Coast Expands To Expense Management

Trades businesses face a unique challenge when it comes to managing expenses: they juggle multiple card programs while relying heavily on manual, outdated processes. These fragmented systems create unnecessary complexity, slow down operations, and leave businesses vulnerable to overspending and fraud.

Coast is here to change that.

Expense management is still managed today like it was in the 1980s

Most fleet businesses manage expenses today exactly like they did decades ago, with manual processes and cumbersome expense reports. Consider these facts, based on a comprehensive survey we ran with 95 fleet business leaders:

• 1 in 2 fleet businesses still rely on manual expense reports.
• 89% of fleets lack a modern expense management solution and use spreadsheets and manual processes.
• 57% of businesses miss over 20% of their receipts monthly, causing significant gaps in compliance.
• 72% of companies have employees spending more than 15 minutes per expense report, wasting valuable time and leading to significant frustration.

Without digital solutions, expense policies become difficult to enforce, overspending becomes common, and reconciliation is a constant, frustrating battle.

Fleet-specific needs: Why current card solutions don’t work for fleet businesses

Unlike other types of businesses, trades and construction businesses have a mobile workforce that needs to spend money in the field on fuel, vehicle expenses, or other items required to do their jobs.

Traditional corporate cards were designed for office-based employees, not businesses that operate fleets. They often lack the granular controls and visibility that fleet operators need to manage the variety of expenses incurred by their mobile workforce.

Because most corporate card solutions aren’t tailored for this complexity, companies operating fleets of vehicles have had to rely on separate fuel card programs to manage driver spending.

As a result, many businesses end up juggling multiple disconnected card systems: fuel cards for drivers, corporate cards for managers, and even separate cards for recurring vendor expenses. This results in confusion, inefficiency, and more administrative workload.

While the rest of the corporate world now benefits from modern expense management solutions, trades businesses have been mostly left behind, relying on old card solutions and outdated pen-and-paper processes.

That’s why it was time for a better solution, one built specifically for the unique needs of fleet operators.

A new solution: consolidating fuel, employee, and vendor expenses with Coast

At Coast, we’ve already transformed how fleets manage their fuel expenses with robust controls, powerful fraud protection, actionable insights, and seamless integrations with leading fleet tools.

Now, we’re taking it one step further by expanding into corporate card and expense management solutions, uniquely tailored for fleet businesses.

Real-time, automated expense management

• Immediate receipt capture: Employees submit receipts directly via mobile app or SMS instantly at the point of purchase.

• Automated enforcement of expense policies: Digitize policies with customizable limits and documentation requirements to ensure compliance effortlessly.

• Unlimited secure virtual cards: Issue specific virtual cards to vendors or expense categories with customized limits, preventing fraud and simplifying vendor management.

• Instant transaction visibility: Real-time alerts and transaction monitoring help you proactively manage spending.
• Efficient month-end reconciliation: Coast’s smart rules automate expense coding based on fields like merchant, category or location, reducing your month-end close by 1.5 days.

• Seamless accounting integrations: Direct connections to QuickBooks Online, Sage Intacct, and Netsuite sync your transactions in seconds, with customizable exports available for construction ERPs and other systems.

Cut your admin workload in half

By consolidating your fuel, employee, and vendor expenses onto a single Coast platform, you can eliminate the complexity of managing multiple card programs.

Fleet businesses using Coast see:

• 1.5 days saved on monthly reconciliation
• 10% reduction in overall card spend
• 19% improvement in receipt collection

Simplify your operations, reduce overspending, and improve compliance, all from one powerful platform. It’s time for fleet businesses to leave manual expense management behind and embrace the efficiency, control, and savings of Coast.