Tax Question

Nothing.

You are no different than a person that works in the office.

You would be eligible for work clothes, tools and shoes etc. However, it is subject to 2% of the AGI and then goes toward the itemized deductions.

 

You can not claim the HOS driver allowance if your returning home every night.

 

i think (can you smell the burnt transmission fluid) that if you are out far enough to have to run a log you can claim the time you were away from home looking something like this 4 hours a day outside 100 miles
250 days
makes for 1000 hours divided by 24 gives you 41.6 days of claimable per diem all though i may be wrong about that
you can claim a percent of you cell phone bill if you use it at / for work

 

Sorry , you're wrong . You have to be gone overnight . You can run a 400 mile local day and need a log but it has nothing to do with per diem deductions . While certain items like work clothing and phones are allowable the total must add up to more than the standard deduction to make itemizing worthwhile .
Do not go to Jackson Hewitt or any tax preparer claiming they can "find " deductions to get a return . It could bite you . http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=169251,00.html . The best time to see a tax adviser is at the beginning of the year . It's better to ask what you can deduct in the year ahead rather than find out what you could have deducted . Keep a list of eligible deductions and a daily expense record .

 

My understanding was that tools may not be deducted if you do not own the truck. Clothes are deductible if they can not be worn casually away from work. For example, company required uniforms with company name and logo would be deductible if the driver had to purchase them. Safety shoes, helmets, welders gloves, etc. would be deductible.

These are only my opinions. The same accountant prepared my tax returns when I was an owner-operator and when I was a company driver. I will see him next week as a retiree, and the return for 2008 will be the worst ever. At least, I can still deduct membership in American Truck Historical Society, a non-profit.

 

This link will help although I do strongly advise using a professional tax preparer , either a CPA or enrolled agent . CPA's and EA's are required to follow a code of ethics and they are respected by the IRS . Using a proper professional will avoid fines and interest on disallowed deductions . The bad part about IRS is it'll take them a couple of years to get around to disallowing deductions , increasing the interest you owe . http://www.irs.gov/publications/p535/index.html .

 

You can always deduct small tools used in the business. Even a company driver. Alot of companies require tools to be carried by the driver for small incidents. These are usually small in cost and not a major event.

Consider other costs as well. 5th wheel pullers, tandem slider helpers, air hose for tires, tire thumpers, tire gauges.

For a concrete driver such as doubledragon5, there might be some things that might make the job easier and not questioned on an audit.

 

I trust the CPA that I have used the past 30 years. I was an owner-operator when he started preparing my tax returns. Probably, the reason "small tools" never came up is that I already had everything when I went back to company driving. We stopped itemizing when my wife quit her licensed family day care home business. This CPA knows all of the loopholes and specializes in rescuing people who failed to pay what they owed.

I would suggest that a driver get a statement from his employer pertaining to what tools he is required to have.

 

I just talked to my accountant about this today. She told me you can deduct 80% of $52 per day if you are out overnight. You have to keep track of where you spent the night each night, so save your log sheets. This is for food and incidentals. You can also claim 80% of $.50 per mile for all unpaid miles as a company driver or lease operator.