Fill this in once. Fields marked * are required.

• Company name
• Driver name and surname (optional; the default driver, used to fill in the New trip page)
• Period start date and period end date
• Distance unit: kilometres (km) or miles. This is locked once your first trip is saved, because existing odometer readings are not converted
• Tax year ends: the day and month your tax year ends. Choose "Last day of the month" and the month (for example the end of February in South Africa), or a specific day (for example 5 April in the United Kingdom). A company uses the end of its financial year
• Keep records for: how many tax years of trips the app keeps before it reminds you that older trips can be removed (default 10). See section 10
• Vehicle make and vehicle model
• Registration date and registration number
• Date of purchase
• Vehicle cost price (optional)
• On a lease agreement? Yes or No (optional)
• Initial starting km reading
• Initial starting address

Tap "Save setup". The New trip and Log tabs become available once setup is saved.

You can change the other setup details later. The initial starting km and address lock as soon as your first trip is saved, so that the trip chain cannot break.

Open the New trip tab and fill in the fields marked *:

• Date of travel (today's date is filled in for you)
• Opening km: automatic. The first trip starts at the initial starting km, and every later trip starts at the previous trip's closing km, unless you enter a takeover km (Pro).
• Closing km: type the odometer reading at the end of the trip. It cannot be lower than the opening km.
• Handover km and Takeover km (optional): these are unlocked in the Pro version and are greyed out in the free and Ad-free versions. See "Switching drivers" in section 9.
• Starting address: automatic. The first trip starts at the initial starting address, and every later trip starts at the previous trip's destination. You can still change it.
• Trip destination
• Driver name and surname (optional). These fill in from the Setup page, and you can type over them for a single trip. The driver is saved with the trip and shown in the Excel file.
• Trip category: tap "Private" and the trip reason is filled in as Private for you. Tap "Business" and type the business reason yourself.
• Trip reason

Fuel cost and maintenance / service cost are optional and have no asterisk. Tap "Save trip". The next trip is then ready with the opening km and starting address filled in.

The trip reason decides the km type. Tap the "Private" button and the km count as private. Tap "Business", type the business reason, and the km count as business. If you type the word "Private" yourself, the km also count as private (capital letters do not matter).

Typing in the reason field suggests a few common reasons.

This page shows:

• A "Tax year" selector at the top. Choose one tax year, or "All tax years". The totals and the trip list then show only that tax year.
• Total business km and total private km
• Opening odometer and current odometer
• Total fuel cost and total maintenance cost
• The "Export to Excel" button and the date of the last Excel copy you saved
• Your list of trips, newest first

Keeping records

The app keeps the number of tax years you chose on the Setup page. When trips are older than that, the Log page tells you, and you can remove them with one tap after saving an Excel copy. The app never removes trips without asking you. See section 10.

• Search: type in the search box above the trip list. It looks at the date, addresses and reason.
• Edit: tap "Edit" under any trip, change what you need, and tap "Save changes". The opening km and the private and business km of all later trips update automatically. If a change would make a later trip's closing km lower than its opening km, the app blocks it and tells you which trip to adjust.
• Delete: only the most recent trip can be deleted. This keeps the odometer chain correct.

Saving to Excel

Tap "Export to Excel (.xlsx)". Android asks you where to save the file or which app to send it to. You can then open it in Excel, or email or WhatsApp it.

Saving is not automatic. Whenever you have changes that are not yet in an Excel copy, a bar at the top of the app shows "Save Excel copy". Tap it and confirm.

Saving works without an internet connection. The file name is "Logbook", the registration number and the period start date.

Importing from Excel

You can load a logbook you saved earlier. Go to the Setup page, and under "Moving from an old phone?" tap "Import from Excel". Choose the saved file. The setup details and all trips are loaded, and you can carry on from the last trip.

• Importing replaces any logbook that is already in the app.
• Only files saved by this app can be imported, so do not rearrange the rows of the spreadsheet first.

Moving your data to a new phone

To carry on the same logbook on a new phone: on the old phone, tap "Export to Excel" on the Log page and send the saved file to the new phone (for example by email or WhatsApp). On the new phone, open the app, sign the disclaimer, go to the Setup page and tap "Import from Excel" under "Moving from an old phone?". Choose the file. The setup details and all trips are loaded, and you can carry on from the last trip. Importing replaces any logbook already on the new phone. Only files saved by this app can be imported, so do not rearrange the rows of the spreadsheet first. Keep the old phone's copy of the app until you have confirmed the new phone is working.

The Excel file has these tabs (worksheets):

• All trips: the setup details, overall totals and every trip, with a "Tax year" column. Tap the filter arrow on any column heading in Excel to show, for example, a single tax year. This is also the tab the app reads when you import a file.
• Summary: one line per tax year with opening and closing odometer, business and private km, business-use percentage, fuel and maintenance cost and the number of trips, plus a line for all years together.
• One tab per tax year (for example "Tax year 2025-26"): that year's totals and trips only. This is the tab to give to your tax authority or your accountant.

Each tab ends with the name and date of the person who signed the data protection disclaimer, the time zone, language and device details recorded at signing, "Powered by Headstart Consult CC", the email address ceo@headstartconsult.co.za and the copyright line. All amounts are shown with one decimal.

No data is stored by Headstart Consult CC. Nothing you enter in this app, including the signature record, is sent to or kept by Headstart Consult CC. It stays on your phone and in the Excel files you choose to save.

• Your data is stored on your phone, inside the app. It is not shared with other phones; to move it, use the import described in section 5.

Uninstalling the app, or clearing its storage in your phone's settings, erases the logbook.

• Save an Excel copy regularly as your backup, for example after each day's trips.

Data protection disclaimer

• Free version: banner advertising, and an occasional full-screen advertisement at suitable points.
• Ad-free (R49.99 once-off): everything in the free version, with the ads permanently removed. There is no recurring subscription.
• Professional (R99.99 once-off): everything in Ad-free, plus PDF and CSV export, multiple vehicles, backup and restore, anytime reports and year-on-year comparison graphs. If you have already bought Ad-free, you will pay only the difference.

The prices shown are a guide. The price you pay is shown by Google Play at checkout, in your own currency.

• Your purchase belongs to your Google account, not to the phone. If you get a new Android phone, sign in to the same Google account, install the app from Google Play and open it. The app checks with Google Play and unlocks your purchase again. You do not have to pay a second time. The first time on the new phone, you need an internet connection for this check.
• If you sign in with a different Google account on the new phone, Google Play will not find your purchase.
• If Google Play refunds a purchase, the ads return.
• Your logbook entries are kept on the phone and do not move with your Google account. To carry them to a new phone, save an Excel copy and import it, as described in section 5.
• Purchases do not carry over to an iPhone. Apple purchases are linked to an Apple ID, so they would have to be bought again there.

Open the Pro tab. The tools below are available once you have Professional.

• Anytime report: with a bar chart of business and private km per month and a business-use bar. business and private km, business-use percentage, fuel and maintenance cost for each month and for the whole period, plus fuel and maintenance cost per km.
• Year-on-year comparison graphs: on the Pro tab, a bar chart compares the same months across different years. Choose business km, private km, fuel cost or maintenance cost with the buttons above the chart. It needs trips from at least two different years.
• PDF and CSV export: save the report as a PDF, and your trips or the monthly summary as CSV files that open in Excel or any spreadsheet.
• Multiple vehicles: you can have up to 10 vehicles. Each vehicle has its own setup, trips and Excel file. To add another vehicle:
  1. Open the Pro tab and find the Vehicles card. It shows the vehicle you are on now.
  2. Tap "Add another vehicle". Your current vehicle is saved and set aside. The button only appears once the current vehicle's setup has been saved.
  3. The Setup page opens blank. Fill in the new vehicle's details there, as you did for your first vehicle.
  4. Record trips for it on the New trip page as usual.
  To go back to another vehicle, open the Pro tab and tap "Switch" next to it. Your vehicles are listed by make, model and registration number. Trips, reports and exports always apply to the vehicle you are on. On the New trip page, a "Select vehicle" button lets you change vehicle before you record a trip. Once a vehicle has a registration number, it is shown at the top of each page so you can see which vehicle you are working on.
• Switching drivers: if someone else drives the vehicle for a single trip, type their name and surname over the driver fields on the New trip page. This applies to that trip only. If you hand the vehicle over to another driver who keeps his own logbook, use these two optional fields on the New trip page, below Opening km and Closing km:
  • Handover km: the odometer reading when you hand the vehicle over. In the other driver's logbook, this reading is his Takeover km.
  • Takeover km: the odometer reading when you get the vehicle back. It is the other driver's Handover km. It becomes the opening km of your next trip, so the km he drove are left out of your logbook.
  After you save a trip with a handover km, the next trip asks for the takeover km before it can be saved. The driver, handover km and takeover km are saved with each trip and appear in the Excel file.
• Backup and restore: "Save backup file" saves all your vehicles and trips in one file. To restore, choose that file and tap "Restore and replace". This replaces everything now in the app. Your purchase is not stored in the backup, because it belongs to your Google account.

Setting your tax year

On the Setup page, under "Tax year ends", choose the day and the month your tax year ends. Every trip is then placed in the right tax year automatically, according to its date. Examples:

• South Africa: last day of February (the tax year runs from 1 March to the end of February).
• United Kingdom: 5 April (the tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April).
• Australia: last day of June.
• USA: last day of December (the tax year is the calendar year).
• Companies: the last day of the company's financial year.

If you are unsure, ask your accountant or your tax authority.

Looking at one tax year in the app

At the top of the Log page, use the Tax year selector. Choose a single tax year to see only that year's totals (business and private distance, opening and closing odometer, fuel and maintenance cost) and trips, or choose "All tax years" to see everything.

Tax years in the Excel file

• All trips tab: every trip, with a "Tax year" column. In Excel, click the filter arrow on the "Tax year" heading and tick one year to show only that year.
• Summary tab: one line per tax year with opening and closing odometer, business and private distance, business-use percentage, fuel and maintenance cost and the number of trips, plus a line for all years together.
• One tab per tax year, for example "Tax year 2025-26": that year's totals and trips only. This is the tab to give to your tax authority or your accountant.

How long records are kept

Tax authorities require you to keep your records for a number of years, and the rules differ from country to country. For example, in South Africa SARS requires records to be kept for 5 years from the date you submit your tax return. Most tax authorities also require records to be kept longer if you are audited or lodge an objection or appeal.

On the Setup page, under "Keep records for", choose how many tax years the app should keep (1 to 10, default 10). Choose at least as many as your tax authority requires, plus a margin. Check your own tax authority's rules.

• When trips are older than the number of tax years you chose, a red note appears at the top of the Log page.
• First save an Excel copy, so those trips are kept in your file.
• Then, if you no longer need them on the phone, tap "Remove trips older than … tax years" and confirm. The initial starting km and address on the Setup page move to the first remaining trip, so the odometer chain stays correct.
• The app never removes trips without asking you. If you are being audited or have lodged an objection, keep the trips until the matter is finalised.

This is general information, not tax advice. Ask your accountant or your tax authority if you are unsure about your tax year or how long to keep your records.

• The New trip or Log tab is greyed out: save the Setup page first.
• "Closing km cannot be lower than opening km": check the odometer reading you typed.
• Made a mistake in an old trip: use Edit on that trip.
• Which version do I have? The version number, for example 1.0.0, is shown at the bottom of every page. The three numbers are major.minor.patch: the first changes for a big update, the second when new features are added, and the third for small fixes. Please quote it when you contact us about a problem.