Every fill is checked when it is recorded or changed. A fill that fails a check is flagged. A flagged fill is saved, and it goes into the exceptions queue for a manager to review, except where a setting blocks it outright.
Fuel economy
Fuel economy is how far a vehicle goes on a litre. It is worked out from full-to-full fills:
- On a fill marked Filled to full, economy is the distance travelled since the previous full fill, divided by the litres of every fill since then (this one included).
- A fill that is not full has no economy of its own; its litres count toward the next full fill.
- A fill with The previous fill was not recorded ticked starts the chain again, so the distance before it is not counted.
- A fill without a meter reading, with a meter reading that is not higher than the last full fill's, or whose meter reading Fleet did not accept, has no economy and does not start a new chain.
- A vehicle measured by engine hours shows l/hr (litres per hour). Other vehicles show distance per litre or litres per 100 distance units, as chosen in Economy unit in Fuel settings, using the distance unit from Fleet settings.
When a fill is edited, voided or added out of date order, the economy of the fills after it is worked out again, and so is their Economy out of band flag: a later fill that now falls outside the band is flagged and enters the exceptions queue (the fuel managers are told), and one that is back inside the band loses the flag (it leaves the queue when it has no other flag).
The expected economy band
Set the lowest and highest economy you expect, always as distance per litre (or litres per engine hour for an engine-hour vehicle):
- On a vehicle type, in Fleet lists (the Expected economy (lowest – highest) columns, shown when Fuel Management is available), see Fleet lists.
- On a vehicle, in the Fuel card of the vehicle form: Lowest expected economy and Highest expected economy. A vehicle's own band overrides its type's. Leave both blank to use the type's.
A band needs both ends. A fill whose economy falls outside the band is flagged Economy out of band. With no band, or with the check off, no fill is flagged for economy.
The checks
Each check can be switched off in Fuel settings. A flagged fill shows a badge for each check it failed, and the fill profile explains each.
| Flag | The fill is flagged when | Setting |
|---|---|---|
| Over capacity | The litres are more than the tank holds plus the allowed tolerance. Never flagged for a vehicle with no tank capacity. | Fill larger than the tank, Tolerance (%) (default 5) |
| Wrong fuel | The fuel does not match the vehicle's fuel type. Petrol and hybrid vehicles take petrol; diesel takes diesel; CNG and LPG vehicles take their gas or petrol; an electric vehicle, or one with no fuel, takes none. A vehicle with no fuel type or "Other" takes anything. | Fuel type differs from the vehicle's; When the fuel type is wrong |
| Possible duplicate | Another fill of the vehicle, or a station dispense to it, has almost the same litres (within the tolerance) within the window; every fill and dispense in the window is compared, not only the previous one. | Possible duplicate fill, Window (minutes) (default 30), Duplicate tolerance (%) (default 1) |
| Too frequent | The vehicle was filled again sooner than the minimum time after its previous fill or station dispense. | Fills too close together, Minimum hours between fills (default 4) |
| Meter went back | The meter is lower than the previous fill's or station dispense's. | Meter reading lower than the last one |
| Economy out of band | The economy is outside the expected band. | Economy far from the vehicle's usual |
| Inactive vehicle | The vehicle is out of service, sold or disposed. | Fill for a vehicle that is not active |
| Over quota | The fill went over a soft quota, or an imported fill went over a quota. See Quotas. | Always on |
| Meter reading not accepted | Fleet held the meter reading for review, for example because the odometer went back or rose more than the vehicle can travel. See Why a reading is flagged. | Fleet settings |
When the fuel type is wrong can be Flag the fill for review (the default) or Block the fill: a blocked fill is refused with "This vehicle takes fuel." and is not saved. Editing a fill that was flagged earlier (its notes, say) is still allowed; only a save that sets the fuel type (or moves the fill to another vehicle) to one the vehicle does not take is refused.
Backdated and corrected fills
A fill entered with an earlier time, moved to another time, or voided can change the checks of the fills around it. The checks on the neighbours are judged again: the fills within the window on either side of it are checked for Possible duplicate (both fills of a pair carry the flag, and it goes from both when one is moved or voided), the next one for Too frequent, and the next one with a meter reading for Meter went back. A fill that now fails gains the flag (and is reopened if it was reviewed), one that no longer does loses it, and an exception that has gained a flag tells the Fuel managers again.
The exceptions queue
Open Fuel Management › Exceptions. You need Exceptions › View; with View (own) you see flagged fills you recorded or where you are the driver. Only fills on vehicles you may see (Vehicles › View in Fleet) are listed. With business units, a Business unit column shows on the Open and Reviewed tabs and the funnel icon opens a Business unit filter. It has three tabs.
| Tab | Shows |
|---|---|
| Open | Flagged fills nobody has decided on yet, newest first. Columns: Date, Fill (links to it), Vehicle, Driver, Flags, Litres, Total. |
| Reviewed | Fills that were accepted or rejected, with the Decision, Reason, Reviewed by and the note on hover. |
| By driver | For every driver, how many of their fills were Rejected (Rejected exceptions), with the Litres, Total and Latest date. |
Open and Reviewed show fills and station dispenses together, newest first (Reviewed by the date of the decision), a page at a time: choose how many rows a page shows, use the page buttons, and Search by number, vehicle or driver. Nothing is cut off, however long the queue; the order is fixed, so the columns do not sort.
Station dispenses in the queue
A fuel station you have a credit account with runs your checks at the pump, with your settings: Over capacity, Wrong fuel, Possible duplicate, Too frequent, Meter went back and Inactive vehicle (economy is not checked at the pump). The attendant sees only a short warning, never your limits or other fills, and must confirm it before recording; if When the fuel type is wrong is Block the fill, the station cannot sell the wrong fuel.
A dispense recorded with warnings enters the Open tab with a Station badge; its number links to the dispense. Review it the same way as a fill. The station never sees your decision. A dispense the station voids leaves the queue.
Accept or reject a fill
- On the Open tab select Accept or Reject on the row. You need Accept or reject fuel exceptions. The box names the flags.
- Choose a Reason: Legitimate, Data error, Misuse, Theft suspected or Other. A reason is required to reject, optional to accept. Add a Note if you wish.
- Select Accept or Reject. A toast says "Exception accepted" or "Exception rejected".
Accepting means the fill is fine as it stands. Rejecting records that something was wrong; it does not change the fill, its cost or its quota use. To correct the fill, edit or void it. Deciding twice replaces the first decision.
A decision stays when the fill is edited, unless the edit adds a flag the fill did not have before: the fill then returns to Open. A fill whose flags all disappear after an edit leaves the queue. A voided fill leaves the queue too.
The fuel managers are told when a fill or a station dispense enters the queue, see Notifications. The count of open exceptions is on the Fuel overview, and the Fuel exceptions report analyses them.
Current limitations
- A station dispense recorded or voided after your fills does not re-check their Possible duplicate, Too frequent or Meter went back flags (their economy is worked out again). Editing or voiding one of your own fills does re-check the fills around it.
- The Fuel exceptions report counts your own fills only, not station dispenses (the Fuel overview's open-exceptions count includes them).
- Rejecting an exception does not notify the driver or change anything on the fill.