Payroll processing support for auto repair shops & dealerships

Payroll processing for auto repair shops & dealerships involves flat-rate technicians paid on hours billed rather than hours worked, hourly apprentices and porters, service advisors on commission against gross profit, salespeople on unit and gross commissions with draws, and F&I managers paid on product penetration. Overtime rules for flat-rate and commission pay differ by state and are a common audit finding.

  • Since 2020
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How it runs for auto repair shops and dealerships

A LedgerBPO payroll specialist prepares each run in Gusto, ADP, Paychex or your DMS payroll from the shop system's billed-hours and gross reports, checks minimum-wage and overtime compliance for each pay plan, posts the journal by department and reconciles liabilities to the provider's filings. You approve every run before submission.

What is payroll processing outsourcing?

Payroll processing outsourcing means a remote team prepares each pay run inside your payroll software: reconciling hours, entering changes, checking deductions and producing the run for the employer to approve. The employer keeps the payroll account, the bank authority and the legal responsibility. The provider posts the payroll journal and reconciles it, so payroll and the books agree.

What we handle for auto repair shops and dealerships

  • Flat-rate technician pay prepared from billed hours with minimum-wage checks per state
  • Advisor and salesperson commissions calculated from gross reports you approve
  • Draws, chargebacks on unwound deals and spiffs tracked against commissions
  • Payroll journals posted by department so labor cost matches departmental sales
  • Liabilities reconciled monthly to filings and bank debits

The KPI that matters here

Payroll journal posted by department within 1 business day of each pay run.

Auto compliance notes

State dealer rules and title work

Licensed dealers must remit sales tax on vehicle sales, submit title and registration applications within the state's deadline, often 30 days, and in some states charge no more than a capped documentation fee. We track sales tax, title fees and registration fees collected as liabilities per deal, reconcile them to what the DMV or tag agency was paid, and list any deal where the paperwork or the payment is late. Your compliance officer or attorney interprets the rules; we keep the schedule.

Floor-plan financing

Floor-plan lenders charge interest daily per unit, require curtailment payments as units age and reconcile their records to the lot at audit. We post interest and curtailments per unit, reconcile the lender's statement to the ledger every month, and flag any sold unit whose payoff has not cleared inside the contract window so a sold-out-of-trust position never goes unnoticed.

Parts inventory and core charges

Parts inventory must be counted, valued consistently and reconciled to the ledger, with obsolete stock written down under your CPA's policy. Core charges paid to suppliers are receivables until the core is returned, and supplier returns are receivables until credited. We track both by supplier so the balance sheet reflects what will actually come back.

Cash reporting and consumer financing

Dealerships must file IRS Form 8300 for cash over $10,000 and keep records supporting each finance contract. We list every 8300-reportable transaction from the deal file for your compliance officer to file, and we reconcile finance reserves and chargebacks from lenders to the contracts they relate to. We do not file the forms or give legal advice.

Auto software we work in

More for auto repair shops and dealerships

Frequently asked questions

Do you process payroll for auto shops or support the provider?

We support it. Gusto, ADP, Paychex or your DMS payroll module calculates taxes, files returns and deposits from your account; we prepare each run from billed hours and gross reports, calculate commissions under your plans, check compliance, submit after your approval, post the journal by department and reconcile the liabilities every month.

How do you check flat-rate pay for minimum-wage and overtime compliance?

For each pay period we compare a flat-rate technician's pay to hours clocked, confirm the effective hourly rate clears the applicable minimum wage, and apply your state's rule for overtime on flat-rate and commission earnings, which varies. Where a rule is unclear we flag it for your employment counsel; we do not give legal advice.

How are sales commissions and chargebacks on unwound deals handled?

Commissions are calculated from the deal's front and back gross per your plan and paid in the run you choose; if a deal unwinds or a finance product is canceled, the chargeback is deducted in a later run and documented. Draws are tracked as advances against commissions. The month-end close service for auto repair shops & dealerships accrues commissions to the month of the sale.

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Next step

Books closed. Invoices paid. Every month.

Tell us what is going on with your books or billing. You will hear from a named person within 1 business day, with a custom quote and a plan for the first close.

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  • No setup fee, month-to-month
  • Your software, your data, no lock-in

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