How to keep a useful vehicle mileage log in Canada

Start with the details you will need later

For self-employed business vehicle records, the Canada Revenue Agency lists the date, destination, purpose and kilometres for each business trip. It also asks for total and business kilometres, odometer readings at the start and end of the fiscal period, and separate records for each vehicle. Its official motor vehicle records page is linked below.

That is a useful starting point for organising records, not a promise that a particular trip or expense qualifies. Employment, self-employment and other situations can have different requirements. Use the applicable CRA guidance or ask your accountant when deciding how a journey should be treated.

• Vehicle: select the actual car, van, motorcycle or other vehicle used.
• Date and destination: make the trip identifiable later.
• Purpose: describe what the journey accomplished, rather than saving a vague label.
• Distance and odometer: check for a misplaced digit, a missing journey or an unexplained gap.

Write a purpose that makes sense next month

“Business” is a category. It is not much of an explanation. An example such as “Delivered the signed estimate to the customer’s office” gives future-you something concrete to recognise. Do not add unnecessary personal details, account numbers or sensitive customer information just to make the note longer.

Imagine looking at a row from six months ago. Would you know which appointment or delivery it describes? If the answer is no, improve the description while the journey is fresh. Good notes are specific enough to be useful and short enough that you will actually write them.

Choose a recording routine you can maintain

DriveFive gives you several ways to capture a journey. A manual entry uses dashboard odometer readings. A GPS trip records after you explicitly start it. Optional NFC tags provide a vehicle-specific start action, and automatic logging can monitor for driving when you enable it.

The best choice is the one you will use consistently. If you drive occasionally, entering the readings when you park may be enough. If you make many stops, GPS or NFC may reduce the amount you need to remember. Every method still benefits from a quick review. A phone cannot determine the business reason for a trip by itself.

In DriveFive, start with the correct vehicle and use a meaningful purpose for Business trips. The guide links below explain manual entry, GPS recording and the review controls. Switching recording methods does not remove the need to check the finished record.

Review the records before exporting them

1. Select the vehicle and date range you want to inspect. In Trips, use Trips needing review to find outstanding records.
2. Check the purpose, endpoints and odometers against the journey you actually made. Investigate gaps instead of assuming a GPS line is complete.
3. Look for duplicate or missing entries, especially after an interruption or a change in recording method.
4. Confirm the review checkbox only after checking the details, then save the record.

A small weekly review is usually easier to manage than a large stack of unexplained journeys. Choose a repeatable moment, such as the end of your last working day. Keep the review separate from the question of which expenses you can claim. The app organises the information; it does not make that determination.

Export a readable copy and keep a recovery backup

Under More → Reports & backups, choose the vehicle and dates before exporting the Mileage log as CSV or PDF. DriveFive’s exported report includes all matching records, even if the screen preview shows only some rows. Open the exported file and confirm that its scope is what you intended.

An exported mileage log is useful for reading or sharing, but it is not the same as a full recovery backup. Create a full backup as well if you need to preserve the garage, retained routes, attachments and settings. Confirm that the backup exists in the destination you chose. Having a file picker open is not proof that a copy was saved.

A practical logbook routine is therefore three small jobs: record, review and retain. You do not need to make each entry elaborate. You do need enough accurate information to explain it when the journey is no longer fresh in your mind.