My accountant gave me a reality check about vehicle mileage deductions

I used to just claim the standard mileage rate every year without thinking much about it. Then my accountant pointed out that my actual expenses were way higher than what I was claiming because I drive a older truck that eats gas and needs constant repairs. He showed me the math on a napkin at a diner off Route 9. For my situation, actual expenses came out to about $0.72 per mile versus the $0.58 standard rate. So I spent a weekend digging through two years of repair receipts and fuel logs. It added over $1,200 to my deductions for last year alone. Has anyone else found that the standard rate doesn't work for their vehicle?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_drew9d ago

Whoa yeah, this totally flipped my thinking. I was wrong before.

casey2689d ago

Has anyone really looked into the downsides though? I mean, take the housing market as an example. If everyone starts thinking one way, you get bubbles and crashes. Same with investing, you buy when everyone's scared and sell when everyone's greedy. Getting flipped around too fast can mean you're just following the herd instead of thinking things through. I've been burned before by changing my mind too quick without checking the facts first.

michael8036d ago

casey268 you're acting like flipping your opinion is some kind of life or death decision. Not every change of mind leads to a market crash or personal ruin, sometimes people just learn something and adjust without it being a whole big deal. Yeah, don't be a blind sheep, but taking three business days to decide if pineapple belongs on pizza isn't exactly the same as making a bad investment.