurance the vehicle is roadworthy",[12,15866,15867],{},"None of this is onerous. It is simply not done, usually because nobody has decided whose job it is.",[24,15869,15871],{"id":15870},"why-the-mileage-record-helps-here-too","Why the mileage record helps here too",[12,15873,15874],{},"The same log that supports a mileage claim tells you how much business driving each person actually does, which is what a risk-based checking policy should be built on. Someone doing 25,000 business miles a year is a different exposure from someone doing 800, and treating them identically is either over-administering one or under-checking the other.",[24,15876,518],{"id":517},[137,15878,15879,15884,15889,15894],{},[140,15880,15881],{},[524,15882,12551],{"href":12549,"rel":15883},[528],[140,15885,15886],{},[524,15887,13154],{"href":13152,"rel":15888},[528],[140,15890,15891],{},[524,15892,13171],{"href":13169,"rel":15893},[528],[140,15895,15896],{},[524,15897,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":15898},[528],[566,15900],{},[12,15902,15903],{},[571,15904,13707],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":15906},[15907,15908,15909,15910,15911,15912,15913],{"id":15714,"depth":576,"text":15715},{"id":15724,"depth":576,"text":15725},{"id":15738,"depth":576,"text":15739},{"id":15807,"depth":576,"text":8586},{"id":15836,"depth":576,"text":15837},{"id":15870,"depth":576,"text":15871},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-05-29","Licence checks, the share code system, and the grey fleet nobody thinks is their responsibility.","Vehicle records kept per car in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-licence-checks-for-employers",{"title":15706,"description":15915},"blog\u002Fdriving-licence-checks-for-employers",[15922,15923,15924],"employers","licences","grey fleet","h7tRoU2HRXgFDoof2UokNsV25exc8IK1iPx1vmZ_CIw",{"id":15927,"title":15928,"author":7,"body":15929,"category":12182,"date":16117,"description":16118,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":16119,"imageAlt":16120,"imageCredit":16121,"imageCreditUrl":4459,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":16122,"navigation":595,"path":16123,"readTime":576,"seo":16124,"stem":16125,"tags":16126,"__hash__":16127},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwinter-driving-for-work.md","Winter driving when it is not optional",{"type":9,"value":15930,"toc":16107},[15931,15934,15938,15949,15952,15956,15959,16007,16010,16014,16017,16020,16024,16050,16054,16057,16061,16064,16067,16071,16074,16077,16079,16101,16103],[12,15932,15933],{},"Advice to avoid travelling in bad weather is sound and useless to someone with a customer waiting. The realistic question is how to do it as safely as possible.",[24,15935,15937],{"id":15936},"stopping-distances-are-the-whole-problem","Stopping distances are the whole problem",[12,15939,15940,15941,15944,15945,15948],{},"The Highway Code puts stopping distances at ",[19,15942,15943],{},"ten times"," the normal figure on ice, and roughly ",[19,15946,15947],{},"double"," in the wet. Those are not cautious estimates.",[12,15950,15951],{},"The practical translation: the gap that feels absurd is the correct one. Whatever following distance you keep in summer, multiply it, and accept that people will fill the space. Letting them is cheaper than the alternative.",[24,15953,15955],{"id":15954},"stopping-distances-by-condition","Stopping distances, by condition",[12,15957,15958],{},"From 60 mph, indicative:",[29,15960,15961,15970],{},[32,15962,15963],{},[35,15964,15965,15967],{},[38,15966,10042],{},[38,15968,15969],{},"Relative stopping distance",[51,15971,15972,15979,15989,15997],{},[35,15973,15974,15977],{},[56,15975,15976],{},"Dry",[56,15978,12979],{},[35,15980,15981,15984],{},[56,15982,15983],{},"Wet",[56,15985,15986],{},[19,15987,15988],{},"About double",[35,15990,15991,15994],{},[56,15992,15993],{},"Snow",[56,15995,15996],{},"Considerably more",[35,15998,15999,16002],{},[56,16000,16001],{},"Ice",[56,16003,16004],{},[19,16005,16006],{},"Up to ten times",[12,16008,16009],{},"Which is why the gap that feels absurd in winter is the correct one.",[24,16011,16013],{"id":16012},"tyres-matter-more-than-anything-else-you-can-buy","Tyres matter more than anything else you can buy",[12,16015,16016],{},"Below about 7°C, standard summer tyres harden and lose grip whether or not there is ice. Winter or all-season tyres are a bigger safety improvement than any driver aid, and for anyone doing serious winter mileage they are worth the cost.",[12,16018,16019],{},"If you are staying on summer tyres, tread depth becomes critical. The legal minimum of 1.6mm performs badly in standing water, and aquaplaning is a winter risk as much as an ice one.",[24,16021,16023],{"id":16022},"before-you-set-off","Before you set off",[137,16025,16026,16032,16038,16044],{},[140,16027,16028,16031],{},[19,16029,16030],{},"Clear the whole car",", not a letterbox in the windscreen. Driving with obscured vision is an offence, and snow left on the roof arrives on your windscreen at the first hard stop",[140,16033,16034,16037],{},[19,16035,16036],{},"Lights and plates clean",", because salt spray covers both within miles",[140,16039,16040,16043],{},[19,16041,16042],{},"Screenwash to the right concentration",": a frozen washer bottle on a salted motorway is genuinely dangerous",[140,16045,16046,16049],{},[19,16047,16048],{},"Fuel or charge higher than you would normally accept."," A closure that adds two hours is common in winter and unremarkable",[24,16051,16053],{"id":16052},"in-the-car","In the car",[12,16055,16056],{},"Something to keep you warm if you stop, a torch, a phone charger, and enough water to matter. Not because you expect to be stranded, but because being stranded is unremarkable in a British winter and the cost of carrying them is nil.",[24,16058,16060],{"id":16059},"the-one-that-gets-people","The one that gets people",[12,16062,16063],{},"Black ice on a clear, still morning after a cold night. Particularly on bridges, in shaded cuttings and on untreated rural roads. The road looks wet. It is not.",[12,16065,16066],{},"Bridges freeze first because they lose heat from both sides. If you drive rural routes for work, that is worth carrying around as a rule rather than a fact.",[24,16068,16070],{"id":16069},"and-the-economics","And the economics",[12,16072,16073],{},"Winter costs you fuel too. Cold engines, denser air, everything electrical on. A 10-20% dip in MPG between summer and January is normal and not a fault.",[12,16075,16076],{},"If you log fill-ups, you will see it as a shape each year, which is oddly reassuring: it means the dip is the season rather than the car.",[24,16078,518],{"id":517},[137,16080,16081,16086,16091,16096],{},[140,16082,16083],{},[524,16084,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":16085},[528],[140,16087,16088],{},[524,16089,13452],{"href":13450,"rel":16090},[528],[140,16092,16093],{},[524,16094,12157],{"href":12155,"rel":16095},[528],[140,16097,16098],{},[524,16099,13154],{"href":13152,"rel":16100},[528],[566,16102],{},[12,16104,16105],{},[571,16106,12875],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":16108},[16109,16110,16111,16112,16113,16114,16115,16116],{"id":15936,"depth":576,"text":15937},{"id":15954,"depth":576,"text":15955},{"id":16012,"depth":576,"text":16013},{"id":16022,"depth":576,"text":16023},{"id":16052,"depth":576,"text":16053},{"id":16059,"depth":576,"text":16060},{"id":16069,"depth":576,"text":16070},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-05-22","Everyone else can stay at home. If the job is at the other end, here is what actually helps.","\u002Fblog\u002Fwinter-driving-for-work.jpg","Snow-covered street with parked cars","Photo by Alice Donovan Rouse, CC0 public domain",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwinter-driving-for-work",{"title":15928,"description":16118},"blog\u002Fwinter-driving-for-work",[4465,12195,10751],"rp7qR0G1ixvxDhnNVyXfjzV2cL12Ul1WigYEQYw6qXs",{"id":16129,"title":16130,"author":7,"body":16131,"category":2858,"date":16340,"description":16341,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":14350,"imageAlt":16342,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":16343,"navigation":595,"path":16344,"readTime":1462,"seo":16345,"stem":16346,"tags":16347,"__hash__":16349},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-milesheet-does-when-you-force-quit.md","What happens to your trip if you swipe the app away",{"type":9,"value":16132,"toc":16331},[16133,16136,16140,16143,16146,16150,16153,16160,16164,16170,16176,16179,16185,16189,16192,16196,16304,16307,16311,16314,16317,16319],[12,16134,16135],{},"Any app that records in the background has the same weakness: the operating system, or the user, can stop it. What separates a trustworthy mileage log from an unreliable one is what happens next.",[24,16137,16139],{"id":16138},"the-thing-people-do-without-thinking","The thing people do without thinking",[12,16141,16142],{},"Swipe up in the app switcher to \"close\" apps. It feels like tidying. On iOS it is also an explicit instruction that the app should stop doing everything, including background location, and the system honours it.",[12,16144,16145],{},"So a trip that was recording stops recording, silently, mid-journey.",[24,16147,16149],{"id":16148},"why-the-app-cannot-simply-carry-on","Why the app cannot simply carry on",[12,16151,16152],{},"It cannot. That is the point of the gesture, and no amount of clever engineering gets around it. An app that could ignore being force-quit would be a considerably worse thing to have on your phone.",[12,16154,16155,16156,16159],{},"What an app ",[571,16157,16158],{},"can"," do is notice, tell you, and not lose what it already had.",[24,16161,16163],{"id":16162},"what-milesheet-does","What Milesheet does",[12,16165,16166,16169],{},[19,16167,16168],{},"Every point is written as it arrives."," Not buffered in memory and saved at the end. If recording stops at any moment, everything up to that moment is already on disk.",[12,16171,16172,16175],{},[19,16173,16174],{},"A dead-man's switch."," While a trip records, the app keeps deferring a scheduled notification. If it stops deferring, because it is no longer running, the notification fires a few minutes later and tells you the drive is no longer being recorded.",[12,16177,16178],{},"That is deliberately backwards from how notifications usually work. Nothing has to run in order to warn you, because the thing that has failed is the thing that would have sent the warning.",[12,16180,16181,16184],{},[19,16182,16183],{},"Recovery on next launch."," Open the app afterwards and it finds the interrupted trip and offers three choices: carry on recording, save what it has, or bin it. It does not decide for you, and it does not quietly discard a partial journey.",[24,16186,16188],{"id":16187},"android-differs","Android differs",[12,16190,16191],{},"On Android a recording trip shows an ongoing notification with a Stop button, so the fact it is running is visible the whole time. Swiping the app out of recents can still stop it, and some manufacturers are more aggressive about background apps than others, so the same watchdog applies.",[24,16193,16195],{"id":16194},"what-survives-what","What survives what",[29,16197,16198,16214],{},[32,16199,16200],{},[35,16201,16202,16205,16208,16211],{},[38,16203,16204],{},"Event",[38,16206,16207],{},"Recording continues?",[38,16209,16210],{},"Data kept?",[38,16212,16213],{},"You are told?",[51,16215,16216,16227,16238,16253,16271,16282,16293],{},[35,16217,16218,16221,16223,16225],{},[56,16219,16220],{},"Screen off, phone in pocket",[56,16222,67],{},[56,16224,67],{},[56,16226,205],{},[35,16228,16229,16232,16234,16236],{},[56,16230,16231],{},"Another app in the foreground",[56,16233,67],{},[56,16235,67],{},[56,16237,205],{},[35,16239,16240,16243,16245,16250],{},[56,16241,16242],{},"Phone restarted",[56,16244,80],{},[56,16246,16247],{},[19,16248,16249],{},"Yes, up to that point",[56,16251,16252],{},"Yes, on next launch",[35,16254,16255,16258,16262,16266],{},[56,16256,16257],{},"App swiped away in the switcher",[56,16259,16260],{},[19,16261,80],{},[56,16263,16264],{},[19,16265,16249],{},[56,16267,16268],{},[19,16269,16270],{},"Yes, within minutes",[35,16272,16273,16276,16278,16280],{},[56,16274,16275],{},"App crashes",[56,16277,80],{},[56,16279,16249],{},[56,16281,16252],{},[35,16283,16284,16287,16289,16291],{},[56,16285,16286],{},"Battery dies",[56,16288,80],{},[56,16290,16249],{},[56,16292,16252],{},[35,16294,16295,16298,16300,16302],{},[56,16296,16297],{},"Location permission revoked mid-trip",[56,16299,80],{},[56,16301,16249],{},[56,16303,67],{},[12,16305,16306],{},"The column that matters is the middle one. In every case the journey so far is already on disk,\nbecause points are written as they arrive rather than held in memory until the end.",[24,16308,16310],{"id":16309},"what-this-means-in-practice","What this means in practice",[12,16312,16313],{},"Assume it will happen occasionally, because it will. The measure of the app is not that it never gets interrupted. It is that an interruption costs you a notification and a tap, rather than a journey you only discover is missing in April.",[12,16315,16316],{},"The wider principle: if a mileage log can lose data silently, you cannot trust any of it, because you have no way of knowing which journeys are missing.",[24,16318,518],{"id":517},[137,16320,16321,16326],{},[140,16322,16323],{},[524,16324,564],{"href":562,"rel":16325},[528],[140,16327,16328],{},[524,16329,543],{"href":541,"rel":16330},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":16332},[16333,16334,16335,16336,16337,16338,16339],{"id":16138,"depth":576,"text":16139},{"id":16148,"depth":576,"text":16149},{"id":16162,"depth":576,"text":16163},{"id":16187,"depth":576,"text":16188},{"id":16194,"depth":576,"text":16195},{"id":16309,"depth":576,"text":16310},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-05-15","The failure mode every background-recording app has, and what an honest one does about it.","A trip recording on the Track screen in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fwhat-milesheet-does-when-you-force-quit",{"title":16130,"description":16341},"blog\u002Fwhat-milesheet-does-when-you-force-quit",[8702,16348,9461],"reliability","YpBozy_yIOjKx2c9-1jFG2uAjyleOR7Qn-x61GEYiWU",{"id":16351,"title":16352,"author":7,"body":16353,"category":2858,"date":16567,"description":16568,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":1831,"imageAlt":16569,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":16570,"navigation":595,"path":16571,"readTime":1462,"seo":16572,"stem":16573,"tags":16574,"__hash__":16577},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fhow-gps-distance-is-measured.md","Why your app's mileage never quite matches your odometer",{"type":9,"value":16354,"toc":16557},[16355,16358,16362,16365,16371,16375,16378,16381,16385,16391,16397,16403,16407,16414,16417,16421,16511,16514,16518,16521,16528,16531,16535,16538,16540],[12,16356,16357],{},"Record a journey on a phone and compare it with the trip meter and the two will not agree. Usually the phone reads slightly low. Sometimes it reads high. Here is why, and which to trust.",[24,16359,16361],{"id":16360},"how-a-phone-measures-distance","How a phone measures distance",[12,16363,16364],{},"It does not measure distance. It measures a series of positions and adds up the straight lines between them.",[12,16366,16367,16368,3123],{},"If a fix arrives every few seconds, each segment is a chord across a slight curve rather than the curve itself. Over a straight motorway that is negligible. Over a twisting lane it accumulates, and the app reads ",[19,16369,16370],{},"short",[24,16372,16374],{"id":16373},"why-it-sometimes-reads-long","Why it sometimes reads long",[12,16376,16377],{},"The opposite problem: GPS positions have error, and a stationary or slow-moving phone can appear to wander. Add up enough small spurious movements and you have invented distance that never happened.",[12,16379,16380],{},"This is worst in cities, tall buildings reflect signals and produce positions that jump, and at the start of a journey before the fix has settled.",[24,16382,16384],{"id":16383},"what-a-good-app-does-about-it","What a good app does about it",[12,16386,16387,16390],{},[19,16388,16389],{},"Filters points."," Reject fixes with poor reported accuracy, and reject implied speeds that are impossible for a car. Milesheet drops anything implying more than about 55 m\u002Fs, because a position jump is far more likely than a genuine 120 mph.",[12,16392,16393,16396],{},[19,16394,16395],{},"Ignores movement below a threshold",", so a phone sitting in a cup holder at traffic lights does not accrue distance.",[12,16398,16399,16402],{},[19,16400,16401],{},"Samples often enough",", so the chords stay short. Recording every few seconds while driving is the compromise between accuracy and battery.",[24,16404,16406],{"id":16405},"why-the-odometer-is-not-perfect-either","Why the odometer is not perfect either",[12,16408,16409,16410,16413],{},"Car odometers are legally permitted a tolerance, and they typically read ",[19,16411,16412],{},"slightly high",". A few per cent is normal. That comes from how they are calibrated and from tyre wear: a worn tyre has a smaller rolling radius, turns more times per mile, and reports more distance than you covered.",[12,16415,16416],{},"So the two numbers disagree partly because the phone reads low and partly because the car reads high.",[24,16418,16420],{"id":16419},"why-the-two-numbers-differ","Why the two numbers differ",[29,16422,16423,16435],{},[32,16424,16425],{},[35,16426,16427,16430,16432],{},[38,16428,16429],{},"Source of error",[38,16431,8297],{},[38,16433,16434],{},"Typical size",[51,16436,16437,16451,16461,16474,16487,16499],{},[35,16438,16439,16442,16448],{},[56,16440,16441],{},"Straight lines between GPS fixes",[56,16443,16444,16445],{},"App reads ",[19,16446,16447],{},"low",[56,16449,16450],{},"0-2%, worse on twisty roads",[35,16452,16453,16456,16459],{},[56,16454,16455],{},"Poor fixes in cities, tunnels",[56,16457,16458],{},"Either way",[56,16460,4381],{},[35,16462,16463,16466,16471],{},[56,16464,16465],{},"Drift while stationary",[56,16467,16444,16468],{},[19,16469,16470],{},"high",[56,16472,16473],{},"Small, if unfiltered",[35,16475,16476,16479,16484],{},[56,16477,16478],{},"Odometer calibration tolerance",[56,16480,16481,16482],{},"Car reads ",[19,16483,16470],{},[56,16485,16486],{},"Up to a few %",[35,16488,16489,16492,16496],{},[56,16490,16491],{},"Tyre wear reducing rolling radius",[56,16493,16481,16494],{},[19,16495,16470],{},[56,16497,16498],{},"~1-2% on worn tyres",[35,16500,16501,16504,16508],{},[56,16502,16503],{},"Larger aftermarket tyres",[56,16505,16481,16506],{},[19,16507,16447],{},[56,16509,16510],{},"Varies",[12,16512,16513],{},"The net effect for most drivers is the app reading 1-3% below the trip meter, which is\napproximately the trip meter's own optimism.",[24,16515,16517],{"id":16516},"which-one-to-use-for-a-claim","Which one to use for a claim",[12,16519,16520],{},"For journeys, the GPS record, because it comes with the date, the route and the times, which is what HMRC's expectation of a mileage record is about. A distance without a journey attached is not a record.",[12,16522,16523,16524,16527],{},"For ",[19,16525,16526],{},"fuel economy",", use the odometer, because it is measuring the same thing consistently between two fill-ups and small errors cancel out over a full tank.",[12,16529,16530],{},"That is why Milesheet uses GPS for trips and odometer readings for MPG. They are different jobs, and the right instrument differs.",[24,16532,16534],{"id":16533},"and-when-they-disagree-a-lot","And when they disagree a lot",[12,16536,16537],{},"A large gap between your odometer and your logged journeys usually is not measurement error, it is unrecorded driving. Milesheet compares the two and flags stretches where the odometer moved further than the log explains, which is a much more useful signal than a percentage discrepancy.",[24,16539,518],{"id":517},[137,16541,16542,16547,16552],{},[140,16543,16544],{},[524,16545,564],{"href":562,"rel":16546},[528],[140,16548,16549],{},[524,16550,529],{"href":526,"rel":16551},[528],[140,16553,16554],{},[524,16555,13154],{"href":13152,"rel":16556},[528],{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":16558},[16559,16560,16561,16562,16563,16564,16565,16566],{"id":16360,"depth":576,"text":16361},{"id":16373,"depth":576,"text":16374},{"id":16383,"depth":576,"text":16384},{"id":16405,"depth":576,"text":16406},{"id":16419,"depth":576,"text":16420},{"id":16516,"depth":576,"text":16517},{"id":16533,"depth":576,"text":16534},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-05-08","GPS drift, straight lines between points, and which of the two numbers is actually right.","Real-world economy and odometer readings in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fhow-gps-distance-is-measured",{"title":16352,"description":16568},"blog\u002Fhow-gps-distance-is-measured",[8702,16575,16576],"gps","accuracy","CDXws3JMx4nnXX5zRTBzHmbpCupmV_wzz9sT9Nds4Fw",{"id":16579,"title":16580,"author":7,"body":16581,"category":587,"date":16868,"description":16869,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":16870,"imageAlt":16871,"imageCredit":16872,"imageCreditUrl":16873,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":16874,"navigation":595,"path":16875,"readTime":1462,"seo":16876,"stem":16877,"tags":16878,"__hash__":16881},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-carers-and-community-nurses.md","Community care: forty short visits and nobody counting",{"type":9,"value":16582,"toc":16860},[16583,16589,16592,16596,16603,16609,16613,16695,16698,16702,16705,16781,16784,16788,16794,16797,16803,16810,16816,16820,16823,16826,16829,16831,16853,16855],[4986,16584,16585],{},[12,16586,16587,4993],{},[19,16588,4992],{},[12,16590,16591],{},"Domiciliary care and community nursing produce a driving pattern almost no other job does: dozens of very short journeys, tight schedules, and no natural pause in which to write anything down.",[24,16593,16595],{"id":16594},"the-mileage-is-larger-than-it-feels","The mileage is larger than it feels",[12,16597,16598,16599,16602],{},"Twelve visits a day averaging three miles between them is 36 miles. Over 220 working days that is roughly ",[19,16600,16601],{},"7,900 miles a year",". Comparable to a sales rep, accumulated three miles at a time.",[12,16604,16605,16606,16608],{},"At the approved rates that is around ",[19,16607,9023],{}," of allowance. Recorded as \"about 30 miles a day\", it becomes a round number that is both hard to defend and almost certainly wrong.",[24,16610,16612],{"id":16611},"what-a-typical-round-adds-up-to","What a typical round adds up to",[29,16614,16615,16633],{},[32,16616,16617],{},[35,16618,16619,16622,16625,16628,16631],{},[38,16620,16621],{},"Visits per day",[38,16623,16624],{},"Miles between visits",[38,16626,16627],{},"Daily miles",[38,16629,16630],{},"Annual (220 days)",[38,16632,3240],{},[51,16634,16635,16650,16664,16679],{},[35,16636,16637,16639,16641,16644,16647],{},[56,16638,10844],{},[56,16640,3425],{},[56,16642,16643],{},"16",[56,16645,16646],{},"3,520",[56,16648,16649],{},"£1,584",[35,16651,16652,16654,16656,16658,16661],{},[56,16653,13097],{},[56,16655,4819],{},[56,16657,14278],{},[56,16659,16660],{},"7,920",[56,16662,16663],{},"£3,564",[35,16665,16666,16669,16671,16673,16676],{},[56,16667,16668],{},"15",[56,16670,4833],{},[56,16672,3250],{},[56,16674,16675],{},"13,200",[56,16677,16678],{},"£5,740",[35,16680,16681,16684,16686,16689,16692],{},[56,16682,16683],{},"18",[56,16685,4847],{},[56,16687,16688],{},"90",[56,16690,16691],{},"19,800",[56,16693,16694],{},"£7,450",[12,16696,16697],{},"The last two rows cross the 10,000-mile threshold, so the totals are banded rather than a flat 45p.",[24,16699,16701],{"id":16700},"what-an-underpaying-employer-costs-you","What an underpaying employer costs you",[12,16703,16704],{},"On 7,920 business miles, where the approved amount is £3,564:",[29,16706,16707,16719],{},[32,16708,16709],{},[35,16710,16711,16713,16715,16717],{},[38,16712,406],{},[38,16714,409],{},[38,16716,412],{},[38,16718,415],{},[51,16720,16721,16731,16745,16758,16770],{},[35,16722,16723,16725,16727,16729],{},[56,16724,8307],{},[56,16726,16663],{},[56,16728,431],{},[56,16730,205],{},[35,16732,16733,16736,16739,16742],{},[56,16734,16735],{},"35p",[56,16737,16738],{},"£2,772",[56,16740,16741],{},"£792",[56,16743,16744],{},"£158",[35,16746,16747,16749,16752,16755],{},[56,16748,456],{},[56,16750,16751],{},"£2,376",[56,16753,16754],{},"£1,188",[56,16756,16757],{},"£238",[35,16759,16760,16762,16765,16767],{},[56,16761,472],{},[56,16763,16764],{},"£1,980",[56,16766,16649],{},[56,16768,16769],{},"£317",[35,16771,16772,16774,16776,16778],{},[56,16773,487],{},[56,16775,431],{},[56,16777,16663],{},[56,16779,16780],{},"£713",[12,16782,16783],{},"And it can be claimed for the current year plus the previous four.",[24,16785,16787],{"id":16786},"where-the-rules-bite","Where the rules bite",[12,16789,16790,16793],{},[19,16791,16792],{},"The first and last journeys."," If you have a base you attend, an office, a depot, a clinic, travel from home to it is ordinary commuting. If you go from home directly to your first client and home from your last, the position is different and often more favourable.",[12,16795,16796],{},"Which of those you are in is a question about your contract and working pattern, not about how it feels. It is worth establishing once, properly, because it affects two journeys every working day.",[12,16798,16799,16802],{},[19,16800,16801],{},"Reimbursement below the approved rate."," Many employers in the sector pay a per-mile rate lower than HMRC's approved figure. Where that happens, the employee can claim tax relief on the difference through Self Assessment or a P87, and a great many never do.",[12,16804,16805,16806,16809],{},"On 7,900 miles, an employer paying 30p against an approved 45p leaves relief due on roughly ",[19,16807,16808],{},"£1,185"," of shortfall. For a basic-rate taxpayer that is around £237 of tax back, for filling in a form.",[12,16811,16812,16815],{},[19,16813,16814],{},"Passenger payments."," If you carry a colleague on a work journey, 5p a mile per head is available, but only if the employer pays it. It cannot be claimed as relief if they do not.",[24,16817,16819],{"id":16818},"the-recording-problem-honestly","The recording problem, honestly",[12,16821,16822],{},"Nobody is going to stop between a medication round and a personal care visit to log three miles. Any system that depends on that will fail, and the resulting log will be a reconstruction.",[12,16824,16825],{},"Automatic recording is the only realistic answer here. Milesheet notices you setting off, records the drive, and stops when you have been still for a few minutes, so forty visits arrive as forty journeys with real distances, and the whole day sorts in seconds afterwards.",[12,16827,16828],{},"Tagging the regular addresses means most of it classifies itself.",[24,16830,518],{"id":517},[137,16832,16833,16838,16843,16848],{},[140,16834,16835],{},[524,16836,529],{"href":526,"rel":16837},[528],[140,16839,16840],{},[524,16841,543],{"href":541,"rel":16842},[528],[140,16844,16845],{},[524,16846,550],{"href":548,"rel":16847},[528],[140,16849,16850],{},[524,16851,997],{"href":995,"rel":16852},[528],[566,16854],{},[12,16856,16857],{},[571,16858,16859],{},"General information, not tax advice. Whether you have a permanent workplace is fact-specific and matters here: take advice.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":16861},[16862,16863,16864,16865,16866,16867],{"id":16594,"depth":576,"text":16595},{"id":16611,"depth":576,"text":16612},{"id":16700,"depth":576,"text":16701},{"id":16786,"depth":576,"text":16787},{"id":16818,"depth":576,"text":16819},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-05-01","Care workers and community nurses cover serious mileage in five-minute hops, and it is the most under-recorded driving in the country.","\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-carers-and-community-nurses.jpg","A liveried care service car in a car park","Photo by Mike Mozart from Funny YouTube, USA, CC BY","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=88331695",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fmileage-for-carers-and-community-nurses",{"title":16580,"description":16869},"blog\u002Fmileage-for-carers-and-community-nurses",[16879,16880,10751],"care work","nhs","reAu6QvTh4tjztxxwgWuwQfG87XO4CB_yEniOSCfpFk",{"id":16883,"title":16884,"author":7,"body":16885,"category":587,"date":17146,"description":17147,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":592,"imageAlt":17148,"imageCredit":594,"imageCreditUrl":594,"imageIsScreenshot":595,"meta":17149,"navigation":595,"path":17150,"readTime":1462,"seo":17151,"stem":17152,"tags":17153,"__hash__":17156},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fclaiming-when-employer-pays-less.md","Your employer pays 25p. Here is how to claim the rest",{"type":9,"value":16886,"toc":17136},[16887,16893,16896,16899,16901,16904,16907,16921,16927,16931,16938,17031,17034,17037,17041,17044,17047,17051,17057,17067,17073,17077,17080,17083,17087,17093,17099,17103,17106,17108,17130,17132],[4986,16888,16889],{},[12,16890,16891,4993],{},[19,16892,4992],{},[12,16894,16895],{},"Plenty of employers reimburse business mileage below HMRC's approved rate. Some pay 30p, some 25p, some a fixed amount per journey, some nothing at all.",[12,16897,16898],{},"In every one of those cases the employee can claim tax relief on the difference. Most do not, usually because nobody has ever told them it exists.",[24,16900,3374],{"id":3373},[12,16902,16903],{},"The approved rate is 45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in a tax year, then 25p. If your employer pays less, you claim relief on the gap.",[12,16905,16906],{},"Worked example. You drove 4,000 business miles and were paid 25p:",[137,16908,16909,16914,16916],{},[140,16910,16911,16912],{},"Approved amount: 4,000 × 45p = ",[19,16913,459],{},[140,16915,148],{},[140,16917,151,16918],{},[19,16919,16920],{},"£800",[12,16922,16923,16924,16926],{},"You do not receive £800. You receive tax relief on it, so a basic-rate taxpayer gets around ",[19,16925,5326],{},", a higher-rate taxpayer around £320.",[24,16928,16930],{"id":16929},"the-four-year-backdating-table","The four-year backdating table",[12,16932,16933,16934,16937],{},"Relief can generally be claimed for the current tax year and the ",[19,16935,16936],{},"previous four",". For someone\npaid 25p who has never claimed:",[29,16939,16940,16959],{},[32,16941,16942],{},[35,16943,16944,16947,16949,16952,16954,16956],{},[38,16945,16946],{},"Business miles per year",[38,16948,3240],{},[38,16950,16951],{},"Paid at 25p",[38,16953,412],{},[38,16955,415],{},[38,16957,16958],{},"Over five years",[51,16960,16961,16980,16997,17013],{},[35,16962,16963,16966,16969,16972,16974,16976],{},[56,16964,16965],{},"3,000",[56,16967,16968],{},"£1,350",[56,16970,16971],{},"£750",[56,16973,446],{},[56,16975,449],{},[56,16977,16978],{},[19,16979,446],{},[35,16981,16982,16985,16987,16989,16991,16993],{},[56,16983,16984],{},"6,000",[56,16986,443],{},[56,16988,462],{},[56,16990,154],{},[56,16992,349],{},[56,16994,16995],{},[19,16996,154],{},[35,16998,16999,17001,17003,17005,17007,17009],{},[56,17000,233],{},[56,17002,2954],{},[56,17004,272],{},[56,17006,2960],{},[56,17008,2947],{},[56,17010,17011],{},[19,17012,2960],{},[35,17014,17015,17017,17020,17023,17025,17027],{},[56,17016,249],{},[56,17018,17019],{},"£5,750",[56,17021,17022],{},"£3,750",[56,17024,2960],{},[56,17026,2947],{},[56,17028,17029],{},[19,17030,2960],{},[12,17032,17033],{},"Higher-rate taxpayers double every figure in the last two columns.",[12,17035,17036],{},"The catch is the same as always: you can only claim what you can evidence, and a five-year-old\nclaim needs five-year-old records.",[24,17038,17040],{"id":17039},"what-if-they-pay-nothing-at-all","What if they pay nothing at all",[12,17042,17043],{},"Then the relief is on the whole approved amount. On 4,000 miles that is relief on £1,800, worth about £360 at basic rate.",[12,17045,17046],{},"This is the case where the sums get genuinely worth having, and it is common in sectors where mileage is treated as part of the job rather than as a reimbursable cost.",[24,17048,17050],{"id":17049},"how-to-claim","How to claim",[12,17052,17053,17056],{},[19,17054,17055],{},"If you file Self Assessment",", it goes in the employment expenses section.",[12,17058,17059,17062,17063,17066],{},[19,17060,17061],{},"If you do not",", use form ",[19,17064,17065],{},"P87"," (Claim Income Tax relief for employment expenses), which can be done online.",[12,17068,500,17069,17072],{},[19,17070,17071],{},"previous four tax years"," as well as the current one, which for someone who has never claimed can mean a meaningful lump sum.",[24,17074,17076],{"id":17075},"what-hmrc-will-want","What HMRC will want",[12,17078,17079],{},"The amounts, and the ability to evidence them: business miles by tax year, what your employer paid you, and a record of the journeys behind the figures.",[12,17081,17082],{},"That last part is where claims fall over. \"About 4,000 miles\" is not evidence. A journey-level log with dates, destinations, purposes and distances is.",[24,17084,17086],{"id":17085},"the-bit-that-catches-people","The bit that catches people",[12,17088,17089,17092],{},[19,17090,17091],{},"Passenger payments cannot be claimed this way."," If your employer does not pay the 5p per passenger mile, there is nothing to claim relief on. The relief covers the vehicle rate only. Ask the employer instead.",[12,17094,17095,17098],{},[19,17096,17097],{},"Commuting never counts",", regardless of what the employer pays for.",[24,17100,17102],{"id":17101},"getting-the-number","Getting the number",[12,17104,17105],{},"If you have been recording journeys, the figure already exists. If you have not, this is the argument for starting now rather than in April: four years of relief is worth claiming, and you can only claim what you can evidence.",[24,17107,518],{"id":517},[137,17109,17110,17115,17120,17125],{},[140,17111,17112],{},[524,17113,543],{"href":541,"rel":17114},[528],[140,17116,17117],{},[524,17118,550],{"href":548,"rel":17119},[528],[140,17121,17122],{},[524,17123,529],{"href":526,"rel":17124},[528],[140,17126,17127],{},[524,17128,564],{"href":562,"rel":17129},[528],[566,17131],{},[12,17133,17134],{},[571,17135,14612],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":17137},[17138,17139,17140,17141,17142,17143,17144,17145],{"id":3373,"depth":576,"text":3374},{"id":16929,"depth":576,"text":16930},{"id":17039,"depth":576,"text":17040},{"id":17049,"depth":576,"text":17050},{"id":17075,"depth":576,"text":17076},{"id":17085,"depth":576,"text":17086},{"id":17101,"depth":576,"text":17102},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-04-24","Mileage Allowance Relief is the most commonly unclaimed thing in the UK tax system, and it takes about ten minutes.","Business mileage and the claim total in Milesheet",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fclaiming-when-employer-pays-less",{"title":16884,"description":17147},"blog\u002Fclaiming-when-employer-pays-less",[17154,17155,602],"mileage allowance relief","p87","AJthkar2vcSbnvRM2Y-tAyCrLnvV2f2MJehgITTKa7A",{"id":17158,"title":17159,"author":7,"body":17160,"category":12182,"date":17371,"description":17372,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":17373,"imageAlt":17374,"imageCredit":17375,"imageCreditUrl":17376,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":17377,"navigation":595,"path":17378,"readTime":576,"seo":17379,"stem":17380,"tags":17381,"__hash__":17383},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-in-europe-after-brexit.md","Taking your car to Europe: what you need now",{"type":9,"value":17161,"toc":17361},[17162,17165,17169,17179,17182,17184,17187,17190,17194,17208,17215,17219,17297,17300,17304,17307,17310,17314,17317,17321,17324,17327,17330,17332,17354,17356],[12,17163,17164],{},"Driving a UK car in Europe is straightforward, and the paperwork changed enough in recent years that a lot of drivers are working from an out-of-date mental checklist.",[24,17166,17168],{"id":17167},"the-identifier-on-the-back","The identifier on the back",[12,17170,17171,17172,17174,17175,17178],{},"The ",[19,17173,13946],{}," identifier replaced ",[19,17176,17177],{},"GB",". If your number plate does not already display the UK identifier with the Union flag, you need a UK sticker.",[12,17180,17181],{},"The old GB stickers are no longer correct, and the euro-band plates showing a circle of stars with GB are not either.",[24,17183,7147],{"id":6349},[12,17185,17186],{},"Check your policy actually covers driving abroad, and at what level. Many UK policies drop to third-party-only cover outside the UK unless European cover is added.",[12,17188,17189],{},"If you are driving for work, that matters twice over: the trip is business use, and the cover class needs to include it.",[24,17191,17193],{"id":17192},"documents-to-carry","Documents to carry",[137,17195,17196,17199,17202,17205],{},[140,17197,17198],{},"Full driving licence",[140,17200,17201],{},"V5C logbook, or a VE103 if the vehicle is hired or leased",[140,17203,17204],{},"Insurance certificate",[140,17206,17207],{},"Passport",[12,17209,17210,17211,17214],{},"A ",[19,17212,17213],{},"VE103"," is the one that catches business drivers: if the car is leased or on a company scheme, you cannot simply take the V5C because you do not have it. The lease company issues the VE103, and it takes time to obtain.",[24,17216,17218],{"id":17217},"the-document-checklist","The document checklist",[29,17220,17221,17234],{},[32,17222,17223],{},[35,17224,17225,17228,17231],{},[38,17226,17227],{},"Document",[38,17229,17230],{},"Needed",[38,17232,17233],{},"Watch out for",[51,17235,17236,17245,17254,17263,17273,17287],{},[35,17237,17238,17240,17243],{},[56,17239,17198],{},[56,17241,17242],{},"Always",[56,17244,205],{},[35,17246,17247,17249,17251],{},[56,17248,17207],{},[56,17250,17242],{},[56,17252,17253],{},"Validity rules for the destination",[35,17255,17256,17258,17260],{},[56,17257,17204],{},[56,17259,17242],{},[56,17261,17262],{},"Many UK policies drop to third-party abroad",[35,17264,17265,17268,17271],{},[56,17266,17267],{},"V5C logbook",[56,17269,17270],{},"If you own the car",[56,17272,205],{},[35,17274,17275,17279,17284],{},[56,17276,17277],{},[19,17278,17213],{},[56,17280,17281],{},[19,17282,17283],{},"If leased, hired or on a company scheme",[56,17285,17286],{},"Issued by the lease company; takes time",[35,17288,17289,17292,17294],{},[56,17290,17291],{},"UK identifier",[56,17293,17242],{},[56,17295,17296],{},"GB stickers and GB euro-plates are no longer correct",[12,17298,17299],{},"The VE103 is the one that strands business drivers: you cannot use the V5C for a leased car because\nyou do not have it.",[24,17301,17303],{"id":17302},"equipment-requirements-vary-by-country","Equipment requirements vary by country",[12,17305,17306],{},"Several countries require items to be carried, warning triangles, hi-vis vests, spare bulbs, breathalysers, and the list differs between them. France, Spain and others each have their own requirements, and some have low-emission zone schemes with their own stickers that must be obtained in advance.",[12,17308,17309],{},"Check the specific countries on the route rather than assuming a general European standard, because there is not one.",[24,17311,17313],{"id":17312},"the-driving-itself","The driving itself",[12,17315,17316],{},"Headlight beam deflectors, or headlights adjusted, so you do not dazzle oncoming traffic. Speed limits in kilometres per hour, often lower in wet conditions in France. Tolls on many motorways, usually by card.",[24,17318,17320],{"id":17319},"the-business-mileage-question","The business mileage question",[12,17322,17323],{},"Business miles driven abroad in your own vehicle count towards the same approved-rate claim as miles driven at home, including the 10,000-mile threshold. It is one annual total, wherever the driving happened.",[12,17325,17326],{},"Ferries, tunnels, foreign tolls, vignettes and emissions stickers are separate claimable costs on top, as tolls are here.",[12,17328,17329],{},"If the trip mixes business and personal days, only the business element is claimable, and that apportionment is much easier to defend if each leg was recorded as it happened rather than reconstructed from a fortnight of photographs.",[24,17331,518],{"id":517},[137,17333,17334,17339,17344,17349],{},[140,17335,17336],{},[524,17337,529],{"href":526,"rel":17338},[528],[140,17340,17341],{},[524,17342,997],{"href":995,"rel":17343},[528],[140,17345,17346],{},[524,17347,14839],{"href":14837,"rel":17348},[528],[140,17350,17351],{},[524,17352,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":17353},[528],[566,17355],{},[12,17357,17358],{},[571,17359,17360],{},"General information, not legal or tax advice. Requirements differ by country and change: check each country on your route before travelling.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":17362},[17363,17364,17365,17366,17367,17368,17369,17370],{"id":17167,"depth":576,"text":17168},{"id":6349,"depth":576,"text":7147},{"id":17192,"depth":576,"text":17193},{"id":17217,"depth":576,"text":17218},{"id":17302,"depth":576,"text":17303},{"id":17312,"depth":576,"text":17313},{"id":17319,"depth":576,"text":17320},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-04-17","GB or UK stickers, insurance, and the documents that turn a border into an hour.","\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-in-europe-after-brexit.jpg","A ferry port with vessels at the quayside","Photo by Dave souza, CC BY-SA","https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fw\u002Findex.php?curid=158517156",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fdriving-in-europe-after-brexit",{"title":17159,"description":17372},"blog\u002Fdriving-in-europe-after-brexit",[17382,14358,1043],"europe","Wf07B1Lvdp0onpXmxbmtzCmyUs4rMsb5-TURkbjs-po",{"id":17385,"title":17386,"author":7,"body":17387,"category":1828,"date":17612,"description":17613,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":17614,"imageAlt":17615,"imageCredit":3972,"imageCreditUrl":4459,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":17616,"navigation":595,"path":17617,"readTime":1462,"seo":17618,"stem":17619,"tags":17620,"__hash__":17622},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fev-charging-costs-on-the-road.md","Charging an EV on the road costs more than you think",{"type":9,"value":17388,"toc":17603},[17389,17395,17398,17402,17408,17414,17417,17421,17424,17511,17517,17523,17527,17530,17533,17536,17540,17546,17551,17554,17558,17561,17564,17566,17569,17572,17574,17596,17598],[4986,17390,17391],{},[12,17392,17393,4993],{},[19,17394,4992],{},[12,17396,17397],{},"The headline case for an electric car is running cost, and on a home tariff it is genuinely compelling. The picture changes considerably once you are dependent on the public network.",[24,17399,17401],{"id":17400},"the-two-worlds","The two worlds",[12,17403,17404,17407],{},[19,17405,17406],{},"Home charging on an off-peak tariff"," can be a few pence per kWh, which puts the cost per mile in low single figures. This is where the \"a fraction of petrol\" claim comes from, and for a home-charging commuter it is accurate.",[12,17409,17410,17413],{},[19,17411,17412],{},"Rapid and ultra-rapid public charging"," costs several times that. At motorway service areas in particular, the per-mile cost can approach, and occasionally exceed, a comparable diesel.",[12,17415,17416],{},"The same car can therefore cost 3p a mile or 20p a mile depending entirely on where it was charged.",[24,17418,17420],{"id":17419},"the-same-car-five-ways-to-charge-it","The same car, five ways to charge it",[12,17422,17423],{},"An EV doing about 3.5 miles per kWh:",[29,17425,17426,17441],{},[32,17427,17428],{},[35,17429,17430,17433,17436,17439],{},[38,17431,17432],{},"Where you charge",[38,17434,17435],{},"Typical price per kWh",[38,17437,17438],{},"Cost per mile",[38,17440,4135],{},[51,17442,17443,17456,17469,17483,17497],{},[35,17444,17445,17448,17451,17454],{},[56,17446,17447],{},"Home, off-peak EV tariff",[56,17449,17450],{},"7p",[56,17452,17453],{},"2.0p",[56,17455,333],{},[35,17457,17458,17461,17463,17466],{},[56,17459,17460],{},"Home, standard rate",[56,17462,472],{},[56,17464,17465],{},"7.1p",[56,17467,17468],{},"£714",[35,17470,17471,17474,17477,17480],{},[56,17472,17473],{},"Workplace \u002F destination charger",[56,17475,17476],{},"30-45p",[56,17478,17479],{},"8.6-12.9p",[56,17481,17482],{},"£857-£1,286",[35,17484,17485,17488,17491,17494],{},[56,17486,17487],{},"Public rapid",[56,17489,17490],{},"70-80p",[56,17492,17493],{},"20-22.9p",[56,17495,17496],{},"£2,000-£2,286",[35,17498,17499,17502,17505,17508],{},[56,17500,17501],{},"Motorway ultra-rapid",[56,17503,17504],{},"80-90p",[56,17506,17507],{},"22.9-25.7p",[56,17509,17510],{},"£2,286-£2,571",[12,17512,17513,17514,3123],{},"For comparison, a 45 mpg petrol car at 145p a litre costs about ",[19,17515,17516],{},"14.6p a mile",[12,17518,17519,17520,17522],{},"So an EV charged at home overnight is roughly a seventh of the petrol cost. The same car charged\nexclusively on motorway rapids costs ",[19,17521,163],{}," than the petrol car it replaced.",[24,17524,17526],{"id":17525},"why-this-matters-for-business-driving","Why this matters for business driving",[12,17528,17529],{},"A driver whose work is local and who charges at home has running costs that make the 45p approved rate look extremely generous.",[12,17531,17532],{},"A driver whose work is long-distance and who charges on the network has a very different reality, and it is the one nobody models when they choose the car, because the comparison was made against home charging.",[12,17534,17535],{},"If you are choosing a vehicle for business use, the honest question is not \"what does it cost to charge\" but \"where will I actually be charging, on the journeys I actually make\".",[24,17537,17539],{"id":17538},"the-rate-does-not-care","The rate does not care",[12,17541,16523,17542,17545],{},[19,17543,17544],{},"your own"," electric car, approved mileage rates apply exactly as for petrol: 45p for the first 10,000 business miles, then 25p. There is no separate electric rate and no adjustment for how you charged.",[12,17547,12212,17548,17550],{},[19,17549,5819],{}," electric car, the advisory electricity rate applies instead. A much lower per-mile figure, revised quarterly alongside Advisory Fuel Rates.",[12,17552,17553],{},"Claiming 45p on a company EV is a common and expensive error.",[24,17555,17557],{"id":17556},"the-reimbursement-gap","The reimbursement gap",[12,17559,17560],{},"The awkward case: a company EV driver who charges at home, at their own expense, and is reimbursed at the advisory electricity rate. Depending on tariff and rate, that may over- or under-compensate them, and the treatment of home charging reimbursement has changed in recent years.",[12,17562,17563],{},"If that is your situation, check the current guidance rather than the arrangement you set up when you got the car.",[24,17565,7350],{"id":7349},[12,17567,17568],{},"The only way to know what your EV actually costs per mile is to record what you paid and how far you went. The same discipline as logging fill-ups, with charging sessions instead.",[12,17570,17571],{},"The reason it is worth doing: the gap between the assumed cost and the real one is much wider for electric cars than for petrol, because the price per unit varies by a factor of five depending on where you plugged in.",[24,17573,518],{"id":517},[137,17575,17576,17581,17586,17591],{},[140,17577,17578],{},[524,17579,4211],{"href":555,"rel":17580},[528],[140,17582,17583],{},[524,17584,529],{"href":526,"rel":17585},[528],[140,17587,17588],{},[524,17589,536],{"href":534,"rel":17590},[528],[140,17592,17593],{},[524,17594,1817],{"href":1815,"rel":17595},[528],[566,17597],{},[12,17599,17600],{},[571,17601,17602],{},"General information, not tax advice. Advisory rates change quarterly.",{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":17604},[17605,17606,17607,17608,17609,17610,17611],{"id":17400,"depth":576,"text":17401},{"id":17419,"depth":576,"text":17420},{"id":17525,"depth":576,"text":17526},{"id":17538,"depth":576,"text":17539},{"id":17556,"depth":576,"text":17557},{"id":7349,"depth":576,"text":7350},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-04-10","Home charging is cheap. Rapid charging on a motorway is not, and the gap changes what a business trip actually costs.","\u002Fblog\u002Fev-charging-costs-on-the-road.jpg","An electric car plugged in at a charging point",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fev-charging-costs-on-the-road",{"title":17386,"description":17613},"blog\u002Fev-charging-costs-on-the-road",[5462,17621,1840],"charging","iJI8IpauZqRu6Si0AhS5Wd6ovSAd2wRLgLH-xqLkjQw",{"id":17624,"title":17625,"author":7,"body":17626,"category":587,"date":17842,"description":17843,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":17844,"imageAlt":17845,"imageCredit":17846,"imageCreditUrl":17847,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":17848,"navigation":595,"path":17849,"readTime":1462,"seo":17850,"stem":17851,"tags":17852,"__hash__":17855},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fsales-reps-and-territory-driving.md","Territory driving: when 25,000 miles a year is the job",{"type":9,"value":17627,"toc":17834},[17628,17634,17637,17641,17644,17651,17654,17658,17750,17753,17757,17763,17769,17775,17779,17785,17791,17797,17801,17804,17806,17828,17830],[4986,17629,17630],{},[12,17631,17632,4993],{},[19,17633,4992],{},[12,17635,17636],{},"Field sales, area management, regional service engineering. Jobs where the driving is not incidental to the work, it substantially is the work. The tax treatment was not designed with them in mind.",[24,17638,17640],{"id":17639},"the-threshold-arrives-early","The threshold arrives early",[12,17642,17643],{},"At 25,000 business miles a year you pass 10,000 in about the fifth month of the tax year. Everything after that is at 25p.",[12,17645,17646,17647,17650],{},"The blended rate works out around ",[19,17648,17649],{},"33p"," a mile. Someone doing 8,000 miles gets the full 45p on all of it. The higher-mileage driver, whose costs are demonstrably greater, is paid a lower average rate per mile.",[12,17652,17653],{},"That is the structural quirk of the system, and it is why high-mileage drivers should be the most diligent about claiming everything they are entitled to. There is less margin in it than the headline rate suggests.",[24,17655,17657],{"id":17656},"when-the-threshold-arrives","When the threshold arrives",[29,17659,17660,17674],{},[32,17661,17662],{},[35,17663,17664,17667,17670,17672],{},[38,17665,17666],{},"Annual business miles",[38,17668,17669],{},"10,000 reached",[38,17671,192],{},[38,17673,189],{},[51,17675,17676,17686,17698,17710,17724,17736],{},[35,17677,17678,17680,17682,17684],{},[56,17679,233],{},[56,17681,4697],{},[56,17683,262],{},[56,17685,2954],{},[35,17687,17688,17690,17693,17696],{},[56,17689,249],{},[56,17691,17692],{},"early January",[56,17694,17695],{},"38.3p",[56,17697,17019],{},[35,17699,17700,17702,17705,17707],{},[56,17701,267],{},[56,17703,17704],{},"early October",[56,17706,298],{},[56,17708,17709],{},"£7,000",[35,17711,17712,17715,17718,17721],{},[56,17713,17714],{},"25,000",[56,17716,17717],{},"mid August",[56,17719,17720],{},"33.0p",[56,17722,17723],{},"£8,250",[35,17725,17726,17728,17731,17733],{},[56,17727,285],{},[56,17729,17730],{},"early July",[56,17732,13981],{},[56,17734,17735],{},"£9,500",[35,17737,17738,17741,17744,17747],{},[56,17739,17740],{},"40,000",[56,17742,17743],{},"mid May",[56,17745,17746],{},"29.4p",[56,17748,17749],{},"£11,750",[12,17751,17752],{},"Assuming even mileage through the year. The point of the table is the middle column: the driver\ndoing 40,000 miles is paid an average of 29.4p for driving that costs them considerably more than\nthe driver doing 8,000.",[24,17754,17756],{"id":17755},"three-things-worth-knowing-if-this-is-you","Three things worth knowing if this is you",[12,17758,17759,17762],{},[19,17760,17761],{},"Timing matters at the boundary."," Not to manipulate, but if you have genuine discretion over when a long trip happens and you are at 9,700 miles in late March, the same journey is worth 45p in April rather than 25p now. Knowing where you stand requires a running total, which is exactly what most people do not have.",[12,17764,17765,17768],{},[19,17766,17767],{},"Your car is a consumable."," At 25,000 miles a year a car does 75,000 in three years, and depreciates accordingly. If you are choosing between a company car and your own, run the numbers on your actual mileage rather than a typical one. The answer for a high-mileage driver often differs from the office default.",[12,17770,17771,17774],{},[19,17772,17773],{},"Real MPG matters more."," At 25,000 miles, a 5 mpg difference between the brochure figure and reality is hundreds of pounds a year. It also changes whether 45p is generous or thin.",[24,17776,17778],{"id":17777},"where-high-mileage-claims-go-wrong","Where high-mileage claims go wrong",[12,17780,17781,17784],{},[19,17782,17783],{},"Reconstructing at year end."," Nobody remembers 800 journeys. A reconstruction produces round numbers and impossible days, which is the pattern most likely to attract a question, and the sums here are large enough for one.",[12,17786,17787,17790],{},[19,17788,17789],{},"Missing the short hops."," The long runs get remembered. Three miles between two customers in the same town, twelve times a week, does not, and over a year it is thousands of miles.",[12,17792,17793,17796],{},[19,17794,17795],{},"Commuting mixed in."," With no fixed office the position may be favourable, but if there is a base you attend, those journeys are not claimable and a large claim containing them is conspicuous.",[24,17798,17800],{"id":17799},"the-practical-answer","The practical answer",[12,17802,17803],{},"Automatic recording, sorted weekly, with regular customers tagged so most of it classifies itself. At this mileage the difference between a log that keeps itself and one that depends on you is not convenience. It is whether the claim is defensible at all.",[24,17805,518],{"id":517},[137,17807,17808,17813,17818,17823],{},[140,17809,17810],{},[524,17811,529],{"href":526,"rel":17812},[528],[140,17814,17815],{},[524,17816,543],{"href":541,"rel":17817},[528],[140,17819,17820],{},[524,17821,997],{"href":995,"rel":17822},[528],[140,17824,17825],{},[524,17826,564],{"href":562,"rel":17827},[528],[566,17829],{},[12,17831,17832],{},[571,17833,14612],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":17835},[17836,17837,17838,17839,17840,17841],{"id":17639,"depth":576,"text":17640},{"id":17656,"depth":576,"text":17657},{"id":17755,"depth":576,"text":17756},{"id":17777,"depth":576,"text":17778},{"id":17799,"depth":576,"text":17800},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-04-03","The 10,000-mile threshold arrives in May, the car wears out in three years, and the arithmetic is different from everyone else's.","\u002Fblog\u002Fsales-reps-and-territory-driving.jpg","A motorway seen through a windscreen, following a lorry","Photo by Markus Spiske, CC0 public domain","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.rawpixel.com\u002Fimage\u002F432832\u002Ffree-photo-image-truck-motorway-container",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fsales-reps-and-territory-driving",{"title":17625,"description":17843},"blog\u002Fsales-reps-and-territory-driving",[17853,17854,602],"sales","high mileage","zPw9XUUwEYJcZiSPsN4gDsx7HzM3X71q--LqrtZxYwA",{"id":17857,"title":17858,"author":7,"body":17859,"category":12182,"date":18048,"description":18049,"draft":590,"extension":591,"image":18050,"imageAlt":18051,"imageCredit":18052,"imageCreditUrl":4459,"imageIsScreenshot":590,"meta":18053,"navigation":595,"path":18054,"readTime":1462,"seo":18055,"stem":18056,"tags":18057,"__hash__":18059},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Froundabouts-and-lane-discipline.md","Nobody agrees about roundabouts, and the Code is clearer than you think",{"type":9,"value":17860,"toc":18039},[17861,17864,17868,17871,17891,17894,17898,17901,17907,17910,17914,17917,17977,17984,17988,17991,17994,17998,18001,18004,18008,18011,18014,18016,18033,18035],[12,17862,17863],{},"Roundabouts produce more confident disagreement between British drivers than any other feature of the road, which is odd, because the Highway Code is reasonably explicit.",[24,17865,17867],{"id":17866},"the-default-lane-rules","The default lane rules",[12,17869,17870],{},"Unless signs or markings say otherwise:",[137,17872,17873,17879,17885],{},[140,17874,17875,17878],{},[19,17876,17877],{},"Turning left"," (first exit): approach in the left lane, signal left, stay in the left lane",[140,17880,17881,17884],{},[19,17882,17883],{},"Straight ahead",": approach in the left lane unless conditions or markings say otherwise, no signal on approach, signal left after the exit before yours",[140,17886,17887,17890],{},[19,17888,17889],{},"Turning right"," or going full circle: approach in the right lane, signal right, and signal left after passing the exit before yours",[12,17892,17893],{},"The straight-ahead case is the contested one. A great many drivers use the right lane for straight on out of habit, and are then surprised by someone correctly in the left lane doing the same.",[24,17895,17897],{"id":17896},"unless-signs-or-markings-say-otherwise-is-doing-the-work","\"Unless signs or markings say otherwise\" is doing the work",[12,17899,17900],{},"On any large or busy roundabout, the markings override the defaults, and they frequently do something non-obvious, two lanes for one exit, a lane that must turn, or a spiral layout that carries you outward as you go round.",[12,17902,17903,17906],{},[19,17904,17905],{},"Spiral roundabouts"," are the ones that catch experienced drivers. Get into the correct lane on approach, follow it round, and it delivers you to your exit without lane changes. Trying to apply the default rules to a spiral produces exactly the crossing manoeuvre the design exists to prevent.",[12,17908,17909],{},"Read the road markings on approach, not the shape of the junction from memory.",[24,17911,17913],{"id":17912},"the-default-lane-and-signal-rules","The default lane and signal rules",[12,17915,17916],{},"Where no markings say otherwise:",[29,17918,17919,17935],{},[32,17920,17921],{},[35,17922,17923,17926,17929,17932],{},[38,17924,17925],{},"Taking",[38,17927,17928],{},"Approach lane",[38,17930,17931],{},"Signal on approach",[38,17933,17934],{},"Signal on exit",[51,17936,17937,17950,17965],{},[35,17938,17939,17942,17945,17947],{},[56,17940,17941],{},"First exit (left)",[56,17943,17944],{},"Left",[56,17946,17944],{},[56,17948,17949],{},"Keep left signal on",[35,17951,17952,17954,17958,17962],{},[56,17953,17883],{},[56,17955,17956],{},[19,17957,17944],{},[56,17959,17960],{},[19,17961,6713],{},[56,17963,17964],{},"Left, after the exit before yours",[35,17966,17967,17970,17973,17975],{},[56,17968,17969],{},"Right, or full circle",[56,17971,17972],{},"Right",[56,17974,17972],{},[56,17976,17964],{},[12,17978,17979,17980,17983],{},"The middle row is the contested one: straight ahead is the ",[19,17981,17982],{},"left"," lane by default, not the right.",[24,17985,17987],{"id":17986},"signalling-on-exit","Signalling on exit",[12,17989,17990],{},"Signal left after passing the exit before the one you want. This is the single most useful thing you can do for everyone waiting to enter, and it is the thing most commonly omitted.",[12,17992,17993],{},"A driver waiting at an entry cannot read your intentions, only your indicator. Every unsignalled exit is a car that waited unnecessarily, which is a large part of why roundabouts back up.",[24,17995,17997],{"id":17996},"mini-roundabouts","Mini-roundabouts",[12,17999,18000],{},"Same priority rules, give way to the right, and you are expected to pass round the central marking rather than over it where the vehicle allows.",[12,18002,18003],{},"They also require a genuine attempt to give way, which at some junctions has been abandoned by mutual agreement. That agreement has no legal standing.",[24,18005,18007],{"id":18006},"why-this-is-worth-caring-about-at-work","Why this is worth caring about at work",[12,18009,18010],{},"If you drive a van or a larger vehicle, roundabout lane discipline is where you are most likely to have a low-speed collision with a car alongside you, and the one who changed lanes is usually the one at fault.",[12,18012,18013],{},"A dashcam and a habit of following the markings rather than the memory of the junction are both cheaper than an at-fault claim on a business policy.",[24,18015,518],{"id":517},[137,18017,18018,18023,18028],{},[140,18019,18020],{},[524,18021,12150],{"href":12148,"rel":18022},[528],[140,18024,18025],{},[524,18026,13452],{"href":13450,"rel":18027},[528],[140,18029,18030],{},[524,18031,13459],{"href":13457,"rel":18032},[528],[566,18034],{},[12,18036,18037],{},[571,18038,12875],{},{"title":575,"searchDepth":576,"depth":576,"links":18040},[18041,18042,18043,18044,18045,18046,18047],{"id":17866,"depth":576,"text":17867},{"id":17896,"depth":576,"text":17897},{"id":17912,"depth":576,"text":17913},{"id":17986,"depth":576,"text":17987},{"id":17996,"depth":576,"text":17997},{"id":18006,"depth":576,"text":18007},{"id":517,"depth":576,"text":518},"2025-03-27","Lane choice, signalling, and the spiral markings that catch out drivers who have used the same junction for years.","\u002Fblog\u002Froundabouts-and-lane-discipline.jpg","A roundabout seen from directly above","Photo by The Lazy Artist Gallery, CC0 public domain",{},"\u002Fblog\u002Froundabouts-and-lane-discipline",{"title":17858,"description":18049},"blog\u002Froundabouts-and-lane-discipline",[12196,18058,12195],"roundabouts","qao4nf-JOwGNmC3iNLgBxGbBh_9P8aESDjagS0XU1HY",1787466102200]