Using my personal vehicle for work... 15

[esloan]

I am working for a small consulting firm (civil). I really love working here, however one downside is that they do not have company vehicles.

I have no problem using my personal vehicle for transportation and keeping track of mileage for the measly 45 cents per mile etc.

The only REAL problem is that we are expected to use our personal vehicle for construction work with no additional compensation. This is the only company that I personally know about that works in this manner.

I'd say that the mileage I put on my vehicle nowhere near compensates me for the use. I am not talking about home to office etc, I am talking about office to jobsite, on the site and back. Strictly business use. I am typically out in construction full-time from April to November with heavy usage mid-May to mid-September. The work I do involves large developments and heavy-highway construction, so there is a lot of off-roading. If I don't drive my vehicle off-road, then the walk would be ridiculously long (a waste of productive time). I couldn't justify it.

I have actually brought this up to my supervisors, but they kinda shrug their shoulders and say that this is how it has always been. They say that they see no advantage for them to get any vehicles or compensate for usage above the government mileage rate. The VP's all have company leased vehicles, which is considered a perk because they really only use them for home to office driving. Only one out of the three actually uses it for billable projects and that is because he has one main client and spends a lot of time at their location. The others use for transportation to/from meetings with clients, not necessarily directly billable, but "getting/retaining" projects.

Anybody else have experience with this, or perhaps some productive way of dealing with it? I am looking at options I could offer up to management vs just complaining about it. Yes, I have received advice to just move to another company etc, but I really think the company would look into ideas if presented.

 

[SomptingGuy]

Actually now I think about it, I remember the whole concept of company cars being alien in America when I worked there (well, the places I worked anyway). There was the occasional pool car, but I don't recall anyone actually using a company-owned car as their own. On the other hand, it is perfectly normal for management grades in the UK to expect a company car, even if it just sits in the car park all day.

 

[waskillywabbit]

I don't know where you worked SomptingGuy, but I can assure you, in the Southeastern United States in industrial/commercial construction and industrial contracting and fabrication, company provided trucks are the norm for those who are in the field doing the work or supervising the work, not the management back at the office putting butt prints in their chairs all day. I work at a large industrical & mechanical contractor and we have dozens, if not hundreds of company provided trucks for folks in the field. Then again, you won't find many personal "cars" in the parking lot either.

Brian

 

[SomptingGuy]

Auto business, so Mid-West. No real call for having "folks in the field". Now I work back in the UK in the auto business still and our car park is littered with company cars the owners of which are making bum prints in their chairs. Any field work we do generally involves a taxi to the airport, or if you are a manager, parking your company car in the airport car park. More of a perk and status symbol than a requirement.

 

[SperlingPE]

What is meant by local?
Anything outside the city/town that your office is located in is not local. A company vehicle should be provided for jobs such as this. A company vehicle should be provided for all the jobs (in my opinion), but this may be too big a step. Ask your business manager to look into risk and liability of an employee using a personal vehicle for business related travel (i.e. consider if the employee gets into an injury accident with another person). Also do some research on the government allowed amount and what this really covers. My guess is that this wasn't intended for off road driving.