Readings and vehicle movements
Readings that cannot be edited, and the car's timeline of km and fuel
At check-in, vehicle out, vehicle back and delivery, the odometer, fuel or battery level and a dashboard photo are recorded with who and when. Once saved, nobody on your staff can change them. A lower odometer needs a note and is flagged, and the job card adds up the km driven while the car was with you.
PlansEvery plan
Why it matters
The hardest arguments at a garage counter are about numbers nobody can prove: the km on the clock and the fuel in the tank. If a reading can be typed over later, it proves nothing, to the customer or to you. In SmartMy Garage each reading is fixed the moment it is saved, with its dashboard photo, the time and the person who took it. A reading lower than the last one needs a written reason. It is then flagged on the reading, the job card and the vehicle. The customer sees the same readings, and the km driven while the car was with you, on their job page.
The problem it solves
- A customer says the car was driven 150 km while it was with you, and your record is a number someone typed.
- A reading is "corrected" after a complaint, and the customer no longer trusts any of your records.
- An odometer that went backwards, from a cluster swap or tampering, goes unnoticed and breaks service reminders by km.
- Nobody can say how much fuel was used on test drives and outside work during one visit.
How it works
- 01
At check-in, type the odometer, choose the fuel level in eighths (or the battery percentage) and take the dashboard photo.
- 02
Each Vehicle Out and Vehicle Back, and the delivery, records a new reading the same way, with its photos.
- 03
Save. The reading is fixed: odometer, fuel, battery, time, who took it and the dashboard photo cannot be changed by staff. A mistake is answered by the next reading, with a note.
- 04
If the odometer is lower than the highest reading the vehicle had, the system asks why. With a note the reading is saved and flagged as Lower Than Before; the vehicle and the job card show Odometer Went Backwards.
- 05
Open the job card's Movements tab. It lists every trip and every reading in order. It shows the distance and fuel or battery used on each trip, and Driven While With Us for the visit.
- 06
The customer sees the readings, the dashboard photos and the km driven while with you on their job page.
Everything it does
What a reading records
- Where it was taken: Check-in, Vehicle Out, Vehicle Back, Delivery, During Work, Inspection
- Odometer in the vehicle's unit, km or miles
- Fuel in eighths (E, 1/8 ... 7/8, F) or, for an electric vehicle, battery 0 to 100%
- Dashboard photo and the walk-around photos of the branch's photo set
- When, and the user who took it
- The job card and, for a trip, the movement it belongs to
What cannot change
- A saved reading: odometer, fuel, battery, time, who and the dashboard photo. Trying gives "A reading is not changed once saved. Take a new reading with a note instead."
- A saved photo: the picture itself. Its label and note can still be corrected
- Staff cannot delete readings or photos
- A photo file is removed only by the retention you set (never before the warranty ends) or by a system administrator
- The note of a reading can still be added or corrected
Odometer going backwards
- Compared with the highest reading the vehicle ever had
- Refused without a note, for example "instrument cluster replaced"
- Flagged on the reading (Lower Than Before), the job card and the vehicle (Odometer Went Backwards)
- Filter Odometer Went Backwards on the Vehicles list
- A lower reading does not lower the vehicle's odometer, so reminders by km keep counting from the highest
The timeline of a visit
- Movements tab: each trip with out and back readings, distance, fuel used in eighths and battery used in %
- Odometer In (check-in), Odometer Out (delivery) and Driven While With Us (highest reading less the check-in reading)
- Readings tab on the vehicle: every reading of every visit
- Garage > Reports > Jobs and Parts > Readings: all readings, to filter and group
Who uses it
Where you use it
- Web: the Check-in and Movements tabs of the job card, the Readings tab of the vehicle, Garage > Reports > Jobs and Parts > Readings
- The SmartMy Garage app: the Reading step of check-in, vehicle out and back and delivery. Readings with "Driven while with us" on the job card. Readings taken without signal are sent later at the time they were taken. Built and in testing, not in the app stores yet.
- Customer page: readings, dashboard photos and km driven while with us on the job page
What you control
Settings
- Photos at check-in, when the vehicle goes out and comes back, and at delivery: Quick Set to start with
- Keep Photos of Delivered Job Cards: 0 days, keep for ever (the default)
- Odometer unit per vehicle: km or miles
Messages and alerts
- Vehicle Movement Alert: to the advisor and the workshop managers when a trip uses more fuel or battery than the branch allows. See the alerts page
FAQ
Questions, answered.
What if an advisor types a wrong odometer?
The reading stays as saved. Take a new reading with a note saying what was wrong. Both stay on record, so the correction is visible too.
Can an administrator change a reading?
Not from the screens. Readings are fixed for every user. Only a system administrator can delete a photo file, and photos follow the retention you set.
How is "driven while with us" worked out?
It is the highest odometer recorded on the job card less the check-in reading. Each trip also shows its own distance and fuel or battery used.
Does the customer see the readings?
Yes. The job page shows the readings with their dashboard photos and the km driven while the car was with you.
Which plan has it?
Every plan, from Starter.
Related
Related features.
Check-in with odometer, fuel or battery, photos, belongings, consent and signatureEvery plan
Record how each car arrived before anyone touches it. Take the odometer, the fuel or battery level, a dashboard photo and the walk-around photos your branch asks for. Note what was left inside, test drive consent and what to do about work found, and get the customer's signature.
Vehicle out and back: test drives, outside work, pickup and dropEvery plan
Every time a customer's car leaves your premises, it goes out with a reading and photos and comes back with another. That covers test drives, outside work, pickups and drops. You see who took it, how far it went and how much fuel it used, and you are told when something is off.
Alerts when a test drive goes too far, fuel drops or the car is late backEvery plan
Your advisor and workshop managers are told at once about a test drive over its limit. They also hear about a fuel or battery drop beyond what you allow, or a car late back. A test drive without the customer's consent is stopped before it starts.
Customer vehicles with their full visit history, found by plate or VINEvery plan
Keep every customer vehicle once, with its owner, plate, VIN, brand, model, year, fuel and odometer unit. Every visit, reading and note stays with it. Pick it by its plate however it is typed, or scan the VIN barcode in the app.
The customer's job page by a private link, no loginEvery plan
Every job card has its own page for the customer, opened from a link in their messages with no password. They see the status, the estimate, the photos, the damage, the readings and their invoices. It comes with every plan.
Service reminders by date and by kmFrom Growth
Each delivered job card plans the next service of the car. It falls due by date or on the day the car is expected to reach the next km, whichever comes first. That day is worked out from the car's own readings. The customer is reminded before it is due with a link to book, and the reminder closes when they come back.
Want to see it on your own job cards? Book a demo and we walk you through it with your workshop's work.