Since the majority of taxi drivers, but certainly not all, have little accounting or bookkeeping knowledge the lower the level of expertise required the more suitable this accounts package will be. Data entry basically consists of just 3 records, being an excel spreadsheet for taxi receipts; another for taxi expenses plus a further worksheet where assets such as a vehicle can be recorded.
Taxi receipts are entered on a series of excel worksheets within the taxi income work book preset with every day of the financial year. Weekly and monthly totals are added and transferred through the linking system from the taxi bookkeeping sheets to the taxi financial accounts sheet.
Taxi expenses are listed on some twelve monthly spreadsheets which have preset columns with appropriate headings for taxi drivers to record office and rental costs, fuel bills, other vehicle costs and licence fees. The total of each expense is entered on each row and an individual letter used to then analyse the taxi expense to the column required. Much like the taxi income sheet the columns are then automatically added with a check on data entry accuracy before being used in the taxi driver accounts sheet.
Cash and bank spreadsheets are not provided as not necessary by taxi drivers as taxi drivers need not create a balance sheet.
As well as entering purchases on the taxi expense sheet the only real other entries required from the taxi driver to make a group of taxi driver accounts would be to also enter vehicle and any assets purchased on the fixed asset spreadsheet. The fixed asset spreadsheet having recently been preset with both depreciation rates and the administrative centre allowances that taxi drivers can claim. The taxi accounts software is then complete.
The financial accounts file contains formulae to produce a monthly profit and loss account that includes the taxi capital allowances from the fixed asset schedule.
A unique feature is that both mileages covered and vehicle running costs could be entered. The tax rules in the UK declare that drivers cannot claim both mileage allowances and vehicle running costs. It must be one or another and only at the end of the financial year when it becomes clear which is probably the most tax efficient.
This taxi accounts package compares both mileage cost and the automobile running cost and automatically selects the most expensive. maxi cab ensures the highest costs are selected into the calculation of the web taxable profits and highest cost equals lowest goverment tax bill.
Also in the taxi accounts file is an excel spreadsheet made with the same layout, colour codes and box numbers because the inland revenue self assessment tax return. The taxi self assessment tax return is completed automatically by the cabsmart taxi accounts software. No entries are needed leaving the taxi driver only to click print to create the self assessment tax return.
Finally having calculated the net taxable profit for the entire year the accounting package also has a tax calculator that calculates the amount of tax and national insurance to be paid.
The taxi driver accounts package has been tested often and the annual receipts and expenses for a complete year take approximately 2 to 3 3 hours to enter, and have been completed in under 2 hours. The end product is really a full set of taxi driver accounts including the self assessment tax return.
Both couriers and van drivers have similar businesses to taxi drivers in that they move items from one place to another similarly in which taxi drivers move folks from one location to some other. And due to the similarity running a business activity then this taxi accounting package will be equally suitable for couriers and van drivers.