Originally Posted By: Bruce King This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
Hi to all, ( I’m joining NACHI in january )
Lots of questions and thoughts...
I need advice on the best legal way to use my personal truck in my new LLC inspection business.
Anyone actually sell their vehicle to their LLC? Then pay yourself back with untaxed money from inspections ?
Or if not that method.....
Has anyone notified their personal car ins. agent that the vehicle is now being used for business? If so, how much did your rate go up?
Is it really business use when you are just driving yourself to the jobsite?
One thing I do know is that your ins. company can refuse a claim if the actual use of the vehicle was not properly disclosed.
Originally Posted By: Brian A. Goodman This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
[quote=“Bruce King”]
Anyone actually sell their vehicle to their LLC? Then pay yourself back with untaxed money from inspections ?
LLC laws vary from state to state, so Dan is right...talk to the people who know where you are. I kept my vehicle in my personal property so it can't be touched if the assets of the LLC were lost in a lawsuit. As I depreciate equipment out I sell it to myself as personal property. In the end the LLC will own an answering machine and some office supplies.
Has anyone notified their personal car ins. agent that the vehicle is now being used for business? If so, how much did your rate go up?
Can't help you there, I was self-employed before this. My insurance company knows what I do with the truck, always has.
Is it really business use when you are just driving yourself to the jobsite?
Absolutely, no question on that one.
One thing I do know is that your ins. company can refuse a claim if the actual use of the vehicle was not properly disclosed.
Well, you really can't blame them there. If one side can lie there's no reason why the other side can't cheat. 
Originally Posted By: ccoombs This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
I have done this several different ways. I had a personal truck that was used as a company vehicle. I notified my insurance company about the situation and nothing changed on the coverage. The problem came when an employee using the truck hit someone. I was named in a lawsuit but the company and the employee were not named. It did eventually go away. (It turned out to be a workers comp fraud by the person who was hit).
I don't know if there is any protection in keeping a vehicle in your name and using it as company equipment. I was advised by my CPA to write a check for a loan to the company (the company had nothing in the bank at the time) and then the company used that money to buy the truck from me. It was all written up and interest was paid on the loan. The first checks paying me from the company were loan payments (tax free) and I only paid taxes on the interest payments.
With my previous company I leased all the field trucks. This allowed me to write off the entire amount paid each month. Another benefit was that the leasing company didn't report anything to my credit. I was required to be a personal signer on the lease. Could you imagine trying to get a home loan with 7 leases showing up on your credit report?
Originally Posted By: jdoherty This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.
Just FYI, my insurance agent amended my truck’s coverage to commercial coverage when I started using it for HI. The monthly cost for the insurance didn’t change substantially, and the commercial insurance covers loading and unloading - which basically means that if I knock over a Ming vase while bringing my ladder into the house, the commercial insurance covers it.
If you have a good insurance agent, they won't mind playing "hypothetically speaking" with you and help you get a policy that is worth the money.