August 6, 2019
Or in other words: things you wish you’d known before
If you’re driving a car and need to log your mileage for whatever reason (but we imagine it’s mostly tax-related), it’s more than likely that you’ve encountered the phenomenon of mileage log software and apps operating on GPS technology.
The first thing that came to your mind probably was one of the following:
GPS tracking? How handy it is, to track my miles in real time!
Sure, I won’t miss a mile from now on!
So basically, when the IRS comes, I just have to hand them this automatically created log, no more work for me!
But of course, in reality, if you only use GPS-based apps… you might be in for a rough time.
Because real-time tracking can be tricky…
GPS-based services rely on satellite networks. When a satellite is not able to transmit its position it won’t be able to connect to your device. So mild or major errors in your mileage log will appear. Then you will have to correct it afterward, maybe at the end of the month, maybe at the end of the tax year… Because it’s not so easy to spot mistakes in your log when you think the solution you use is taking care of everything related to tracking your move and mileage in the background.
So when you finally take a look at your mileage log, you’re facing hours of touch-up work to do with your mileage log, you are facing hours and hours of touch-up work, to correct the mess that is in front of you.
Nothing makes sense, trips are merged, where they should be separated…. Or… separated, where they should be merged into one round trip. Or worse, the app that promised to start itself automatically the moment you start your phone failed to deliver the promise and hasn’t started itself.
Maybe just for an hour. Maybe for a day. Maybe for even longer.
So the manual mileage logging begins… while you wonder why is it any different than writing your driven mileage down into a paper mileage log book every time you start your car and stop it at one of your client’s branches.
So much for automatically created IRS-compliant mileage logs. So much for automatization. So much for saving time.
But let’s assume everything works perfectly…
As it was promised, as it should. Stars are aligned, the app tracks your mileage, shows exactly where you are or were, and the routes and distances are matching too.
And then your phone battery dies. All of a sudden, out of the blue.
On top of everything, you’re on your phone, checking the internet for background data on a very important matter. And suddenly the page you wanted to load in, won’t load. And you don’t understand what’s happening… You weren’t on your social media all day… You were driving, maybe checking a few emails, concentrating on getting from A to B.
Yes.
You were efficient. Your apps…less likely.
GPS-based mileage trackers are eating phone battery life and consuming data like they are a bottomless pit. There’s a constant promise that this problem will be optimized. But the only solution came from cell phone network providers who instead of cutting off your data will overcharge you at the end of the month, without you even knowing that you are over your limit.
So now you know what you should’ve known before you downloaded that mileage tracker.
But what to do now? What to use instead?
The MileageWise web dashboard and mileage tracker app work with a built-in map, so when you import the list of your client’s locations (yes, with MileageWise, you can import a whole list, and don’t have to type your frequently used destinations to the app over and over again every time), the app will create a distance matrix, from all clients to all clients.
The app only uses your data when you arrive at your destination, recommending the parameters with which the trip should be saved and automatically creates the driven distance and route after the trip ends. No real-time GPS tracking is needed. With this solution, we’ve created the possibility of making a retrospective mileage log too: meaning that all the fuss with real-time logging, using up all your data for the month in the process, and killing your phone’s battery, disappears.
With the AI Wizard feature, we have developed a technology that makes an IRS-proof mileage log recommendation for you, doing it by taking into account all the legal regulations about mileage logging and tax return policies. In addition, a Built-In IRS Auditor, analyzing and correcting 70 possible logical conflicts, enables our web dashboard and app to prepare a flawless mileage log.
So you don’t need to fix your log for hours.
You don’t need to worry about IRS Audits. Your log will meet the expectations.
And one more thing!
Keeping a mileage log is news for you? You didn’t know you’re required to keep a log, and now your accountant – or worse, IRS auditors – is asking you to hand one over?
Mileage trackers with GPS technology can only track real-time driving. You can’t use them for creating retrospective mileage logs. Even if your driven mileage is based on reality, you just can’t record them that way.
But not with MileageWise. If you’re worried that the end of the tax year is near: worry no more! Create as many retrospective logs as you want to, and we make sure with the AI Wizard feature and by checking and correcting 70 logical conflicts (also monitoring the applicable legislation in that period) that your recommended logs are good to go and IRS-proof, meeting every expectation.
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