Vehicle Mileage
How the mileage at the start and end of the day is noted from the worksheet, how business and private miles are worked out, and what a vehicle's Mileage tab shows.
Work Planner can keep a mileage log for each vehicle: what its odometer reads when the day's work starts and when it finishes, for every day it goes out. From that it works out the vehicle's business miles for each tax year, which you need whether you claim its running costs or HMRC's mileage rate.
Switching It On
On Work > Vehicles, click Daily checks and mileage and switch on Ask for the mileage at the start and end of the day, then Save. It's off until you do, each business has its own setting, and it's for people whose role can manage vehicles to change.
At the Start of the Day
The banner on a worksheet going out in the vehicle asks for the mileage before the first job, and the Start the day popup has Mileage now for it, alongside the walkaround check if that's on too. One reading a day covers the vehicle, so whoever in the crew puts it in first does it for everyone. See Daily Vehicle Checks.
At the End of the Day
- Finish the Day: In More Actions on the worksheet, or Finish the day on its banner, once the day has been started. Put in Mileage now and click Save mileage.
- When you submit: If the finishing mileage isn't in yet, the submit popup asks for Finishing mileage too. If you aren't in the vehicle, such as when you submit from the office, tick Not in the vehicle? Leave the mileage out. Yes, Submit Worksheet waits until one or the other is done. See Submit Options.
- Once a day: As at the start, one finishing reading covers the whole crew. If someone else has put it in already, theirs stands.
Readings That Look Wrong
A reading is never turned away, as odometers get replaced and readings get mistyped, but one that looks wrong is sent back to check:
- Going backwards: Less than the vehicle read before, such as That's less than the 45,210 miles it read on 20 October 2026.
- Too far: More than 500 miles a day since the reading before.
- More than later: More than a reading from a later day, when you put in a reading for an earlier one.
Put the reading right, or tick the box underneath, such as Yes, it reads 45,210 miles, and save again. A finishing mileage that looks wrong is sent back before the worksheet is submitted, so nothing is left half done. A confirmed reading is marked Unusual, confirmed, and its day is flagged on the Mileage tab and in the Vehicles Report.
Vehicles That Read in Kilometres
Set Its mileage reads in to Kilometres on the vehicle's Vehicle tab, and readings are typed in as the odometer shows them, in kilometres. Work Planner keeps them in miles, as HMRC's rates are per mile, so the log, the worksheet banner and the reports give miles.
The Mileage Tab
Open the vehicle from Work > Vehicles and choose Mileage.
- Tax year: The log runs from 6 April to 5 April, and starts on the tax year you're in. Pick an earlier one to look back.
- Business, private and total miles: What the vehicle did in the tax year. Until there are two readings to measure between, the total and private miles say Not known yet.
- Days to check: How many days are missing a finishing or a starting reading, and how many have a reading confirmed as unusual. A day missing a reading isn't counted in the business miles.
- Readings: Every reading in the year, newest first, with its day, the miles, where it came from (Start of day, End of day, Entered by hand or MOT test) and who put it in.
Adding and Correcting Readings
People whose role can manage vehicles can fill the gaps and put readings right:
- Add reading: Choose the date, When (Start of day, End of day or Other), the mileage and a note if you like, then Save reading. A day has one reading of each kind, so one added where there's already one replaces it, and the popup says so before you save. A reading can't be for a day still to come.
- Filling a gap: A day with only a starting reading has Add the finishing reading beside it, and one with only a finishing reading has Add the starting reading.
- Edit and delete: The pencil and the bin beside a reading change it or remove it, and the year's miles are worked out again.
- MOT readings: The mileage at each MOT test comes from the DVSA, so it can't be changed or deleted, and it isn't counted in the business, private or total miles.
How Business Miles Are Worked Out
Each day's business miles are its finishing reading less its starting reading, however many people rode in the vehicle and however many worksheets it went out on. The total is the miles from the first reading in the tax year to the last, and the private miles are the rest, such as the miles the vehicle did between one day's finish and the next day's start. A day with only one of its readings isn't counted, so fill in any gaps from the Mileage tab before you claim.
In the Vehicles Report
The Mileage tab of the Vehicles Report has every vehicle's miles for a tax year side by side, with the HMRC mileage claim for the vehicles claimed by mileage, and exports the daily log as a CSV.
Related articles
- Daily Vehicle Checks: The Start the day popup, where the starting mileage goes in.
- Vehicles Report: Every vehicle's miles and mileage claim for a tax year.
- Vehicle Popup: What a vehicle's odometer reads in, and how its business mileage is claimed.
- Submit Options: Submitting a worksheet, with its finishing mileage.
- Worksheet Detail Screen: Where the banner and Finish the Day are.