Overdrive

BUSINESS 28 | Overdrive | July 2017 Owner-operators expecting a little extra return on investment with an electronic logging device should tread carefully with systems that claim to automate data collection for the International Fuel Tax Agreement and International Registration Plan. This recommendation comes from Dave Gray, president of compliance services provider Glostone Trucking Solutions and president of the National American Transportation Services Association, whose member companies work with more than 75,000 carriers. Gray emphasizes the different standards for ELDs' hours of service compliance functionality and IFTA's data needs, particularly in the realm of long-term recordkeeping. State IFTA and IRP auditors will want records going back four to nearly seven years, respectively – well beyond the six-month log required for hours of service records. Fleets that use an ELD service provider for IFTA/IRP data collection should not be purging mileage or trip data they download from the provider. They also should make sure their vendor agreement gives ready access to that data years down the line if it's stored primarily in a cloud account, Gray recommends. Other differences between ELDs' hours-related data requirements and IFTA needs relate to "distance and accuracy" for tracking purposes, Gray says. "An ELD doesn't need to [by law] be nearly as precise as what IFTA and IRP require." Though many ELD providers do go beyond the minimums required in the ELD rule, if they don't, the minimum hourly ping of location specified in the rule won't be enough to satisfy what an IFTA or IRP auditor will need to verify tax or registration filings. Gray recommends validating the distances the ELD records with odometer readings at state line cross- ings and elsewhere "to make sure every mile is captured" before putting your full trust in any product. If not, you easily could end up reporting your state miles short, and an auditor could have a field day re-creating your trips and calculat- ing interest on short payments, says Gary Markham of ProMiles, also a NATSA member company. – Todd Dills Warning: Log data might not cover IFTA, IRP The ELD mandate requires systems to retain records for six months. One way to avoid an IRS audit is to make sure you have an established residence where you collect mail, even if it's a parent's house you rarely visit. Without a home to be away from, you don't qualify for the daily per diem write-off for meals. The Partners in Business program is pro- duced by Overdrive and the consultants at business services firm ATBS. It is spon- sored by Ryder and Truckstop.com. Free Partners in Business seminars will be held at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas, Aug. 24-26. Want more Partners in Business tips and information on how to run your small trucking business more profit- ably? Visit OverdriveOnline. com/pib-podcasts to find 20-min- ute podcasts on topics such as managing time, budgeting money and controlling fuel costs. PARTNERS IN BUSINESS TIP: HAVE A FIXED RESIDENCE

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