Mileage Log for Self-Employed Tradesmen UK: HMRC Rates and Records
For most self-employed tradesmen, the van or car is one of the biggest business costs. HMRC lets you claim for business journeys, but only if you can back up your claim with records. This guide explains HMRC's simplified mileage rates and exactly what a mileage log should include.
Two ways to claim vehicle costs
As a sole trader you can claim vehicle costs in one of two ways:
- Actual costs: fuel, insurance, repairs, servicing and so on, with capital allowances on the vehicle itself, then cut down to the business share of use
- Simplified expenses: a flat rate per business mile, which covers the cost of buying and running the vehicle
Simplified expenses are much easier to keep track of, because all you need is an accurate record of your business miles. You cannot use the flat rate for a vehicle you have already claimed capital allowances on, and once you use simplified expenses for a vehicle you must keep using them for as long as you use that vehicle in your business.
HMRC simplified mileage rates
- Cars and goods vehicles (including vans): 45p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles in the tax year, then 25p per mile after that
- Motorcycles: 24p per mile
For example, if you drive 12,000 business miles in your van in a tax year, you can claim 10,000 × 45p = £4,500, plus 2,000 × 25p = £500, giving £5,000 in total.
The flat rate replaces fuel, insurance, servicing and repairs, so you cannot claim those separately as well. You can still claim parking and tolls for business journeys on top.
Which journeys count as business miles?
Business journeys include driving to a customer's home or a temporary site, going to the merchant for materials, and travelling to quote for a job. Ordinary commuting to a permanent place of work, and private trips, do not count. If a journey is partly private, only the business miles can be claimed.
What records to keep
A mileage log is your evidence if HMRC ever asks how you arrived at the figure. For each business journey, record:
- the date
- where you started and where you went
- the purpose of the journey (for example, the customer or job)
- the business miles driven
Noting the odometer reading at the start and end of each tax year (6 April to 5 April) is a good way to check your total business miles against your total miles. Keep your log with your other records for at least 5 years after the 31 January Self Assessment deadline for that tax year.
Tips for keeping a mileage log going
- Fill it in at the end of each day, while you still remember the jobs
- Keep the log in the van so it is always to hand
- Link each journey to a job, so your mileage matches your job sheets and invoices
- Add up the miles each month, so you can see when you are getting near 10,000
Keep your job and mileage records together
Mileage is easiest to justify when it lines up with your jobs. Pennaby's Tradesman Job Log Book gives you job sheets, customer contacts, a quotes log and an invoice log for builders, electricians, plumbers, decorators and all UK trades, so every journey can be matched to the work. If you work under CIS, our guide to the CIS deductions tracker for UK subcontractors explains how to keep your statements in order, and our printable Monthly Budget Tracker (UK, £) has expense log pages for everything else.
This guide is general information, not tax advice. For your own situation, check GOV.UK or speak to an accountant.