MB here. I strongly suggest you think about buying a nanny car if you can at all afford it/have room for it. There are sooo many advantages. We waited until we had our second kid, but I wish we had done it sooner. You can always get yourself a new(er) car and make your old one the nanny car, too.

We actually bought a new Honda Odyssey and just made it the "kid car." Whoever has the kids, uses that car. So the nanny uses it more than we do during the week.

Advantages:
1) Car seats stay in, properly installed. The main reason we got the car was because with two carseats, our nanny was taking them out when she needed her backseat. We felt much better knowing the seats had been put in properly, not in a rush, in our car, and weren't being taken in and out a lot.

2) You control maintenance, safety features, cleanliness, and anything else that's important to you. You have no idea if your nanny has had to defer needed car maintenance, and you can be sure a car you have purchased has all the airbags and such you want.

3) Insurance. When driving your child during work hours, if your nanny has an accident, the injured party can sue you. This may not seem fair, but since you are more likely to have deeper pockets than the nanny, it has also been known to happen. In your car, while her car insurance will kick in first after any accident, your insurance with higher limits would cover you after hers reaches its limits. You can also solve this problem with an umbrella policy.

4) Reimbursement. The IRS reimbursement rate is high. It is generous to allow people to take the maximum deduction on their taxes. Unless your nanny is driving a brand-new, very fuel-inefficient car, 56.5 cents a mile is a lot. In your car, you only pay actual costs.

Anonymous wrote:I had this issue previously come up with my nanny who said that she wants money for gas mileage. My issue with it is that when I hired her we talked about driving being an important part of her duties and as a result I pay her 20 an hour full time and my kids are in school in the morning. If I had know that she wanted gas/milage money on top of that I would have lowered her hourly rate. Thoughts?

Gas and any extra payments for a car should NEVER be included in the actual pay rate. What if she stops driving for you, or you start to have her use your own car and not hers? You also don't know if she will be doing lots of driving at one time period and then hardly any during another. Since it is hard to keep track of all the different possibilities, it is always best to pay an hourly rate for her actual work, then add on gas/wear and tear using the federal standard 56.5 cents per mile, and add on parking fees (meters or garages) using cash for it or a credit card for that purpose. You shouldn't have her pay out of her pocket and then pay her back if it is recurring (only if occasional and you didn't know in advance). Leave some petty cash money around for it, and have her keep receipts for it all.

Never include driving compensation in your hourly rate, because on weeks when it is heavy the nanny is left resentful, and on weeks when it is light, you're "overpaying" her for nothing. PP that was your mistake, not your nanny's.

OP, IRS reimbursement is what I ask for, plus any tolls or parking fees. No additional gas money on top of it, that covers everything.

If, however, you ask her to do something major - like driving your dog to the groomers when he's been skunked - you should also offer to pay for her car to be cleaned. I had parents do that to me once and not pay for an interior detailing and I was out almost $200 trying to get my car back to normal. I quit soon after.

Anonymous wrote:I had this issue previously come up with my nanny who said that she wants money for gas mileage. My issue with it is that when I hired her we talked about driving being an important part of her duties and as a result I pay her 20 an hour full time and my kids are in school in the morning. If I had know that she wanted gas/milage money on top of that I would have lowered her hourly rate. Thoughts?

You'll have a resentful nanny. During all the interviewing, etc you never once mentioned that gas is included into the hourly rate so I don't think it's fair but than again, it's not my problem. Work it out with your nanny.. If she's driving alot in any particular week than your excuse might not jibe but if she's just driving to the local park, etc then you might get away with that excuse.

The IRS rate covers gas and wear and tear on the vehicle. We used provide our nanny a set amount each month for gas reimbursement as part of her salary until we realized we could offer that benefit tax free. To rectify the problem we removed it from her salary and have her keep track of her miles. She actually gets more money now but it is about the same for us b/c there are no tax implications.

What is standard? The IRS rate and a weekly gas stipend or is the IRS rate meant to cover the cost of gas?

Hi, this is OP. Haven't resolved it yet. It isn't an issue yet as she's never driven anywhere. I plan to talk to her about it tonight.

I too pay her $20/hour, like a PP, but, unlike that PP, we never discussed gas mileage during the interview process. We never really discussed driving at all, other than I mentioned I'd buy her a carseat base. We really "clicked" and I think both of us were excited to just get a basic contract in place and have her get started. This was my first time hiring a nanny and I guess I did not think of everything. The agency I worked with gave me a standard, very basic contract template, and gas mileage wasn't in there.

So she (or I) never contemplated the cost of gas as part of her hourly compensation, and so I cannot fairly say that this should just be absorbed by her as part of her hourly pay.

The IRS info is very helpful, thank you.

Your, sorry.

Anonymous wrote:I had this issue previously come up with my nanny who said that she wants money for gas mileage. My issue with it is that when I hired her we talked about driving being an important part of her duties and as a result I pay her 20 an hour full time and my kids are in school in the morning. If I had know that she wanted gas/milage money on top of that I would have lowered her hourly rate. Thoughts?

You both failed to discuss this during the interview process which is why you had this issue come up. Honestly, anytime a nanny is using her car for work- you are supposed to be paying the IRS rate. Gas reimbursement has never been a part of my hourly rate. They should be separate. How did you resolve the issue with you nanny?

Anonymous wrote:I had this issue previously come up with my nanny who said that she wants money for gas mileage. My issue with it is that when I hired her we talked about driving being an important part of her duties and as a result I pay her 20 an hour full time and my kids are in school in the morning. If I had know that she wanted gas/milage money on top of that I would have lowered her hourly rate. Thoughts?

I think it's reasonable that if she drives a consistent amount each week that the wear and tear/gas be worked into her hourly rate. I'd discuss with her that the normal driving is part of the reason her compensation package is high. You could offer to take into account higher than average weeks. Maybe discuss how many miles you think her salary should cover and then reimburse for any miles above that. The IRS rate is a maximum you can reimburse tax free. But you can certainly do less or even more (if its taxed.)

Anonymous wrote:I had this issue previously come up with my nanny who said that she wants money for gas mileage. My issue with it is that when I hired her we talked about driving being an important part of her duties and as a result I pay her 20 an hour full time and my kids are in school in the morning. If I had know that she wanted gas/milage money on top of that I would have lowered her hourly rate. Thoughts?

Then I'd simply tell her that you included that in her hourly rate given that you knew how approximately how many miles you would be requiring her to drive in advance. But be prepared for a disgruntled nanny. Always better to be clear about these things...

I had this issue previously come up with my nanny who said that she wants money for gas mileage. My issue with it is that when I hired her we talked about driving being an important part of her duties and as a result I pay her 20 an hour full time and my kids are in school in the morning. If I had know that she wanted gas/milage money on top of that I would have lowered her hourly rate. Thoughts?

And I believe the 56.5 cents per mile includes gas and wear/tear on vehicle, although someone can correct me if I'm wrong. So you wouldn't be paying gas on top of that. You would obviously pay parking on top of that though.

Of course. Any time you have your nanny drive her own vehicle for work purposes (besides her commute), I would reimburse at the IRS rate, 56.5 cents per mile.

http://www.irs.gov/uac/2013-Standard-Mileage-Rates-Up-1-Cent-per-Mile-for-Business,-Medical-and-Moving

Question for the nannies: what do you get reimbursed for your gas mileage?

I did not put this in the contract with our nanny (I didn't think of it) when we first hired her two weeks ago. But, I just realized that I will be asking her to meet me at the pediatrician's office, for example, so I think it is only fair that I (1) reimburse for the parking (this is easier since we'll know the exact amount) and (2) reimburse her gas. So, what is a good rate per mile?

Thanks.