While stopped at night on the road, Greg Decker enters data into at least one of the several computer programs tracking his equipment.

Numbers business

Saving receipts and keeping good records are essential to your successful operation

As an owner-operator, you are a small business on wheels. Running your small business successfully requires you to stay on top of record-keeping on the road and back home.

Smart record-keeping begins with collecting business receipts. Make a habit of getting receipts for every expense, from fuel to tires to meals. Write the nature of the expense on the receipt if it’s not apparent.

Traveling with an accordion folder with individual pockets or a file box with labeled files might work best, while the simplest solution might be a legal-size envelope marked with the dates of your trip. The point is to consistently keep business receipts in something, rather than simply tossing receipts on your dashboard or tucking them in your truck visor. “Many of my clients just send in a manila envelope filled with receipts,” says Rick McNeill of Motor Carrier Consultants, who organizes the documents in keeping records for purposes such as fuel tax reporting.

When you return home, put the envelope in a filing cabinet or more permanent file where you keep your tax returns and financial records. If time permits, place the receipts in separate folders for maintenance, fuel, licenses, insurance and so on. This will make it easier at tax time when you or your tax adviser will need to categorize expenses.