What Are Driver Balances?

Driver balances are running financial accounts that track money owed between the driver and the company. Datatruck supports up to 10 balance types per driver, each tracking a different category of transaction — such as advances given, loans issued, reimbursements owed, and more.

Balances accumulate over time and are visible in two places:

• Driver Profile → Accounting tab — view the full balance history and add transactions manually
• Salary Batch → Driver Statement — see the outstanding balance and apply it to a settlement period

When a balance is applied to a statement, it either adds to the driver's pay (reimbursement) or deducts from it (advance repayment, loan installment). The balance decreases accordingly and carries forward until fully cleared.

Where to find balances: HR Management → Drivers → open a driver → Accounting tab → Driver Balances section

How Balances Accumulate

Balances are created when a financial event is recorded against a driver. Depending on the type, this can happen automatically or manually:

Automatically — when another department (Fleet, Safety, Bills) approves a charge or reimbursement linked to the driver, it flows into the driver's balance without manual entry. The accounting team will see the outstanding amount the next time they open a salary batch for that driver.

Manually — when the accounting team or an admin adds a transaction directly in the driver's Accounting tab using the + Add button. This is used for advances, loans, and any out-of-system entries.

Every transaction is logged with a date, amount, and optional notes, making the full history traceable at all times.

Balance Type 1: Advance

An advance is money paid to a driver before their normal settlement — for example, a cash payment approved by the accounting team or owners before a trip is complete.

How to record an advance:

1. Go to the driver's profile → Accounting tab
2. In the Driver Balances section, locate or add the Advance balance account
3. Click + Add to record a new transaction
4. Enter the amount and add any relevant notes
5. Click Save — the debit is recorded against the advance account

How to recover it during settlement:

1. Open the driver's salary batch
2. In the Balances section of the statement, the outstanding advance will appear as an open item
3. Enter the amount to deduct this period and apply it
4. The advance deduction appears in the statement and the advance balance decreases by that amount
5. Repeat each settlement period until the balance reaches zero

Balance Type 2: Loan

A loan is a larger amount issued to the driver that gets repaid in partial deductions over multiple settlement periods — for example, a $2,500 loan repaid at $1,000 per week.

How to record a loan:

1. Go to the driver's profile > Accounting tab > Driver Balances
2. Add the total loan amount to the Loan balance account
3. The full loan amount now shows as the outstanding balance

How to deduct a loan installment during settlement:

1. Open the driver's salary batch and scroll to the Balances section
2. Enter the installment amount to deduct this period (e.g., $1,000)
3. The deduction appears on the driver's statement
4. The loan balance automatically decreases by the deducted amount (e.g., $2,500 → $1,500)
5. Continue deducting each settlement until the balance is fully cleared

The transaction history is visible in the driver's profile under the Loan balance account, showing every installment paid.

Balance Type 3: Reimbursement

A reimbursement is money the company owes the driver — for example, when the fleet or safety department approves a compensation that needs to be paid back to the driver.

How a reimbursement balance is created:

Reimbursements can enter the system from four sources: Fleet Charges, Bills Management, Safety Charges, or a manual entry. When an approved reimbursement is posted, it creates an open item in the driver's balance automatically. The accounting team will see this outstanding amount when preparing the driver's next salary batch.

How to pay out a reimbursement during settlement:

1. Open the driver's salary batch — the outstanding reimbursement balance will be visible
2. In the Driver Balances section, enter the amount to reimburse this period
3. Click Apply or Add to include it in the statement
4. The reimbursement appears in the statement as an additional payment (not a deduction)
5. The outstanding balance returns to zero once the full amount is paid out

After settlement, you can verify the resolution at three levels: the statement itself, the driver's balance account (shows $0 outstanding), and the transaction log (shows the full history of the charge and payback).

How Balances Appear on the Statement

Once any balance type is applied to a settlement, it appears in the Balances section of the driver's statement:

• Advances and loans appear as deductions — they reduce the driver's net pay
• Reimbursements appear as additions — they increase the driver's net pay

The statement shows the balance type, the amount applied this period, and the remaining balance if any portion is still outstanding.

Tracking and Auditing Balances

Every balance transaction is fully auditable. You can view the complete history from two places:

From the Driver Profile: HR Management → Drivers → open driver → Accounting tab → click into the specific balance account → Transactions tab. This shows every debit and credit with dates, amounts, and notes.

From the Salary Batch: Open any past settlement and check the Balances section to see what was applied and when.