A fuel advance pays a client part of an invoice's value before the invoice itself is funded, so the client has cash to cover costs such as fuel while the invoice is still being processed. It is recovered when the invoice funds.
Before you start
Fuel advances are optional. If you do not see Fuel Advances in the menu, the feature is switched off for your factor, or your role does not include it.
They also have to be enabled per client, on the client profile under Fuel Advance. That section sets:
- Enable Fuel Advance, and separately Fuel Advance Invoice and Fuel Advance Credit types
- Fuel Advance Max Percent – the most you will advance against an invoice
- Fuel Advance Min Fee
Creating a fuel advance
- In the left-hand menu, click Fuel Advances.
- Click Create Fuel Advances in the top-right corner.
- Choose the client and enter the advance details, then create it.
1 Fuel Advances · 2 Status tabs with counts · 3 Group the list by Clients or Debtors · 4 Import Fuel Advances and Create Fuel Advances · 5 Balance still to be recovered
1 Client · 2 Debtor · 3 Invoice Number and Reference Number · 4 Invoice Amount and Delivery Date · 5 Fuel Advance Amount and Fee Amount · 6 Notes · 7 Create
To load several at once, use Import Fuel Advances and follow the CSV template, in the same way as importing payments.
A fuel advance can't be attached to an invoice marked as non-factored.
Following one through
The tabs across the top track the advance's life, with a count on each:
- Pending – created, not yet approved
- Approved – approved for funding, waiting on the Funding screen
- Open – paid out and not yet fully recovered
- Closed and Rejected
- All
Like invoices, an approved fuel advance is paid out from the Funding screen, where it appears with its own payment method. The fuel advance remittance, both the PDF and the CSV, lists every fuel advance in the payment.
Tracking the balance
Each fuel advance has a Balance: the amount still to be recovered. It starts at the full advance amount and goes down as the advance is charged back. The balance shows on the list and on the advance's detail page.
1 Balance still to be recovered · 2 Fuel Advance Status · 3 Funding Chargeback – the active funding chargeback, if there is one
The Funding Chargeback section shows the amount, the status and a link to the batch when the advance is part of a funding that hasn't been paid out yet. While it is, the advance can't also be charged back from the Chargebacks screen.
How it comes back
When the related invoice is approved for funding, the outstanding fuel advance is attached and deducted from the advance. Whether that happens automatically is controlled by Fuel Advance Auto Attach in Settings › System Config › Optional Features, which can pre-select Invoice-type advances, Credit-type advances, both, or neither.
You don't have to recover the whole advance at once. On the Approve for Funding screen, use the FULL / PART toggle on the fuel advance line and enter the amount to recover from this funding. Whatever is left stays on the advance's balance, ready to recover from a later funding.
Charging it back directly
If an advance won't be recovered through a funding, charge it back from the Chargebacks screen. You can charge back the full balance or only part of it.
- In the left-hand menu, click Chargebacks and open the Fuel Advances tab.
- Tick the fuel advance. It appears on the right with its balance filled in.
- To charge back only part of it, change the amount.
- Click Apply Chargeback and confirm.
1 Fuel Advances tab · 2 Tick the advance · 3 Amount to charge back, which can be edited · 4 Apply Chargeback
The ledger entries post for the amount you charge back, not the full advance. Any remainder stays open on the advance.
Credit-type advances that stay Pending
A credit-type fuel advance can sit in Pending with no way to move it to Open from within the app. If you have one stuck, raise it with helpdesk@factorcloud.com rather than trying to work around it – it needs to be moved on the back end.