How Cardata reimburses for fuel expenses using data

Why does Cardata use data for fuel and mileage reimbursements?

Cardata’s programs are designed to take the worry out of business driving for you and your staff. Ensuring our fuel price data is always current is a big part of that.

The price of gas has risen significantly in the past few weeks, so we have written this blog post to provide clarity on how we calculate fuel prices, and reimburse gas expenses, for drivers.

Drivers are especially impacted by rising gas prices. Expenses incurred while driving for work need to be properly reimbursed. Cardata’s programs are designed to respond to changes in prices as soon as possible.

One hallmark of Fixed and Variable Rate (“FAVR”) programs is this responsiveness. Cents per Mile (“CPM”) programs, based on the IRS standard rate published once per year, are unfortunately not agile. The rate set at the beginning of the year—in 2022, 58.5¢ per mile—does not change until the following year.

Gas prices are likely the most volatile variable expense. So having a variable reimbursement rate, based on data, that updates monthly, protects drivers from paying out of pocket to drive for work.

Cardata receives daily fuel prices from the regions around drivers’ zip codes. We take the local price of gas for every day of the month, and create an average rate for that month. In Cardata Cloud, drivers and managers see an updated fuel price at the beginning of each month. That figure is applied to every driver’s variable reimbursement rate.

The average fuel price is posted in Cardata Cloud at the beginning of the subsequent month. For example, March’s mileage reimbursement is paid in arrears in April. The recent increase in gas prices will be reflected in the April reimbursement payment.

Because variable expenses are reimbursed in arrears, drivers might feel frustrated that their present rate does not match what they are seeing at the pump. This is natural at times when gas prices are rising dramatically month over month.

But there is no cause for worry: Cardata hurries to gather the requisite data, and provide a reimbursement that accurately compensates drivers for their business driving, as soon as possible. Now that it is April, drivers are receiving exactly what they need to cover their gas costs from March.

Only with a Cardata FAVR program can drivers receive regional, timely reimbursements for gas.

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