Auto repair & maintenance
Books and taxes for fleet maintenance shops.
Preventive maintenance contracts, net-30 fleet invoices, DOT inspections, and parts bought by the case. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
May came in at $18,000. Two fleet invoices from April finally cleared, so I moved them out of accounts owed and into what actually landed this month.
- Fleet invoice, Metro DeliveryFleet contracts
- Fleet invoice, City CourierFleet contracts
- FleetPride accountParts and materials
- DOT inspection suppliesCompliance costs
- Shop rent, MayRent and utilities
Why your books are different
Fleet shop books go wrong on when money actually lands.
Almost none of your customers pay at the counter. A preventive maintenance contract bills monthly whether or not a truck comes in, and a repair invoice to a delivery company can sit unpaid for weeks. A generalist bookkeeper books it all the day the work is done and loses track of what's actually been collected.
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1
Net-30 invoices get booked before they're paid
A delivery company or courier billed net 30 pays weeks after a truck rolls out of your bay, and sometimes trims the invoice after their own review. Booked as income the day the work is done, the shop loses track of what's actually been collected versus what's still owed.
What we doTracks fleet invoices as owed until paid, so you can see what's outstanding and catch a short payment before it slips by. -
2
Preventive maintenance contracts bill on their own schedule
A flat monthly contract to keep a company's trucks serviced pays the same whether one truck comes in or five, and mixed into regular repair income, it hides how much of the month's revenue is steady contract money versus one-off repair work.
What we doKeeps preventive contract billing in its own category, so you can see the steady base under the shop's repair revenue. -
3
DOT inspection costs get buried in general supplies
Keeping trucks compliant with DOT inspection requirements means recurring costs for supplies, forms, and sometimes certification fees for the inspector doing the work, expenses that a shop doing only passenger cars never carries.
What we doKeeps compliance and inspection costs on their own line, separate from ordinary shop supplies, so the real cost of servicing fleets stays visible. -
4
Parts bought by the case for repeat trucks skew a month
Servicing the same fleet's trucks over and over means buying filters, belts, and brake parts by the case rather than one at a time, and one large restock order can make a quiet week look like a loss.
What we doKeeps parts bought ahead of routine fleet work as inventory, not that week's cost, tied to the trucks that actually use them.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a fleet maintenance shop.
Set up once for contract billing and net-30 accounts, you never pick a category, an accountant checks every one.
Money in
- Fleet contractsFlat monthly preventive maintenance billing, tracked as owed until paid.
- Repair invoicesOne-off repair work billed net 30 to fleet accounts.
- DOT inspectionsStandalone compliance inspection fees.
- Walk-in repairsNon-fleet vehicles paid at the counter.
Money out
- Parts and materialsFleetPride and bulk supplier purchases tied to routine fleet work.
- Tech wages and commissionFlat-rate pay kept apart from straight hourly wages.
- Compliance costsDOT inspection supplies, forms, and certification fees.
- EquipmentTruck lifts and heavy diagnostic tools, logged so they get written off right.
- InsuranceGaragekeepers and general liability coverage.
- Disposal feesWaste oil, filters, and tire disposal for higher-volume fleet work.
What we watch for you
- Fleet receivables
What net-30 accounts still owe, tracked so a slow payer doesn't sneak up on you.
- Contract vs repair mix
How much revenue is steady contract billing versus one-off repairs, tracked monthly.
- Parts margin
What's kept on parts after the supplier bill, watched across repeat fleet work.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things fleet shop owners 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.
I'm tracking it as owed, not collected. If it comes in short of the invoice, I'll flag the difference when it finally lands.
I keep them in separate categories, so you can see how much of the month is your steady preventive contracts versus a repair that might not happen again.
That depends on your state and I'm not the one to say for sure. I flagged it so the accountant can tell you what applies to your fleet accounts.
The tax side
The tax side of a fleet maintenance shop.
Most of what goes wrong here is invoices booked before they're paid and contract money blended into ordinary repair income.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Truck lifts and heavy toolsShop equipment like truck lifts and heavy diagnostic readers can usually be written off the year you buy it. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property bought after January 19, 2025.
- Parts as cost of goodsParts bought ahead of routine fleet service are inventory, and their cost only counts against income once a truck actually uses them, not the day the case arrived.
- Flat-rate tech classificationA technician who works your schedule and uses your lifts is usually an employee, even paid by the flat-rate hour on fleet work. Getting this wrong gets expensive, so Gus flags it before it becomes routine.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operator shops can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income, and it comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions fleet maintenance shops miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- DOT inspection forms and supplies
- Truck lift recertification
- Heavy diagnostic reader fees
- ASE certification fees
- Shop towel service
- Garagekeepers insurance
- Waste oil disposal fees
- Uniform rental service
- Invoicing software fees
- Tire disposal 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 fleet shop's year, kept every month.
Contract billing runs steady all year with repair work layered on top. 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, outstanding fleet invoices are reviewed, and you get a monthly set-aside so April isn't a surprise.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January and matched what the shop actually made.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether new fleet contracts changed the number this year.
- October
Before winter fleet needs
Cold weather brings more breakdown calls from fleet accounts. Before the rush, Gus looks at equipment worth buying and moves worth making before December.
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 fleet maintenance shops. 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 fleet shop owners ask first.
We bill fleet accounts net 30. Does that mess up the monthly number?
No. Gus tracks what's billed as owed until it's actually paid, so you always know what's outstanding, and he flags it if a payment comes in short of the invoice.
Can Gus keep preventive contract billing separate from repair invoices?
Yes. He keeps them in different categories, so you can see how much of a month's revenue is steady contract money versus one-off repair work.
Do DOT inspection costs need their own category?
Yes, and Gus already keeps them separate from ordinary shop supplies, so the real cost of staying compliant for fleet customers stays visible.
We buy parts by the case for repeat fleet trucks. Does that skew a slow week?
No. Gus keeps bulk parts purchases as inventory tied to the trucks that will use them, not that week's expense, so a big restock won't make the week look like a loss.
My books are a mess from doing them myself. Is that a problem?
No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most owners know where they stand inside a week.
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 auto repair & maintenance
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Auto electrical specialists
- Classic car restoration shops
- Emissions & state inspection stations
- Engine rebuilders
- Hybrid & EV repair specialists
- Diesel repair shops
- European & import auto specialists
- Mobile mechanics
- Brake & muffler shops
- Quick lube & oil change shops
- Tire shops
- Transmission shops
- Independent auto repair shops
- Campervan & van conversion builders
- Golf cart dealers & customizers
- Overlanding outfitters & builders
- RV repair shops & mobile RV technicians
- Trailer dealers & repair
- Auto upholstery & interior repair
- Boat & RV detailing
- Wheel & rim repair
- Car buying & auto brokers
- Classic & collector car dealers
- Collector car storage garages
- Custom car audio shops
- Independent car rental & Turo hosts
- Junkyards & auto salvage yards
- Mobile tire service
- Motorcycle repair & custom shops
- Motorcycle training schools
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