Do I Need to Track Company Car Fuel Receipts for CSRD Reporting?

If your business owns or uses company cars, you may be wondering whether you need to collect and track every fuel receipt for sustainability reporting. The short answer: yes, fuel use is relevant — but no, you don’t have to make it complicated.

Here’s what you need to know under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Voluntary Sustainability Reporting Standard for SMEs (VSME).

Why Fuel Use Matters

Company cars burn petrol or diesel, which produces Scope 1 greenhouse gas emissions. These are direct emissions — they come from fuel your business controls and pays for. Learn more about what counts as Scope 1 vs Scope 2.

For SMEs reporting under the VSME Basic Module, fuel use is one of the key categories you’ll need to disclose. Larger companies reporting under CSRD will also expect their suppliers to provide this data.

Do I Need the Receipts?

Yes — but only as a practical source of data. Fuel receipts or invoices show:

• The number of litres purchased.
• The type of fuel (diesel, petrol, gas).
• The date (helpful for separating reporting years).

👉 You don’t need to hand receipts to your bank or clients. You just need to use them to work out your totals.

Alternatives to Receipts

If receipts are messy or incomplete, you can still track fuel use by:

• Company fuel cards — monthly statements show litres and costs.
• Vehicle mileage — multiply kilometres driven by the car’s average fuel use.
• Fleet management systems — often track both fuel and mileage automatically.

As long as you’re consistent, any of these methods are acceptable for VSME reporting.

Worked Examples

Example 1: Using Receipts

You collected 2,000 litres of diesel across the year.

• Emission factor for diesel ≈ 2.68 kg CO₂e per litre.
• Calculation: 2,000 × 2.68 ÷ 1,000 = 5.36 tonnes CO₂e.

Example 2: Using Mileage

One company car drove 20,000 km in a year. Average consumption = 6 litres/100 km.

• Fuel used = 20,000 ÷ 100 × 6 = 1,200 litres.
• Emissions = 1,200 × 2.68 ÷ 1,000 = 3.22 tonnes CO₂e.

Both methods are valid — what matters is consistency.

Practical Tips for SMEs

• Set a simple system: Ask drivers to always use a company fuel card, or snap a photo of each receipt.
• Be consistent: Pick one method (receipts, mileage, or card data) and use it each year.
• Don’t stress about perfection: Estimates are fine. Being transparent about your method matters more than being 100% precise.

At a Glance: How to Track Company Car Fuel

1. Fuel receipts — collect litres directly from invoices.
2. Fuel cards — use monthly statements.
3. Mileage estimates — convert kilometres into litres.

Any of these will give you the numbers you need for Scope 1 reporting.

Key Terms

• Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) — An EU law that requires large companies — and eventually some medium-sized ones — to report on their environmental and social impacts. Smaller suppliers are not directly in scope but may be asked for CSRD-style data by banks or bigger clients.
• Voluntary Sustainability Reporting Standard for SMEs (VSME) — A simplified framework designed to help SMEs share sustainability information. It is voluntary but can help SMEs respond to client or bank requests.
• Scope 1 emissions — Direct greenhouse gas emissions from sources a company owns or controls, such as fuel burned in vehicles or gas boilers.
• Scope 2 emissions — Indirect greenhouse gas emissions from purchased energy, such as electricity, heating, or cooling.
• Emission factor — A standard value that shows how much CO₂ equivalent is released per unit of energy or fuel.

✅ Tracking fuel receipts is a simple but important step for SMEs. Whether you use receipts, mileage, or a fuel card, what matters is having a reliable way to measure fuel use so you can report Scope 1 emissions with confidence.

Company car fuel is part of Scope 1, but you may also need to identify which Scope 3 categories apply to your business:

This tool will help you understand the full scope of emissions reporting, including indirect emissions from your value chain.