I wasn't aware that the per diem deduction was tied to eating at restaurants.

No he doesn't. He just pays less taxes. If you are spending $52 per day, then there is something wrong with you. Most people don't spend the entire amount that the IRS allows you. But that doesn't stop you from taking the full deduction, and rightfully so.

Of course you don't, but it is still an expense, whether you need it or not. Big shiny pieces of chrome aren't needed to run a truck, but they are most certainly an expense, and should be considered in the bottom line.

For that matter, you don't need a truck payment to run a rig either, so let's take that out of the expenses as well. :roll:

 

it is in principle.

Sure, I guess. The way it works in canada is you get $15 per meal, and 50% of that is deductible.

Now you're just trying to mud up the picture. What it actually costs to run your truck VS what you are able to "deduct" with the IRS or CCRA are two completely different things.

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Now that's just silly.

 

Look - the point I am trying to make, and the one that you don't seem to comprehend, is that as a business owner, I need to know ALL of my expenses, so I know how much I need to earn to cover them. This includes EVERY expense I have, not just the ones that pertain to the operation of the truck.

If you don't factor in EVERY expense you have, you are not getting a true picture of what your bottom line is.

Because, at the end of the day, you need enough money to cover your home bills, as well as your truck bills, or you aren't going to run a successful business.

 

That's not the subject at hand.

How much you need to take in to cover your business bills, as well as your personal bills, is completely different from the subject:

"What does it cost you to operate your truck?"

 

Then you better tell that to everyone who included wages in their figure, rather than just going after me. :roll:

How much it costs to operate a truck is usually around the same for everyone, unless they are running an old truck that requires lots of repairs.

I will reiterate, though, that it costs me $291 a day, and $0.71 per mile, regardless of the rules that allen wants to put on the thread that he didn't even start. :roll:

 

Rev.Vassago we finally agree on something!

The truck cannot operate with out a driver, so if you want to operate the truck you have to figure in the wages.

These guys pulling these vans and reefers for around .85 cpm have to be going broke. It takes more then that to operate.

 

I think anyone who argues that salary should not be included in their operating costs is just too ashamed to include it, as they would quickly see that they aren't grossing enough.

 

So if you include salary, where does the "excess" 30-50 cpm or so(guesstimating here) go?

 

Maintainance, repairs, tires, cell phone, internet, truck payment, etc.

 

I don't include my salary in the cost/mile figure I quoted. I pay myself by the job, much like my helpers.

I do agree that the driver wages being included is a viable and justifiable expense, because a truck can't move without a driver. If I did that, I'd have to include my lumpers wages, which would put me at at least $2/mi.

My fixed expenses are still over $150/day if I let the truck sit. Thats about what a company guy makes in a day, food for thought.