Q & A

Mileage Minders

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Questions & Answers

We hope you find the answer you require here. If not please contact us. We will enter the most commonly asked here to give clients the best information possible.

Q: Why do you charge a minimum of $20 up front

A: As some clients may use the service several times a day and other several times a month the installment plan enables us to keep your costs at a minimum. We keep a running total in a separate column of your mileage log / spreadsheet so that every time you call in we automatically tabulate your balance. This allows us to contact you when you balance is low for the next installment with no additional time spent in calculating multi-value invoices.

Q: Why is it important to track my mileage?
A: If you can deduct your mileage, Revenue Canada & the IRS require complete and accurate logs. If not kept properly you may be limiting your write offs. Please ask your accountant for clarification regarding your taxes.

If your employer is reimbursing you for mileage, using Mileage Minders will give you the confidence that your records are complete. Note: You may also track other expense such as gas and meals.

Q: What would I be expected to say on a trip report or call in?
A:  As an example, you would leave a message like this:  "This is Sheila Willis, my odometer reading is 145987 and I am going to The Office Supply Store to buy supplies.  When you are done travelling call and say "This is Sheila Willis and my ending odometer reading is 146035."

Note: If your ending odometer reading is the same as the beginning of the next trip say, "This is Sheila Willis and my ending odometer reading is 146035.  I am now going to Customer A's for a sales meeting". This allows you to reduce your trip reports and save money.

The voicemail is date and time stamped.  Please include your phone number, which is our customer code, in your message.

Q: What happens if my message is unclear?

A: We will email you with confirmation of the details that are not clear to us so your log is accurate.

Q: Can I alter my spreadsheet once I get it?

A: We will ‘protect’ each page from any unwanted changes, however will supply you with the password so that you can make changes if you have missed a call in, would like to change a destination etc. It also allows you to remove our billing column if you wish.

Q: How will I know when my next installment is due?
A: Your sales rep will let you know by email when you are close to depleting your instalment. We also include billing columns to the right of your mileage log that you may refer to.

Q: How do I know I am being billed for the correct amount of call-ins or trip reports?

A: The billing column of your spreadsheet will show how many trip reports you have made for each day as well as any reminders or additional logs you may require.

Our Billing columns look similar to this. TR = Trip Report, ML = Mileage Log, REM = Reminder *

Date	TR 0.50	ML 1.50	REM 1.00	Total	Balance	Payment
May 2					$20	Ref #123456
May 4	2	0	0	1.00	19
May 5	1	0	1	1.50	17.50
May 8	1	1	0	2.00	15.50

Your reminder column will have a comment inserted as to what the reminder was for.

Q. When you say 'mileage log' what are you describing?
A. A mileage log is the record of your miles (kilometers) traveled in a vehicle used for business. The time frame of the log depends on how many days, weeks, months etc. you are traveling for business. The spreadsheets that we generally make are made by year and each page is a month, however, they can be customized to have each page being whatever time frame you choose. In addition to keeping mileage on this spread sheet we can make addtional columns for other expenses such as meals with clients, fuel etc.

Q: Why would I call and tell you the information if I already have it 'logged' someplace else.
A: The idea of Mileage Minders is that you do not need to write it down or do data entry anywhere else. You call and leave a voicemail with the information you want contained in the log. Your job is done and ours has begun. We will keep this information in a spreadsheet, completely tabulated. We will email your log to you by the 5th of the following month, unless otherwise specified.

Q: Can I deal directly with Mileage Minders?

A: There is no added benefit in doing so. The pricing remains the same. However, all questions, comments or any other correspondence should be done directly through Mileage Minders. Please leave a voicemail or email us at mileageminders@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments.

Q: How do I ensure my accountant or bookkeeper is getting their portion of my payment?

A: When making a payment please go to your accountant or bookkeepers website and follow our link. If they have the option you may also pay for your installment there. This ensures they are receiving their portion of your payment.

Q: Why use voicemail?
A: We chose to use voicemail as it takes a minimal amount of time. It allows you to keep focused on the day's events and it keeps our costs down so we are an affordable service. If talking to a live person is a better option for you, please give us feedback in our survey so we can evaluate this as our business grows.

Q: Can I text or email my mileage?
A: Our toll free service does not support texting at this time, however your may text to email or send an email with the same information.We will provide you with the address when you sign up to use the service.

If you did not find the answer to your question please email us or to remain anonymous click this link to complete our survey.

(TM) Mileage Minders (C) Mileage Minders