Start the new FY right: how fuel card rewards can help offset business expenses

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With a new financial year kicking off, we show you some tips to help make offsetting expenses easier for your fleet business.

Sponsored by Shell Card and American Express. Earn 350,000 Bonus Points for your business with Shell Card and American Express1. Simply apply for an American Express Platinum Business Card by 18 August 2023 and a Shell Card. Then spend a minimum of $8k with your Shell Card and use your American Express Card to pay the balance within 3 months of your approval date. When applying for your Shell Card, use the code AMEXSHELL. T&Cs apply. New American Express Card Members only.

1. Leverage your toolset to cut down overheads

The start of a new financial year means taking a close look at your expenses. For some businesses, that may mean needing to look at where overheads can be reduced.

One of the best ways to look at cutting down overheads is in your existing business toolset.

An example is credit and charge cards. Are you earning points and rewards for your everyday expenses? If so, are you using them to help offset business expenses?

For example, Shell Card and American Express currently have an offer in place that allows new American Express Card Members to earn 350,000 Membership Rewards Bonus Points.

You'll need to apply for an American Express Platinum Business Card by 18 August 2023 and the Shell Card (using the code AMEXSHELL). Then spend a minimum of $8,000 with your Shell Card and pay off your account with the American Express Platinum Business Card within 3 months of your approval date.

After this, you'll be able to receive the 350,000 Membership Rewards Bonus Points. You can use your points to cover almost anything you've bought on your Card. As soon as the eligible transaction reflects on your statement, you can use your points to cover charges3.

The American Express Platinum Business Card will also enable you to earn Membership Rewards Bonus Points for everyday purchases. With a Shell Card, you'll also be eligible to receive discounts on fuel in certain locations.

After all, if you need to spend money to make money, why not get rewarded for it?

Leveraging offers like these can lead to considerable savings over the course of the financial year.

Learn more

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2. Use fuel cards to cut down admin time

A big problem that tends to face fleet businesses is keeping track of fuel expenses.

After all, receipts can easily go missing and people can be forgetful. It can also be tricky to sort out personal transactions from business ones if people are using their personal cards.

This is where a fuel card can come in handy.

To point to one example, the Shell Card allows drivers to make purchases at more than 1,300 locations around Australia. For drivers, these cards mean there is no more need to worry about claiming funds back from accounting. For you, there's much easier bookkeeping.

Transactions (and by extension, fuel consumption) can be tracked to individual cards, with data compiled in the Shell Portal program. You're able to get an overview of your fuel spending at a glance.

With the right fuel card, you can significantly streamline the reconciliation process.

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Start saving with Shell Card and American Express

Shell Card and American Express are currently offering new American Express Card Members the chance to earn 350,000 Membership Rewards Bonus Points. Simply apply for an American Express Platinum Business Card by 18 August 2023 and a Shell Card. Then spend a minimum of $8k with your Shell Card and use your American Express Card to pay the balance within 3 months of your approval date. When applying for your Shell Card, use the code AMEXSHELL. Simply scan the QR code below to get started!
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💳 Earn rewards with your American Express Platinum Business Card

With your American Express Platinum Business Card, you're able to earn up to 2.25 Membership Rewards Points for every $1 spent2. You can then redeem Membership Rewards Points to help offset expenses like work travel or staff incentives3.

🚚 Get bonuses while you're on the road

With a Shell Card, you're able to earn Flybuys points on purchases at Coles Express.

💲Make savings on your fuel spend

With the Shell Card, you can save 6c per litre at select locations.

🚫 No Shell Card fees for 6 months

Pay no monthly card fees for the first six months.

3. Digital document management

Paper records definitely have their place, but there's no question that they can take up a huge amount of space and also be a nightmare to sort through.

This can become a real problem when tax time eventually rolls around.

Getting your hands on the right document in a timely fashion is essential. But if you've got boxes and boxes of ill-sorted receipts, that's not going to happen!

If you haven't already implemented digital document storage, now is the time. There is a huge range of suppliers on the market, who can offer services such as digitisation, cloud storage and cybersecurity solutions.

This way, you'll be able to easily consolidate your records, file them as relevant and access them whenever you need them.

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4. Outline clear processes for expense claims

As a business owner, staff education is a critical part of your role. After all, staff don't know what they don't know!

Drivers (and other staff who are on the road) should have expectations around expense reports and lodging receipts clearly communicated to them.

Ideally, this would be a one-and-done affair, probably during onboarding. But as new staff join and procedures change in line with legislation, it's important to make sure everyone's on the same page.

With the end of the financial year creeping up quickly, it might be best to run a refresher for your team ASAP. This way, you can be sure that everyone's using the appropriate processes.

5. Set clear deadlines for staff reporting

A bit of a rush at the end of the financial year is almost inevitable. But by setting clear deadlines for your team now – at the beginning of the new financial year – you can avoid a last-minute panic with staff reporting.

By providing your team with clear deadlines – and regular reminders over the course of the next 12 months – you can close out reports on time so it's one less thing to think about.
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6. Get expert input from professionals

Running your own business doesn't have to equate to doing it all yourself.

Too many owners fall into this trap, and end up wasting huge amounts of time (and by extension, money) on tasks that could have been handled in a fraction of the time by an expert.

Working with professionals such as accountants from the early days of your business can significantly streamline the process.

If you're unsure about where to get started on your own this financial year, or just feel like you need additional support, make sure you reach out to the right people.

Learn more about the Shell Card and the American Express Platinum Business Card

Sponsored by Shell Card and American Express. Earn 350,000 Bonus Points for your business with Shell Card and American Express1. Simply apply for an American Express Platinum Business Card by 18 August 2023 and a Shell Card. Then spend a minimum of $8k with your Shell Card and use your American Express Card to pay the balance within 3 months of your approval date. When applying for your Shell Card, use the code AMEXSHELL. T&Cs apply. New American Express Card Members only.

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