The problem
Fuel receipts live in door pockets and get lost, and each one lost is VAT you can't reclaim. If three vans fill up three times a week, that's about 39 receipts a month, plus 15 parking and toll receipts. Losing 2 fuel receipts a month at $93£70€83A$134C$132 each costs about $31£23€27A$44C$43 in VAT, and typing in the rest at 3 minutes each takes 2.7 hours.
What the AI does
Dext is bookkeeping software. Its site says you can send receipts by mobile, email or WhatsApp; it reads the supplier, amounts and VAT and sends them to accounting software such as Xero for you to approve. Each driver photographs the receipt at the pump before it leaves their hand, and it goes straight into Dext. You check and approve once a week. Parking and toll receipts go the same way, so nothing is left for the quarter end.
A worked example
A three-van courier in Bristol is VAT registered and pays for fuel on a business debit card. Drivers hand in paper receipts on Fridays, when they remember.
Before
About 54 receipts a month typed in at 3 minutes each (2.7 hours), and around 2 fuel receipts a month lost
After
Receipts photographed at the pump and checked at about 1 minute each (54 minutes), with none lost
What it's worth
About $78£59€70A$113C$111 a month saved, against about $32£24€29A$46C$45 to $40£30€36A$58C$56 for Dext. Two $93£70€83A$134C$132 fuel receipts a month no longer lost is about $31£23€27A$44C$43 of VAT reclaimed (2 x $93£70€83A$134C$132 ÷ 6). Checking instead of typing saves about 108 minutes, 1.8 hours, worth about $48£36€43A$69C$68 at an assumed $27£20€24A$38C$38 an hour. Dext's default of 250 documents and 5 users is $32.15£24.17€28.76A$46.41C$45.44 a month excluding VAT billed annually; monthly billing is estimated at roughly $40£30€36A$58C$56. Xero is assumed already in use.
How to set it up
- Check with your accountant that Dext suits your Xero setup and how fuel should be coded.
- Start a Dext trial, connect it to Xero and add each driver as a user.
- Show drivers how to photograph a receipt at the pump, with the whole slip flat and readable.
- Set supplier rules so fuel stations, car parks and toll roads land in the right cost category.
- Each week, check what Dext read against the bank feed and approve it into Xero.
What goes wrong
- If you use a fuel card that sends a monthly VAT invoice, the pump receipts may not matter; ask your accountant, and use Dext for parking, tolls and everything else.
- Xero says smart document capture is included on all its plans. Try that first and pay for Dext only if it saves real time.
- A faded or crumpled receipt can be misread. Check each amount and VAT figure before you approve it.
- Dext is priced by documents and users. Count your monthly receipts before choosing a band.