Freight, trucking & delivery
Books and taxes for car haulers.
Dealer-to-dealer runs booked on Central Dispatch, COD payments collected at drop-off, auction fees at Copart or Manheim, and the damage claim reserve every hauler needs. Your own bookkeeper sorts it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
February came in at $6,100. A dealer paid COD at drop-off instead of through Central Dispatch, so I logged the cash deposit against that specific run.
- Central Dispatch payoutDealer and broker runs
- COD cash depositCOD collections
- Copart buyer feeAuction fees
- Trailer ramp repairTrailer maintenance
- Diesel, truck stopFuel
Why your books are different
Car hauler books go wrong around cash and claims.
A generalist sees deposits and a truck payment. Your business collects payment three different ways, hauls other people's vehicles that can get damaged in transit, and pays fees at the auction before a car ever gets loaded. When the books do not separate those, a slow month and a costly claim look the same.
-
1
COD cash gets mixed with broker payouts
Some dealers pay cash or by app on delivery instead of through Central Dispatch, and those collections can slip past the books entirely if they never touch a business account cleanly.
What we doLogs every COD collection against the specific run it paid for, whether it came in as cash, a card tap, or a broker payout. -
2
A damage claim looks like a random loss
A scratch or a mechanical issue that shows up after delivery can mean paying out of pocket before insurance settles, and without tracking it, one bad month looks like the business is failing.
What we doKeeps damage claim payouts in their own line, separate from routine costs, so one bad load does not get read as a trend. -
3
Auction fees disappear into a general expense line
Buyer fees at Copart, Manheim, or IAA add up fast on volume runs, and lumped in with fuel and tolls, you lose sight of how much moving auction cars really costs you.
What we doKeeps auction fees in their own category, so you can see the real cost of running auction lanes versus dealer-to-dealer work. -
4
A new multi-car trailer wrecks one month's numbers
A multi-car trailer bought outright can cost more than a slow month's entire revenue, and filed as a plain expense it makes a normal month look like a loss.
What we doFlags a trailer purchase the day it posts, logs it as equipment, and gets the accountant's call on how it gets written off.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a car hauler.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Dealer and broker runsLoads booked through Central Dispatch or a broker relationship.
- COD collectionsCash, card, or app payments collected directly at drop-off.
- Auction lane runsLoads picked up straight from an auction yard.
- Damage claim reimbursementAny amount recovered from insurance on a claim.
Money out
- FuelDiesel for hauling a loaded multi-car trailer.
- Trailer maintenanceRamps, straps, winches, and tire wear on the car hauler trailer.
- Truck payment and repairsLoan or lease payment and mechanical work on the truck.
- Auction feesBuyer and gate fees paid at Copart, Manheim, or IAA.
- Damage claim payoutsOut-of-pocket amounts paid before insurance settles a claim.
- Load board feesCentral Dispatch or other auto transport load board subscriptions.
- InsuranceCargo coverage for the vehicles you haul, plus liability and physical damage.
What we watch for you
- Cost per car hauled
Fuel, fees, and wear against how many cars moved. It tells you if a run is worth taking.
- Damage claim rate
How often a load ends in a claim. A rising rate points to a loading habit or route worth changing.
- COD share
How much of your income is collected outside the load board, so nothing slips past the books.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so filing season is a number already known.
Ask Gus
Things car haulers ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
Yes, I logged the deposit against that run specifically, so it shows up as income the same as any broker payout.
I kept it in its own damage claim line, separate from your regular costs, so it does not get mistaken for a spending habit.
They are a real cost, and I keep them in their own category, so you can see whether auction runs are actually paying off compared to dealer work.
The tax side
The tax side of running a car hauling business.
Most of what trips up a car hauler is cash payments that never make it into the books and damage payouts that get mistaken for random losses instead of a real cost of the work.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Writing off the truck and trailerA truck and a multi-car trailer bought for the business can often both be written off in the year they are bought, since the lower $32,000 heavy SUV cap does not apply to hauling equipment. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Self-employment taxAs an independent hauler, net profit from moving cars owes 15.3 percent self-employment tax, up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500. Gus tracks a set-aside as auction and dealer runs come in.
- Reporting COD and cash incomeCash and app payments collected at delivery are taxable income the same as any broker payout, whether or not a 1099 form ever arrives for them.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when cash collections and claim payouts are tracked cleanly all year.
Deductions car haulers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Fuel
- Trailer straps, ramps, and winches
- Truck loan interest
- Auction buyer and gate fees
- Load board subscriptions
- Cargo insurance for hauled vehicles
- Tolls and scale fees
- Damage claim payouts not reimbursed
- Uniforms and safety gear
- Phone and dispatch app fees
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A car hauling year, kept every month.
Auction and dealer runs move every week of the year. Your taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, and you get a monthly set-aside built from real runs and fees, so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been building since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether a busy season of auction runs changed the number.
- October
Before the year winds down
Gus looks at whether a new trailer makes sense before December and what still needs doing before the return gets started.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for car haulers. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions car haulers ask first.
Do I need to report cash payments I collect at delivery?
Yes. All income is taxable whether it comes through Central Dispatch, a card reader, or cash in hand, and Gus tracks it the same way regardless of how it arrived.
How do you handle a damage claim I had to pay out of pocket?
It gets logged in its own claim line, separate from routine costs, so it shows up as what it was instead of looking like ordinary overspending.
I run mostly auction lanes, not dealer-to-dealer work. Does that change anything?
No, Gus tracks auction fees and lane runs the same way he tracks broker loads. You will just see a bigger auction fee category than a dealer-focused hauler would.
My trailer needs constant small repairs. Is that normal to track separately?
Yes. Trailer maintenance gets its own category so you can see whether the trailer is costing more to keep running than it should.
Do I need separate insurance tracking for the vehicles I haul versus my truck?
The books keep them apart, cargo coverage for the vehicles you are hauling and your own truck and liability coverage, so you can see what each one actually costs.
I have never tracked which payments came from which run. Can you sort out old statements?
Yes. Send what you have. Gus works through it, the accountant checks it, and most haulers know where they stand within a week or two.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
More in freight, trucking & delivery
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Box truck businesses
- Cold storage warehouses
- Customs brokers
- Expedited freight (sprinter vans)
- Final-mile delivery companies
- Freight forwarders
- Furniture delivery & white glove delivery
- Heavy haul & oversize transport
- Hot shot trucking
- Livestock haulers
- Local courier services
- Medical courier services
- 3PL warehouses
- Amazon delivery service partners (DSPs)
- Owner-operator truckers
- Small fulfillment centers
- Small trucking fleets
- Truck dispatch services
- Freight brokers
- Aerial applicators & crop dusters
- Aircraft detailing
- Aircraft maintenance shops (MRO)
- Aircraft sales brokers
- Airport shuttle services
- Boat detailing & bottom cleaning
- Boat repair & marine mechanics
- Boat shrink wrapping services
- Boat transport companies
- Charter bus companies
- Drone inspection & mapping services
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever