Frequently Asked Questions

The most popular Frequently Asked Questions are shown below. If you have a question that doesn't appear, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Signing Up

How do I sign up?

To sign up to Tripcatcher, just click on the "Sign Up" link in the top right corner of the home page, and the Sign Up form will appear. Enter your first name, last name, a working email address, and a memorable password. Enter the password twice to ensure we capture it correctly.

To help our marketing team, you can also tell us where you heard about us, and indicate if you want to receive an occasional newsletter. Then you need to follow the link on the form to read our terms and conditions, and click the tick box to indicate you accept them.

Once you have filled out this form and clicked "Sign Up", a confirmation email will be sent to the email address you provided. You will need to click the link in this email, which will lead you to a "Confirm Registration" button. Click this button, and you will be signed up to Tripcatcher, and can log on whenever you like. Now you can start tracking your business mileage expenses on the Tripcatcher mileage log!

I've signed up, but I can't log on. Why not?

You may not have confirmed your registration by following the link in the confirmation email you received from us. If you can't find the email, try checking your spam folders. If you still can't find it, you can sign up again and we will send you another one.

Once you receive the email, you must follow the link and click the "Confirm Registration" button.

Logging On

How do I log on?

Just click the "Log On" link in the top right corner of the home page, enter your email address and password, and press the "Log On" button. You will then be able to access your mileage log.

I've forgotten my password. What do I do?

Click the "Log On" link in the top right corner of the home page, and click the "Forgot your password" link. Then enter your email address and click the "Get password reminder" email. Tripcatcher will send an email containing your password to the email address you gave us.

What does "Remember me on this computer" mean?

It means that the site will remember you and keep you logged in even if you close your browser. It also means that the computer will not log you off automatically after a period of inactivity. Only use this option on your personal computer, not on a public or shared computer. If you want the site to cease to remember you, just make sure you untick the 'Remember Me' tickbox when you log on.

Tripcatcher logs me out after 20 minutes of inactivity. Why is this and how can I stop it?

Tripcatcher logs you out to protect your privacy. It only does this when you haven't clicked "Remember Me". If you want to be logged in until you click the "Log Out" link, just select the "Remember me on this computer" box when you Log On. Don't use "Remember me" on public or shared computers, as others may be able to access your mileage log.

How do I log off?

If you are logged on, there will be a "Log Off" link in the top right coner of the screen. Click this, and the site will ask if you wish to log off. Click the Log Off button to log off.

Logging Trips

How do I access my mileage log?

Make sure you're logged on, then click the "Mileage Log" tab.

How do I log a trip?

Make sure you're logged on to Tripcatcher, and that you're on the Mileage Log page. If you're in the View Reports section, you'll need to click the Add Trip link.

Then, you just need to enter your trip details: the date, your vehicle, and where you are travelling from and to, and then Tripcatcher will calculate the distance for you. If you took a short cut or made a detour, you can type the true distance travelled over the distance Tripcatcher calculated. Then, enter a reason for your trip, and any other information you think necessary: if you had a passenger, had to pay parking or tolls, or took the trip for a particular client (if you only have one client, you probably won't need to fill in the Client field).

Then, click the Save Trip button. If Tripcatcher won't let you Save, this is probably because you haven't filled in an essential piece of data. Go back and check.

Once you've clicked save, your trip is logged.

What does the "Repeat trip" link do?

It allows you to log a trip you've made more than once, without having to type it in more than once. For example, if you travelled from London to Cheltenham every Tuesday and Thursday for the last month, instead of having to log each journey separately, you could log one trip, click the "Repeat Trip" link, enter the start date, end date and the days of the week that you made the journey, and click the Save Trip button. All of the journeys would be saved. If you paid parking on a couple of the journeys and wanted to log that, you could just edit the parking fields for each of these trips separately.

How do I edit a trip?

Make sure you are in the Add Trip section of the Mileage Log page: if you are unsure, check that the map is visible, or simply click on the Add Trip link. Then, place your cursor in the View Report section, directly over the trip you want to edit.The row should be highlighted, in yellow, and an edit icon and a delete icon should appear to the left of it. The edit icon is a pen. Simply click the edit icon, and the trip details should appear in the Add Trip section. You can now edit any details of the trip you wish to change.

Check that all the essential fields (such as Date, From, To and Reason) contain information, then click the Save Trip button.

How do I delete a trip?

In either the Add Trip or the View Reports section of the Mileage Log page, place your cursor over the trip you want to delete. The row should be highlighted, in yellow, and an edit icon and a delete icon should appear to the left of it. The delete icon is a red cross. Simply click on the delete icon, and the row will disappear. The trip is sucessfully deleted.

Why can't I save a trip?

To save a trip, you need to enter data into the essential fields: Date, From, To, Distance (which Tripcatcher will calculate for you) and Reason. These fields are essential because they cover the required information for claiming mileage expenses. If you enter data into each of these fields, Tripcatcher will let you save your trip.

How do I change the distance calculated?

Whether you've taken a short cut and travelled fewer miles than Tripcatcher calculated, or detoured for petrol and travelled further, it's easy to change the distance logged - just write your start point and destination in the "To" and "From" fields as usual, wait for Tripcatcher to calculate the distance, then type your actual distance travelled over our distance. Save the trip, and Tripcatcher will remember the distance you entered rather than the distance we calculated.

Viewing Reports

How do I change the mileage rate calculated?

If you're claiming mileage back from your employer and your employer uses a different mileage rate to the HMRC approved mileage rate, you'll need to change the rate on your rate card. Click the "Ratecard" link in the View Reports section, and type the new figure over the existing figure. Then click the Update Report button. Tripcatcher will remember the new mileage rate next time you log in, so if you're running a mileage report for a different client, or for your end-of-year tax return, be sure to change it back!

How do I run an expense report for a single client?

The Tripcatcher Mileage Log allows you to run an expense report for a single client; you can even change the rate card for clients with different mileage rates.

Make sure that when you add a trip, you enter the client's name in the "Client" field of the Add Trip form. For trips with no client, leave the "Client" field blank. Then, when you want to run a report for a client, click View Reports, and select the client from the "Client" drop-down (which defaults to "All"). Once you have selected the client, click the Update Report button, and Tripcatcher will calculate the expense claim for that Client.

If you are claiming directly from a client rather than on your end-of-year tax return, your client may have their own mileage rate. You can change the mileage rate used to calculate your claim by clicking on the "Ratecard" link in the View Reports section: just type in the new figure, and Tripcatcher will remember it and use it to calculate any claims. Just make sure you remember to change the rate back when calculating for clients that use the approved mileage rate!

To print your mileage expense report, click on the Create PDF button, and select the "Print" icon.

Claiming Mileage Expenses

Do I need to claim separately for every vehicle I drive?

No, you can claim for all your mileage travelled by car and van by running a single expenses claim, however many vehicles you've used. However, if you've also travelled by bike or motorcycle, you need to log claims for mileage travelled on these vehicles separately. For more information, see our Claim Mileage Expenses pages.

My employee won't let me claim 5p per mile for passengers; how do I log passengers without Tripcatcher automatically calculating this amount?

Just go to the View Reports section amd click the "Rate Card" link; then change the 5p value for passengers to 0p. Click the Update Report button to save this change. Tripcatcher will remember it every time you log on.