The Rental Accounting menu provides the user access to the RealWorld Accounting modules as well as CARS+ programs that are primarily used by the accounting department.These include posting, invoicing, and statement programs. Refer to the individual chapters for details on each program.
The following section introduces the Rental Accounting features of CARS+.
| RENTAL ACCOUNTING MENU 1. RealWorld Accounting Menu RW 2. Invoicing Sub-Menu INVOICE 3. Tax Document Sub-Menu TAXDOC 4. Petty Cash Sub-Menu PETTYCSH 5. Add'l Accounting Programs ACCT1 6. Multiple Inv RAs Sub-Menu MULT 7. Edit Posted RA EDITPOST 8. Cash Receipts Report DCD 9. Accounting DBR & Posting DBRA 10. Print Autoposted DBR PRTDBRA 11. Account Balance Report ACCTBAL 12. Change RA Cust. Number CHGCST 13. AR Distribution to GL Rpt DISTRPT 14. AR Open Item Report OPENITEM 15. AR Open Item Edit Rpt AREDIT |
REALWORLD ACCOUNTING MENU: Selecting this item accesses the accounting module of
Accounts Receivable. Additionally,
it may also include the following modules: Accounts Payable, General Ledger,
and Payroll.
| RealWorld Software THERMEON 12.9 TEST & MENU CO. Version 4.0A Please select __ 1. Accounts Receivable 2. Accounts Payable 3. Payroll 4. General Ledger |
In addition, the following manual chapters are also pertinent:
Overview - General Changes to RealWorld Accounting Programs - Details the change made to some of the RealWorld programs to make them compatible with CARS+. These changes are not a part of the RealWorld documentation.
Overview - Running RealWorld Stand Alone Programs - Information on running RealWorld programs that aren't on the RealWorld menus. Includes tasks such as setting access levels (similar to the CARS+ menu system) and initializing files.
Overview - When You Do Not Use RealWorld AR Module - Important information for operations that do not use RealWorld.
INVOICING SUB-MENU
| OPTION: _________ INVOICING PROGRAMS MENU 1. CARS+ Statements STATMENT 2. RA Invoicing RAINV 3. Insurance Invoicing INSINV 4. Voucher Invoicing VCHINV 5. Sundry Invoicing SUNDRY 6. Post Sundry Invoices POSTINV 7. Print Sundry Invoices PRINTINV 8. Vehicle Sundry Invoicing VEHINV 9. Vendor Invoice Entry VENINV 10. Vendor Invoice Rpt PRTVNI |
STATEMENTS. The CARS+ Statements program allows you to print statements on plain paper rather than using statement forms. It also provides more selection parameters than the statement program in Accounts Receivable.
INVOICES. CARS+ provides programs for invoicing different types of companies such as insurance companies, tour wholesalers, or direct bill companies. Each of these invoicing programs offers unique features.
SUNDRY INVOICES. These provide a way to invoice for charges not related to a rental agreement such as parking tickets, damage, or purchases of merchandise. Invoices are posted to Accounts Receivable and can be printed.
VENDOR INVOICES. Entering vendor invoices also creates Vehicle History Records. A search feature allows you to recall the invoice to the screen.
TAX DOCUMENT SUBMENU: This menu provides a series of programs for use by those operations located in countries where tax documents must be provided to customers in addition to the final rental agreement.
| OPTION: _________ TAX DOCUMENT MENU 1. Batch Print Tax Doc BATCHTD 2. Batch Print Tax Doc-1 BATCHTD1 3. Cancel Tax Document VOIDTD 4. Restricted Cancel Tax Doc VOIDTDR 5. Search Tax Document File SEARCHTD 6. Next Tax Doc Number Updt NEXTTD 7. Print Tax Doc Report PRTTDRPT 8. Tax Doc Charge Detail Rpt TXDOCCHG 9. Tax Doc Address Labels TXDOCLBL 10. List Tax Doc for RA Rpt TXDOCRPT 11. RA Tax Doc Reconciliation TXDOCREC 12. Reset Tax Doc Print Date RESETDAT 13. Update Tax Doc Print Date TXDOCUPD |
PETTY CASH SUB-MENU: These programs are used to enter miscellaneous transactions not involving an edit to a RA. On-line and batch mode are available as well as an edit program to correct previous entries.
| OPTION: _________ PETTY CASH MENU 1. Petty Cash Entry PTYCSH 2. Batch Petty Cash Entry BCHPTY 3. Edit Petty Cash Entry EDITPTY 4. Float Adjustment FLOAT |
ADDITIONAL ACCOUNTING PROGRAMS SUB-MENU
| OPTION: _________ ADD'L ACCOUNTING PROGRAMS 1. Revenue Less Inclusive REVLESS 2. Reimbursement Audit Rpt REIMBRPT 3. Small Amount Write-off SMALL 4. Edit Payment Batch # EDITBCH 5. Direct Bill Report DBRPT 6. Chauffeur Billing Rpt CHARPT 7. Print Charge Records PRTCHG 8. Pending IVA Tax Rpt PENDIVA 9. IVA Realized Entry Rpt INVRPT 10. DCC Report DCCRPT |
REVENUE LESS INCLUSIVES - This is a report of Time and Mileage revenue for rates which include taxes and/or coverages. The inclusive items are separated out from the gross amount in order to determine the actual net time and mileage revenue generated.
REIMBURSEMENT AUDIT REPORT– This is a report for the purpose of auditing reimbursements given on rental agreements
SMALL AMOUNT WRITE-OFF– Used to create an off-setting entries for selected customer accounts in order to bring their balances to zero.
EDIT PAYMENT BATCH # - This program is used in conjunction with promotions that allow credit card customers to pay for their rentals with credit card installment payments. Used to enter batch numbers on payment records that don't have one.
DIRECT BILL REPORT - This is a report of rentals by their direct bill customer numbers.
CHAUFFEUR BILLING REPORT - This is a report of chauffeur RAs calculated at the driver's net rate
PRINT CHARGE RECORDS– Used to examine RA charge records. Generally used for research purposes.
PENDING IVA TAX REPORT– Used by a customer in Mexico for tax reporting purposes.
IVA REALIZED ENTRY REPORT - Used by a customer in Mexico for tax reporting purposes.
MULTIPLE INVOICED RENTALS SUB-MENU
| OPTION: _________ Multiple Invoice Rentals 1. Multiple Invoiced Rentals MULTRA 2. Multiple Inv Rent Rpt MULTRPT 3. Mult. Inv. Pre-Clone Rpt PRECLONE 4. Multiple Reprint RA MULTIPRT 5. Batch Reprint RAs BCHPRT |
MULTIPLE INVOICED RENTALS - Some extended rentals span a period of several months. This program provides a convenient way to produce interim invoices for these long-term rentals.
MULTIPLE INVOICED RENTALS REPORT – A report of the open Multi-Month RAs showing the date they are due to be cloned.
MULTIPLE INVOICED RENTALS PRE-CLONE REPORT - Used to examine open multiple-month RAs for problems needing manual intervention before the next clone takes place.
MULTIPLE REPRINT RA - Reprint multiple RAs at one time from a list of RA numbers entered.
BATCH REPRINT RAs - Reprint multiple RAs at one time based on a variety of selection criteria such as date, customer number, Hand Held closed, etc.
EDIT POSTED RA - Edits to posted RAs are entered using this program. The edits are then listed in a special section of the Accounting DBR and are posted with the day's work.
CASH RECEIPTS REPORT - Used to report all receipts received at a single location or all receipts taken at all locations
ACCOUNTING DBR & POSTING; PRINT AUTOPOSTED DBR - Rental transactions generate accounting and other management information.The process of updating all the files affected by rental transactions is referred to as "posting". Posting can only be performed when requested on the Accounting DBR, or it can be set up to occur automatically. When this is done, the PRINT AUTOPOSTED DBR program is used to report what has been posted.
ACCOUNT BALANCE REPORT - This report allows the user to display or print a report on a particular customer's account without granting access to programs which would modify it.
CHANGE RA CUSTOMER NUMBER - Change the renter and/or bill-to party on a RA
AR DISTRIBUTION TO GL REPORT – Can be used to:
AR OPEN ITEM REPORT - Find records in the AR Open item file by their apply-to number.
AR OPEN ITEM EDIT REPORT - Used to track changes made to open items in RealWorld Accounts Receivable.
A SUMMARY OF ACCOUNTING FEATURES IN CARS+
REVENUE ACCOUNTING
Revenue in CARS+ is derived primarily from entering rental agreements. In addition, sundry invoices can be entered for non-rental revenue. In both cases, the principles are the same.
Each item that is charged has a designated General Ledger (G/L) account number. The GL account may be unique for a particular item, such as a Time, or it may be shared. For example, Time, Mileage/Kilometers, Discounts, and Customer Service Adjustments may be set up to post to the same G/L account. Or, to simplify the accounting records, all standard revenue items (Time, Coverages, Optional charges) can post to a single account while a limited number of separate accounts are used for items such as fuel and damages.
Because in-depth operational reporting and analysis is available within CARS+, it is not critical for each revenue item to be detailed in the accounting records. This offers the ability to limit the complexity of the accounting records. Keep in mind that those charged with increasing revenue and generating sales have at their disposal a variety of reports, in varying levels of detail, within CARS+. Ultimately, of course, the driving factor for G/L account assignment will be the level of detail required on the financial statements.
Revenue generated by segments of the business can be posted to separate G/L accounts when needed. For example, revenue from car rentals can post to a G/L account that differs from the account used to for van and truck rentals.
If financial statements will be required for individual locations, profit centers can be assigned to each location. Multiple locations can be assigned the same profit center code. For example, a city with 3 locations may represent one profit center. Or each location can have a unique profit center.
Generally, revenue is earned by the location that opens the rental agreement.However, CARS+ can be configured to automatically split the revenue when one location rents another location’s vehicle.
Revenue is accounted for when transactions are posted to accounting. Accrued revenue is reported for unposted transactions on the Accrual Report.
OPTIONAL CHARGES
All charges in CARS+ are defined in a table referred to collectively as “Optional Charges”. However, some charges are arbitrary (Time), some are mandatory (Surcharges and Taxes), some are dependent (Age Surcharge), and some are optional (Coverages, Equipment Rentals).
TAXES
Taxes may be calculated simply or may be complex and multi-layered. For example, CARS+ can charge a tax on another tax. Ultimately, each kind of tax is computed as a total for transaction, based on which charges are subject to that tax. For example, a Location Surcharge may be calculated on Time, Mileage/Kms, and LDW but not on fuel. Tax may be included in a rate product (the rental rate for Time), but not in an individual option charge.
CURRENCY
Rate products and Optional charges can be set up with an international currency code. Rates of exchange can be maintained in CARS+ with various effective dates. Thus, all revenue is stored in a single base currency. At the time of rental, charges are converted to the base currency using the exchange rate in effect. This allows international marketing to be carried out in the currency of the source market while maintaining simplicity of accounting within the system.
DEPOSITS, PAYMENTS, AND FORMS OF PAYMENT
CARS+ maintains a simple distinction between “Deposits” and “Payments”:
A Deposit is anything paid by the customer prior to the close of the rental. Deposits may be taken on reservations, at the opening of the rental, or at any time during the life of the rental.
A Payment is anything paid at or after the close of the rental.
All Deposits and Payments are posted based on the date of entry (receipt) to a liability GL account. This entry is automatically reversed when the closed RA is posted and revenue is recognized. A report provides a detailed breakdown of the current customer deposits for account reconciliation purposes.
Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) is available of Visa/Mastercard transactions and cash can be received and banked in any currency against separate bank control accounts. Full reporting of foreign currency receipts, DCC payments and performance is provided.
Payments (remittances) may be entered against a customer’s account. These are posted separately from rental agreement revenue.
All Deposits and Payments are tracked by Form of Payment (FOP) code. Multiple payments with different types of FOPs may be recorded for a rental. For example, a payment in cash and another with a credit card are easily processed. Multiple currencies can be accepted. Or an RA can by closed as a bill-to (account), billed to a tour wholesaler, to insurance company, or as a forced charge (billed to the renter). Note that Hertz, Alamo/National and others only allow one form of official payment, e.g. OTTO, Charge Card, etc, per rental.
PROCESS FLOW
Deposits on reservations and rentals are posted according to the date they were entered.
Rental Revenue is posted based on when RAs close.
Adjustments to posted RAs are posted according by the date they were entered.
Sundry invoices and remittances to receivables are posted as required.
Rentals are transmitted to Hertz and others so that what is posted and what is transmitted is identical.
Transactions can be posted according to a pre-defined automatically scheduled process, or can be under the user’s control.
Credit card transactions are submitted for settlement once they have been posted.
G/L data is transferred to a separate accounting system at the user’s chosen frequency: for example, daily, weekly, or monthly.
INVOICING
When the rental agreement itself will not serve as an invoice, invoices can be produced for bill-to rentals, wholesalers, insurance companies, and renters (for a forced charge). Additionally, invoices can be produced for zero balance rentals (receipts). Invoices can be produced in order by customer number for easy mailing. A summary of invoices is produced with each run. Additionally, a single page “Transmittal Statement” can be requested to summarize each batch of invoices for each separate customer in the run.
Sundry Invoicing allows a customer to be charged for any non-rental item such as a parking ticket. Sundry Invoicing can also be used for car sales or sales of other items such as t-shirts, hats, moving boxes, etc.
Custom invoicing programs can be created.
STATEMENTS
Statements are produced on demand for individuals, groups of customers, or all customers. A summary of all statements is produced at the end of each run with an Aging Summary or this can be produced on its own and serves as a practical aged debt analysis for credit control purposes.
GL DISTRIBUTION
A program exists to enable complex queries of the General Ledger distribution file and to output a report or a comma separated file that can be used to import into a third part accounting application.
AUDIT TRAIL
Every receivable item is stored in the “Open Item File”.
Every G/L distribution is stored in the “Distribution File.”
The Distribution File records the source of the distribution by referring to the report number and the date it was created. (Every report in CARS+ is assigned a sequential number.) This enables the tracing of a transaction back to the posting report and to the individual transaction and its breakdown of charges.
Each edit to a transaction is logged with date, time, and user ID. Full transaction log reporting exists for an individual transaction or group of transactions by specific criteria or by exception. As long as password integrity is maintained, it is possible to isolate the responsible party for each CARS+ transaction.