Self-billing explained
What is self-billing?
Self-billing is a VAT arrangement where the customer produces the invoice on behalf of the supplier. In tipper and aggregate haulage, the customer you haul for creates a self-bill invoice for the loads you delivered and pays against it. You don't raise your own sales invoice, theirs is the VAT invoice.
For it to be valid, both sides sign a self-billing agreement, you (the haulier) must be VAT registered, and the agreement is reviewed periodically. It saves you invoicing admin, but it moves control of "what you get paid" onto the customer's records.
Why you must still check every self-bill
Here's the catch. The self-bill is built from the customer's data, mainly the weighbridge/delivery tickets. Anything that isn't on the ticket depends on someone flagging it. In practice these are the lines to check:
- Tickets with no line: a delivery you did that doesn't appear on the self-bill.
- Waiting time: time on site beyond the agreed allowance.
- Return loads and full-load returns: material sent back.
- Extra miles: a diversion or a site change that added mileage.
- Rate or tonnage mismatches: a line at the wrong rate or weight.
- Abortive jobs: a booked load cancelled at the plant or turned away at site leaves no ticket, so it never reaches the self-bill. See how to charge for abortive loads.
The self-bill is only as complete as the tickets behind it. Checking it against your own records is how you know it's right.
Waiting time: the line to check first
Waiting time is the line that most often needs a second look. A typical arrangement pays waiting from minute one where the ticket is marked CH or CHUTE, and otherwise gives around 30 minutes free, then an hourly rate, but only if the time on site is captured and claimed. If your driver's "time on site" isn't checked against the self-bill, nobody will spot a wrong line. See our full guide to tipper waiting time, return loads and extra miles.
How to reconcile a self-bill (the practical way)
- Line up your tickets. Put every delivery and shift-payment ticket your drivers uploaded next to the self-bill for the same week.
- Match by ticket number. Tick off each self-bill line against a ticket. Anything left over needs a look.
- Check the extras. For each load, confirm waiting time, return loads and extra miles are on the self-bill.
- Raise any differences. Send them to the customer with the ticket evidence: dates, times and photos.
Doing this by hand across 100+ tickets a week is where it falls apart. Most operators don't have the time to do it every week.
Reconcile every self-bill automatically
Drivers snap each ticket. Raahi Flow matches every ticket to the customer self-bill, compares waiting time and return loads, and shows you which loads match and which need a look.
See ticket reconciliation →Self-billing and VAT: the basics
Because the self-bill is your VAT invoice, keep them filed and reconciled for your records. HMRC requires a valid self-billing agreement and that you notify the customer if your VAT registration changes. If you ever deregister, the self-billing arrangement has to stop.
What is self-billing in haulage?
The customer (e.g. a large aggregate producer) raises the invoice for the haulier's work and pays against it. The haulier doesn't invoice; the self-bill is the VAT invoice. Both sign an agreement and the haulier must be VAT registered.
Do I still need to check a self-bill invoice?
Yes. It's built from the customer's tickets, so waiting time, return loads, full-load returns and extra miles may not all be on it. Check every self-bill against your own tickets and raise any differences.
What should I check on a customer self-bill?
Every ticket appears; rate and tonnage are right; and waiting time, return loads and extra miles are all paid. Tickets with no line and waiting time are the most common differences.
Do I need to be VAT registered?
Yes. HMRC requires the haulier to be VAT registered and both parties to sign a self-billing agreement that's reviewed periodically.
Hauling aggregates? See our bulk tipper software. Raise some invoices yourself as well as getting self-bills? See haulage invoicing software, or start with our free haulage invoice template.