News

New SupaTrak option provides simple way to monitor company and private mileage
April 2007

CMS SupaTrak, has developed a new, simple solution that can help businesses identify the time their vehicles are being used for private journeys and the mileage incurred.  The solution is being launched to coincide with the introduction of new legislation for the new tax year that increases the onus on companies to make this distinction or face their employees having to pay more tax than they need.

Taking a pro-active approach to the issue, CMS can now fit a switch in the vehicle that the driver presses when the ignition is turned on to record company mileage. The driver is reminded of this via a light on the switch that remains illuminated all the time the company journey is taking place. Linked to its popular SupaTrak vehicle tracking system, a record of all company journeys can be made that are subsequently produced in the form of monthly reports and used as the basis to file company and private mileage for tax purposes. 

The new system has benefits for all types of commercial vehicle but is expected to become a popular add-on for commercial vans, which are the subject of the new legislation. Companies operating vans have had to pay tax on the benefit when these vehicles are used privately for journeys other than commuting for a few years now, but from April 6 2007, they will also have to pay tax if they provide fuel for private use in the van. The onus is thus on operators to prove commercial mileage or it will be assumed as private and they will have to pay tax on all the fuel used.

Practically, it is clear that complying with the new legislation threatens to be a nightmare for operators, who will end up paying too much tax unless they can clearly distinguish between company and private mileage - and who currently records how much fuel has been used for each even if they record the different journeys?  “Our new switch system linked to SupaTrak provides an easy way to record journey mileage and produce the evidence the Inland Revenue will require in the new tax year,” says CMS Managing Director Jason Airey.

 As many vehicle operators already know, SupaTrak can provide a raft of information that enables them to track their vehicle movements, monitor the data and make their business more effective. This is just the latest refinement to the system and although simple, has the potential considerably reduce administration time and save money by making sure operators only pay the right amount of tax and can prove this if the Inland Revenue should come calling.

 “The new switch will help to remove much of the doubt and confusion that is sure to accompany introduction of the new legislation,” he adds.

CMS says it is already conducting trials with a number of blue chip companies. It hopes to provide details of the results of this trial at a later date, but in the meantime says that the early indications are very good and the feedback positive.