Category: rigminders

Quick Tips to Reduce Trucker Stress

When you’re on the road, things can get pretty stressful. You’ve got crazed four-wheelers darting around your rig, dispatchers asking you to bend some rules, and some upcoming tax forms you’ve been avoiding. You can’t get rid of all those stressful factors, but you can find creative outlets to help you reduce how they affect you.

Stress happens for different reasons, and there are an assortment of ways to combat it. Here are a few tips we suggest.

Reduce Stressful Paperwork

Want to ditch the stress of tax filing? Well, just e-file your HVUT 2290s with ExpressTruckTax! We’re known as the easiest way to e-file your heavy vehicle use taxes, and we pride ourselves on our helpful customer support team. Best of all, after filing with us you will get your Stamped Schedule 1 within minutes! That way you can get back on the road.

Eat. Sleep. Lift.

Alright, alright. You’re tired of us hammering this point home. But we’re gonna stick with it, because your health is important! In short, you need to sleep more, eat better, and exercise regularly.

Does it sound like we’re constantly telling you to sleep more? Well, we are! Sleep recharges your body and helps you sort things out in your life. When you get more sleep, you’re going to be a more alert, safer driver. Your moods will also be more positive as a whole. And we’re not saying you’re eating unhealthy, but most truckers have a reputation for eating some bad foods. The solution? Avoid fast food and junk food and eat healthy foods! And of course, find time to exercise. You can store away weights or use your resources.

Stay on Time with Reminders

Tired of deadlines looming over your head? With RigMinders, you simply download the free app and let it run its course. As deadlines approach, RigMinders will remind you so that you don’t fall behind and get smacked with late penalties. The last thing you want is to pay a late fine, right?

Reduce Stress with a Hobby

You’re all over the country, seeing more of the United States than most people ever will. If you’re looking for a good hobby to help you relieve stress, try photography! Come on, you come across all those open skies and lonely roads—perfect for a camera lens. Not much of the visual artist type? Perhaps you could bring a guitar and try your hand at a good old fashion traveling song.

You already know how to stay entertained with your phone, tablet, and laptop computer. But not many truckers know that using these tools for stress relief is another great option! By using these same gadgets, you can connect to loved ones back home, run truck management software like TruckLogics, maintain a truck driving YouTube channel, or even educate yourself with free online courses.

And if you ever get stressed filing, reach out to our dedicated, bilingual support team! We’re available by phone at 704.234.6005, email at support@expresstrucktax.com, and by live chat on our website!

How do you reduce stress while on the road? Let us know in the comments, or on Facebook!

4 Trucker Life Hacks: Simplify Your Life

Let’s face it, Trucking Nation. You want life on the road to get easier. Heck, we can’t blame you. You’re only making sure every piece of merchandise every American buys gets to its proper location.

So we’re here to offer you some of the best ways to simplify your life in the rig! Check out these 4 trucker hacks designed to streamline your burden.

Deadlines for Days

We’re sure you have a phone—but not everybody has a smartphone. Our main encouragement for getting a fancy smartphone is automation! RigMinders is a free reminder app that keeps you up to date on your trucking deadlines. You don’t want to miss this one, Trucking Nation.



RigMinders: Stay Alert!

Head in the Cloud

Have you heard of TruckLogics? Whether you’re an owner-operator or you run your own fleet, there’s something there for you with TruckLogics. What kind of features do they offer? First off, their new LTL feature lets you dispatch multiple loads to one truck while automatically generating separate invoices for each client.

They also offer multi-user access, which grants permission and levels of access for your employees to streamline your transportation business. With these dispatch tools, you can dispatch loads with just a few clicks and track them in real-time! We’re telling you, you gotta check out TruckLogics today!

TruckLogics On-the-Go: Mobile App for Trucking Nation

Gadgets and Gizmos Aplenty

When you want to improve your life on the road, there’s always a technological solution you can look into. Speaking of TruckLogics, they recently published a list of the 10 must-have gadgets for the modern trucker. Maybe you’re in the market for a new tablet? Check out the Durabook. These military grade tablets are waterproof, can operate at 0° F, and are shock proof! Check out the link for more awesome gadgets.

Try Being Paperless

Now, we know you may have a visceral reaction to hearing “paperless,” with the FMCSA pushing e-logs on you, but there are plenty of great paperless advancements out there. Like taxes, for example. Do you really want to sit behind a stack of tax forms at home, a truck stop, or even worse—crammed in the back of your cab? Instead of filing your 2290s by hand, e-file your HVUT with our simplified, secure IRS authorized system.

Whatever you do to make your rig life easier, we can’t blame you. And when you e-file your HVUT 2290 forms, know that our dedicated, bilingual customer support team will be here to answer any of your questions. You can reach us by phone at 704.234.6005 or email at support@expresstrucktax.com.

What are your trucker life hacks?

Here Comes the IFTA 4th Quarter Deadline


Alright Trucking Nation, while we normally talk about your heavy vehicle use tax, we’re gonna shift gears to fuel reporting! That’s right, it’s time we talk about the 4th Quarter IFTA deadline.

About that deadline… since January 31st falls on a Sunday, that shifts the 4th Quarter IFTA reporting to the next business day – Monday, February 1st.

Can I Report IFTA from ExpressTruckTax?

Yes and no. While we’re geared towards filing 2290s, ExpressIFTA was specifically designed to simplify fuel tax reporting. Programmed by the same team that brought you ExpressTruckTax, you can expect the same ease of use when you use ExpressIFTA. You can even use the same login credentials as you do for ExpressTruckTax!

What will you need for IFTA reporting? You’ll need your IFTA license, basic business details, base jurisdiction, and truck information. From there, you add your total miles traveled and fuel purchased during the 4th Quarter. Instead of dealing with difficult manual calculations and pen and paper, our software streamlines the process. And best of all, you won’t have to pay until you generate your return!

What Kind of Features Can I Expect from ExpressIFTA?

Well, you can calculate your fuel tax reports by trip sheets, or even by uploading GPS data. You can also report by distance traveled or by odometer totals. If you have trip sheets available, you can upload those for even easier calculations!

With ExpressIFTA, you can manage multiple drivers, vehicles, and businesses under one account. And we’ll even check your entries for minor errors on our end before your return is generated. Basically, we’ve made the software so easy, you’ll be done in no time.

After this deadline, your next major IFTA deadline will be May 2nd. Want to keep up with upcoming due dates? Check out RigMinders, the trucking deadline reminder app, or look into a full tax management service like Truck Services of North America so you can hand off your reporting to a dedicated agent.

And as always, we’ll be here to answer your questions at 704.234.6005, or by email at support@expresstrucktax.com. We even support live chat from our website!

Are you ready for the 4th Quarter IFTA deadline? Let us know in the comments!

#TruckTechTuesday: RigMinders

Happy Holidays, Trucking Nation! We here at ExpressTruckTax love to share with you new innovative ideas on #TruckTechTuesday, and today is no exception. RigMinders, a sister app of ExpressTruckTax, is a free app that you can easily download to your Apple or Android electronic device. RigMinders gives you the ability to remind yourself about all things trucking in one convenient location.

RigMinders Keeps Your Life in Sync

RigMinders is THE deadline reminder app for transportation professionals. With this app, you won’t need to write down, set an alarm, or tie a string around your finger to remember important trucking deadlines. RigMinders does it all for you!

You can either set up pre-programmed deadline reminders, or customize your own reminders.

Free Trucking Reminders, Anytime
Pre-programmed reminders include HVUT, IFTA, as well as UCR and IRP permit renewals, and others, including state use taxes. You can customize reminders according to time (same day, day before, week before) or by type (push notifications, email, or both).

The app can notify you of truck deadlines coming up in the next 90 days, and it can also notify you about those deadlines coming up after 90 days as well.

Not only that, you can set up personal reminders such as bills, maintenance appointments, expiration dates, and other reminders you might want to create. It’s like having your own secretary right on your electronic device!

RigMinders is a great time saver, and lifesaver! It’s as easy as a swipe of your finger!

Rigminders Support
The support team at RigMinders are available at 704.234.6946 over the phone, and by email at support@rigminders.com.

Contact Us
And our expert support team at ExpressTruckTax is ready to answer any questions or concerns you might have about ExpressTruckTax at 704.234.6005 and support@expresstrucktax.com.

Join the conversation on our Facebook page, or tweet at us on Twitter. We always want to read your stories and ideas, whether it be about RigMinders, ExpressTruckTax, or any other trucking related topic that might be on your mind. This give and take between you and us allows us to have the necessary feedback and insight into what you want and need from us to provide you with absolutely the best service available anywhere. Thanks, Trucking Nation!

#TruckTechTuesday: RigMinders App

As you may or may not already know, we love technology here at ExpressTruckTax. This week, we want to discuss the RigMinders app, which is designed specifically for truckers and transportation professionals! Similar to the name, RigMinders reminds you of deadlines, both personal and professional, for things such as the Heavy Vehicle Use Tax (HVUT) and the International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA).

Whether you have a single truck or a whole fleet, RigMinders is preloaded with every filing deadline you can think of. The app is also available through both iPhone and Android devices.

How Does It Work?

First things first—RigMinders is free and easy to use! Instead of creating a login name, you can use your email address to begin.

Deadline Alerts

Whatever deadline you need to remember, RigMinders has you covered. Since all important deadlines are already programmed in the app, all you need to do is enable the deadlines that apply to you or your business, and disable the ones that don’t. If you are unsure of what a certain deadline is for, just tap on the name and a short description will appear.

Customized Preferences

RigMinders allows you to customize your reminders, including the type and frequency. When you enter the app, at the bottom of the screen, you’ll notice a black box that prompts you to change your reminder preferences. Once you click it, you can choose whether you’d like to be reminded the week before, day before, or on the due date itself. Another perk: You can choose to be reminded by email, text, or push notification.

Edit Your Information

After selecting and saving your preferences, you’ll be presented with an email summary of your deadline selections. If you spot anything that’s missing or that has been filled out incorrectly, simply select the pencil icon, and you’ll be able to change your information.

…You’re Done!

Once you have selected your deadlines, customized your preferences, and edited any other information you need, you’ll never file late again!

If there is anything #TruckTech related that you wish to see featured here, drop us a line on our Facebook or Twitter!

And as always, don’t hesitate to contact us if you need assistance or have any questions. Our support team is here to help! You can email us at support@expresstrucktax.com or call us at 704.234.6005.

#FreightTechFriday: What’s New in Truck Tech

The world of technology is expanding, and so is the trucking industry alongside it. There are more technologies out for truckers now than there ever have been. 

Between apps like ExpressTruckTax, to truck extensions like Trailer Tail, truckers can now be more economic and more environmentally friendly.

And best of all, there’s even more trucks, truck extensions, and trucking apps coming out all the time to make the industry more environmentally friendly. Not to mention, these advancements in technology can make the lives of the people transporting our goods safer and easier.

It’s a whole new world out there, Trucking Nation! Let’s take a look!

Trucking Awesome (Concept Trucks)

High-tech truck concepts have been dominating blogs and social media posts lately. These futuristic concepts are not only helpful for the trucking industry and the environment, they’re also really, really cool!

Don’t believe me? Check out AirFlow’s new concept BulletTruck:

With this new concept truck, AirFlow is hoping to revolutionize the trucking industry in both aerodynamics and fuel consumption.

In fact, this summer AirFlow drove their BulletTruck prototype from Connecticut to California to show off the gorgeous design as well as test it’s amazing aerodynamics. Well, that and to show off it’s fantastic fuel mileage.

AirFlow has increased the mileage from the roughly 7 MPG trucks are averaging now to averaging 13.4 MPG on a trip across the country! If that’s not revolutionary, I don’t know what is.


Truck Extensions

Your truck is essentially an extension of yourself. You spend a lot of time hauling goods and travelling from place to place, essentially seeing all of North America.

That means you probably don’t want your truck looking drab; it should be a reflection of you and your awesome personality! Well, that and it doesn’t hurt to make your truck a little more environmentally friendly, with extensions like AirTab and Trailer Tail, that we talked about in a previous blog.

But there’s even more awesome technologies out there for truckers and drivers alike! Perhaps the most recent one gaining a lot of traction in the trucking market are Dash Cams.

 

Dash Cams are smallish cameras that go on your dash and film while you’re driving. This way any accident you get into, you have proof of fault. Well, that and you can take some fantastic video and pictures of your journey across the continent!

Apps for Road Warriors

Smartphone applications are the largest market for truck technology (and for technology in general). There are apps for almost everything these days, including several trucking-specific ones. From tax calculators to truck tax apps galore, you can find them for your smartphone or tablet.

A big chunk of the app market for truckers, especially lately, are reminder apps. From simple calendars to apps that are a little more complex and contain pre-loaded trucking industry deadlines.

That’s where RigMinders comes in. Rigminders is a reminder app geared specifically toward truckers, and it contains lots of pre-loaded industry deadlines, such as when 2290’s are due and when IFTA is due as well.

Then on top of all that, you can also load personal deadlines and truck maintenance deadlines. You’ll never forget another appointment, tax due date, or whatever you want!

Rigminders will send you push notifications on your phone and an email reminding you of your upcoming deadlines. You can even set how many notifications you want, what types of notifications you want, and when the reminder will be sent to you (5 days before, 1 day before, etc).

If you have any questions, comments, or more #FreightTech you want to see featured here, drop us a line on our Facebook or Twitter. We love hearing trucking stories and learning about new in truck tech!

And as always, if you find yourself with some tax questions, give our dedicated support legends a call at 704.234.6005 or email them at support@expresstrucktax.com for 24 hour support in both English and Spanish!