The renovations of the Gas Station audit

The new forms are in. It is more like a Inventory than an audit. The new shops have an extra 12 online "docs" that are at least 3 to 7 pages long. With a few being more pages. They are also advising US, "to PRINT in COLOR." Even the "review questions" is a 7 page form.

This renovation requires more work, more photos, more on site riga-ma-role. And the catch is ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------> all for $17. (12 SE+ 5 fuel+ 1 in store). These are advertise as GINORUMUS incentives because of a few more questions.

It took more than a hour to download and print the paperwork (in B/W)................................................now on to some "good" reading.

How much is the CLIENT paying the MSC to find someone do these shop? To raise the "Shoppers Fee" gradually does not seem fair or realistic, if they could or would offer that higher fee in the beginning. I need to speak to my Scheduler.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/26/2015 07:18PM by sojo917.

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In my area they are on the board with pretty good incentives. anywhere from $16 to $34 on top of the $12.

I haven't printed anything other than a one page cheat sheet per location, with the few extra questions now added, and the one page LOA per location all year. I keep an image of the current POP and CC App on my phone. I'm averaging 17-23 minutes on site per location and about the same to report. Quick spreadsheet check shows only 48 done this year, but with an average bonus of 24.80, so average pay of 36.80, totaling $1766 plus $240 in gas. I'm plenti happy answering a few more questions.

So not to be confused and I can be that at times.

These are the stations where "Put a tiger in your tank" use to be there motto. and they are changing their name again.

I'm sorry I'm dateing myself.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/26/2015 07:46PM by sojo917.

They are changing their name again? They already have two corporate brands after a major merger in 1999. I still see both brands in different parts of NJ, DE, and PA and I have not seen any evidence that either is disappearing, or that a new third one is replacing either of those. Maybe it is different in other areas of the country?

Shopping Southeast Pennsylvania, Delaware above the canal, and South Jersey since 2008

The new name is------------------------------------------------------->"the interaction or cooperation of two or more organizations, substances, or other agents to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects." (Sin-Are-Gee) I could be no more descriptive

Am I the only one that is struggling to understand what you're talking about? Renovations? Sin-Are-Gee? Name change? Why are you not just saying it's Exxon/Mobile? Two hours to print instructions?? Enormous arrows and the longest ellipse in the world?
Maybe I'm just tired and punchy, but I hate it when people needlessly write ridiculous cryptic posts.

______________________________________________________________________
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.

@Hoju wrote:

Am I the only one that is struggling to understand what you're talking about? Renovations? Sin-Are-Gee? Name change? Why are you not just saying it's Exxon/Mobile? Two hours to print instructions?? Enormous arrows and the longest ellipse in the world?
Maybe I'm just tired and punchy, but I hate it when people needlessly write ridiculous cryptic posts.

Hoju, I agree with you but I think you meant Exxon/Mobil unless you are combining your gas stations with cell phone shops. I had no idea what they were talking about. You can say the client name or say the MSC name; you can not name both in the same post/thread.

2 hours? I printed out everything for the month of October in B&W laser in way under 30 minutes including maps/directions, hole punching for binder and adding them to my electronic calendar.

Oh ya, these are hardly ever bonused in my area. The October shops within a 60-mile radius were all gone by last night.

I checked my board and all the bonused ones are gone (no surprise). However there is one close to me that is still at base. Thanks for the heads up! I don't want to let them talk me into it at base price. Some days I'm just too easy going.

Are you guys talking about September shops or October shops? September shops have been long gone here in a 99-mile radius for weeks now. The October shops are already gone for a 60-mile radius.

The October shops for the EM are sitting on board in my area. Just sitting. I chose one but it was different than the guidelines in August. I'm just wondering, what is happening with this Client. They want to monopolize the GAS world.

@sojo917 wrote:

They want to monopolize the GAS world.

That IS the American way. Look at the phone company and cable is following suit.

I printed out the Q4 forms and will put them in a binder. I don't see a lot of changes other than diesel pump info and a photo and checking 7 digit number for the DCS. Did I miss anything? Perhaps another $1.00 will be added like when the Plenti info was added. However, I doubt it.

I consider the paper and ink I use as a cost of doing business. Same with the printer, business phone, I-phone, paper clips, staples etc,etc. All of which is tax deductible as a business expense.

None of my locations have the DCS requirement so less work for me.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/29/2015 03:25AM by Sybil2.

But I already changed my worksheet to include diesel. Good thing I saved the old one.

I have been an independent contractor for over 35 years and have never deducted my dedicated, legal office based on the advice of 3 CPA's who have done my business taxes over the years. They all said it was a red flag and they would make it up elsewhere.

ETA: I have a CPA also.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/27/2015 11:03PM by Sybil2.

I'm with Jake on deducting the office space. I don't. I'm not a CPA and I don't have one and never will.

Mary Davis Nowell. Based close to Fort Worth. Shopping Interstate 20 east and west, Interstate 35 north and south.

I have had several IRS registered agents (who were also CPA's) tell me that the home office deduction is fine. Of course it has to be legitimate. Once again, we each own our own business, and we get to decide what risks to assume. I do my own taxes using TurboTax, but when I have friends who are registered agents, I ask them. And they ask me cell phone questions, and how to do their kids chemistry problems, etc.

Shopping Southeast Pennsylvania, Delaware above the canal, and South Jersey since 2008

To me, the office deduction is not worth the hassle of maintaining the integrity of the space. To each his own. All of us have different tax situations.

Mary Davis Nowell. Based close to Fort Worth. Shopping Interstate 20 east and west, Interstate 35 north and south.

Curious- If you're notified of an audit, what's stopping one from going to Staples and completely converting a bedroom into a home office just for the on-site audit and then switching it back afterwards?
I've never been through an audit, just curious if that's something that can be done.

______________________________________________________________________
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.

No bed, no futon, no exercise equipment.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/29/2015 03:27AM by Sybil2.

Hoju, yes, you can do that. But - be sure you take all personal work and messages off the computer, it can only contain work related material. Be sure you have nothing personal in the space - such as anything not strictly related to the business, for example any mail not related to the business. Another example, any personal belongings. I heard of one case where a home office deduction was thrown out because the owner had set down a portable sewing machine just inside the door to the office. It was in the case and not set up to use but she still lost the deduction for the year.

I actually have an office, and up until three weeks ago I had two offices. I gave away the desk in the second office and converted it to a mini library, which is much more useful to me than a second office. I do store some files there and I could deduct for the storage space on the files but that's not worth it to me either.

If I ever start making a ton of money doing this (yeah, right) I might reconsider on the office situation. Until then, no way.

Mary Davis Nowell. Based close to Fort Worth. Shopping Interstate 20 east and west, Interstate 35 north and south.

@MDavisnowell wrote:

Hoju, yes, you can do that. But - be sure you take all personal work and messages off the computer, it can only contain work related material. Be sure you have nothing personal in the space - such as anything not strictly related to the business, for example any mail not related to the business.

Hillary Clinton should have listened to MDavisnowell!

Mary,
Once again- I don't take the home office deduction, so I'm not trying to do anything nefarious or anything.... However!
What if they come knocking next week auditing my return from 2013?
Nope, I'm not taking the deduction this year. But in 2013, what is now my daughters bedroom was totally a full working office.

There seems to be some easy loopholes that one could take advantage of if you play your cards right. Or maybe I'm wrong...

______________________________________________________________________
Seriously, nobody cares that you're offended.

I thought my office was legitimate, but now I'm not so sure. It has a desk, a computer, filing cabinets, a book case, a printer and a business phone. It also has a TV and radio and an old antique sewing cabinet that was was mothers (has about 40 or 50 different colored spools of thread). However, the TV and radio are there for my personal pleasure, personal files are in one of the cabinets, personal books are mixed in with business material in the book case and personal data is on the computer. And I guess my picture of the '86 Mets on the wall is not business related. Maybe that's why my accountant told me not to claim it.

They are watching.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/29/2015 03:29AM by Sybil2.

OK yes E/M is changing there name to Synergy. One of the companies that I do fuel for just had one (and yes I put in for it) It's the beginning of the month (almost) and several of the companies that do Plenti/Tesoro will be looking for shoppers soon. Check your companies job boards on Wed and Thurs and they should be full of fuel stops.

I do not believe that EM is changing their branding in the US,. There is nothing about that on their corporate website, and no press releases that I can find via Google. I did find this: "Synergy Fuel System is a full slate of high performance fuel products for Esso customers in Singapore." [www.exxonmobil.com] So even where they are using Synergy as a name for fuels, they are still retaining their existing branding. Searching for "synergy" on the EM corporate website yields nothing. Changing their name would be huge news. There should be press releases all over the place. I can't find anything. There is nothing at the E stations in PA and DE or the M stations in NJ that even hints at a name change. And the literature for Plenti lists E and M and shows then as distinct brands with their own logos.

I also don't understand why Curling associated Plenti with Tesoro, because Tesoro is not a Plenti partner. [www.plenti.com]

Shopping Southeast Pennsylvania, Delaware above the canal, and South Jersey since 2008

Sybil2, I get most of my stories about the IRS from the enrolled agent I worked with for a few years. It was from her I heard the sewing machine story.

But yes, I have some sideways personal experience with the IRS showing up at the house. Decades ago I was the treasurer for a sports association and I filed its tax returns using my home address as the group did not have an office or an address. Following my term, the next treasurer for the association stole over $40,000 from the group and also failed to file tax returns. She disappeared to wherever and the IRS eventually knocked on my door. I opened the door and a professionally dressed woman asked abruptly, "Jackie Lewis?" I said "No, but I know the Jackie Lewis story. Come in." So yes, sometimes they go out searching.

Mary Davis Nowell. Based close to Fort Worth. Shopping Interstate 20 east and west, Interstate 35 north and south.

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The renovations of the Gas Station audit

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