Chris must exercise credit control
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of accounts he pays for himself, such as for fuel.
Only those accounts which bear a registered VAT number are eligible for the repayment of VAT paid and these must be kept in case Customs and Excise wish to check that he is entitled to what he has claimed.
At the end of his tax period, Chris will have to give details to the tax authority of the tax raised on his output (sales) and input (his purchases). The tax due will be the difference between the two sums. If what Chris has paid exceeds what he has raised on his own sales then he will be entitled to a refund.
This will rarely happen and only when he has made a large purchase such as a new replacement vehicle. The tax payable on a secondhand vehicle can be raised only on the difference between what the dealer paid for it on tradein and what he sells it for, that is, the mark-up on the vehicle.
Similarly, when Chris trades in his vehicle, he must raise VAT on the price he obtains for it, if any.
When Chris discussed his project with other drivers, they have all said he will have difficulty completing his return journey in one day. But Chris is confident; for his vehicle will be all ready for him to drive away from the customer's depot each morning, with the load sheeted and roped by one of the company's own drivers. At the delivery end, the unloading will be by fork-lift truck and should be accomplished in about 20 minutes. Meanwhile Chris can have lunch.. ..
As far as journey time is concerned this will be mainly on a motorway where he should have no difficulty in maintaining a steady speed of 60mph.
Chris has already covered the route in his own car during the weekend to confirm that, given a trouble-free run, there should be no difficulty in completing the journey in a day. Next week: Chris investigates the possibility of obtaining credit from the fuel companies — perhaps by using an agency card — and joins the Road Haulage Association.