Separate the vehicle from the financing
Fuel, repairs, insurance, rentals, loan principal and interest do not all have the same accounting treatment. We retain statements and invoices and prepare schedules for the accountant where classification needs review. A bank debit alone does not explain the cost.
Vehicle identifiers and route records make allocations more reliable. Shared dispatch or yard expenses need a stated method; otherwise route comparisons can change simply because a different department paid the bill.
Define the denominator before comparing costs
Cost per delivery, kilometre or route-day answers different questions. We agree the activity measure and included costs before reporting a ratio. Empty travel, failed deliveries and downtime should remain visible when they affect the owner’s decision.
Illustrative example: two delivery routes
A Surrey operator compares routes with $4,800 and $5,600 of direct weekly cost. One completes 240 deliveries and the other 350, giving $20 and $16 per delivery under that limited definition. Pricing and route decisions still need revenue, service requirements and the overhead excluded from the calculation.
Questions about this work
Can you prepare fuel-tax filings?
Specialist filing obligations are separate from this cost-reporting service and must be confirmed in the scope. We can organize the supporting records.
Can leased and owned vehicles be compared?
Yes, with a clearly defined management measure and disclosure of different financing and accounting treatment.
Put this into practice
Sources and current guidance
A practical next step
Bring the records you have.
We can identify missing information, agree on the scope and organize the next bookkeeping step.
Request a bookkeeping review