Panel beater
invoice template

Panel beaters and bodywork specialists invoice drivers, insurers, fleets and garages for accident repairs, dent removal and resprays. This free template sets out a panel beater invoice the way customers expect to see it, with example lines you can keep or replace.

What goes on a panel beater invoice

Reference the estimate or claim number, the vehicle registration and each repair: panel repairs, replacement parts, paint and materials, and labour hours by operation.

Line by line: Repair rear quarter panel, labour, 6 hours × £48.00 = £288.00; Paint and materials, 1 × £220.00 = £220.00; Rear bumper, supplied and fitted, 1 × £190.00 = £190.00. The subtotal is £698.00. The example assumes you are not VAT registered, so there is no VAT and the total due is £698.00. The figures are illustrative, not a price guide, so use your own rates.

Whatever the job, a UK invoice must carry the basics GOV.UK lists: a unique invoice number, your name or business name and an address, your customer's name and address, a clear description of what you are charging for, the date the work was done and the date of the invoice, the amounts, any VAT, and the total owed. The template has a place for each, and the guide to what a UK invoice must include explains the rules behind them.

Number invoices in one unbroken sequence, such as INV-0001, INV-0002 and so on, and never reuse a number, even for a cancelled invoice. The invoice number generator suggests a format and works out your next number.

How panel beaters price their work

Estimated labour hours at an hourly rate, plus parts and paint materials, with insurers often setting their own labour rates.

Whatever the model, write it on the invoice as the customer agreed it: the unit (hour, day, job, item), the quantity and the rate on each line. A customer who can see how a total was built pays faster than one who has to ask. If you are working out what to charge in the first place, the day rate calculator works back from the income you want, and the markup calculator shows what you keep on anything you buy in.

Agree this before you start

Agree the estimate and authorisation, who pays (insurer, driver or both), the excess, parts (new, used or aftermarket), paint matching and courtesy car arrangements.

When to send a panel beater invoice

On completion and collection, with any excess collected from the driver.

The sooner an invoice goes out, the sooner it is paid: the payment clock starts when the customer receives it. Send it by email as a PDF on the day the work is finished, and the guide to sending an invoice covers what to put in the email.

VAT on panel beater invoices

Standard-rated for a VAT-registered repairer. Insurers of VAT-registered customers often pay the net amount and the customer pays the VAT.

Transport and motor services are standard-rated at 20% once you are VAT registered. Two exceptions come up: passenger transport in a vehicle designed or adapted to carry 10 or more passengers is zero-rated, and second-hand vehicles can be sold under the margin scheme, which charges VAT only on your profit. Until turnover reaches £90,000 you need not register, and an unregistered business shows no VAT.

You must register for VAT when your taxable turnover over any rolling 12 months goes above £90,000, or you expect it to in the next 30 days alone. The VAT registration checker tracks where you are, and invoicing without a VAT number explains what an unregistered invoice looks like.

Who panel beaters invoice

Business customers, including logistics firms, agencies and garages, often pay only against an invoice that quotes their job or purchase order number, and many run fixed payment runs. Ask for their invoicing instructions before the first job. Where an agency places you, check whether they self-bill (issue the invoice on your behalf) so you do not invoice twice.

On insurance work, invoice the insurer for their share with the claim number, and the driver for the excess, on separate invoices.

Recharging costs and expenses

Costs you pay out for a job, such as travel, parking, materials or specialist hire, can be passed on to the customer when you agreed to it. Put each on its own line with a short description, and keep the receipts. Recharged costs are part of your income, and the original cost is your expense; if you are VAT registered, VAT is normally charged on the recharge at the rate of your main service. Only a genuine disbursement, a cost paid purely as the customer's agent, is passed on without VAT. The mileage calculator shows what business travel is worth at HMRC's rates.

Mileage, waiting time and fuel

Distance and time are what transport customers pay for, so show them. Put the collection and delivery points on each job line, the miles or the agreed zone, and any waiting time at the rate you quoted. If your rate includes fuel, say so; if you add a fuel surcharge when prices move, agree it in writing first. For your own tax, keep a mileage log for the vehicle whatever method you use: under HMRC's simplified expenses, cars and vans can claim 45p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles and 25p after that, instead of actual running costs, but you must choose one method per vehicle and stick with it. The mileage calculator shows what your miles are worth.

Deposits, stages and cancellations

Private customers may pay a deposit for parts.

Deposits suit bookings that block out a day or tie up a vehicle, such as a house move or a long-distance job. Charge waiting time and extra drops at the rates you quoted, and show them as their own lines so the customer can see why the total moved.

Payment terms for panel beaters

Insurers pay on their terms; private customers on collection.

If you agree no terms with a business customer, the law sets payment at 30 days after they receive the invoice or the work, whichever is later. Agreed terms between businesses can run to 60 days, or longer only where that is fair to both sides. When a business pays late, the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 lets you claim interest at 8% a year above the Bank of England base rate plus fixed compensation, which the late payment interest calculator works out. These rights do not apply to invoices sent to private individuals, so for household customers your own terms matter even more.

Getting paid faster

Three details decide how quickly most invoices are paid. First, your bank details on the invoice itself: account name, sort code and account number, with the invoice number as the payment reference so you can match the money when it lands. Second, a clear due date rather than "payment on receipt", which customers read as "whenever". Third, a polite reminder the day after the due date, then again at 7 and 14 days. A card payment link on the invoice helps with household customers, who are more likely to pay straight away if it takes one tap. The 30-day payment terms guide and invoice payment terms explain which terms to choose.

If a customer disputes the invoice

Most disputes are about scope: the customer thought something was included that you did not. Respond in writing, point to what was agreed, and separate the part in dispute from the rest, which should be paid on time. If only part of an invoice is questioned, a credit note for that part lets the undisputed amount be settled now. If a business customer still will not pay, a formal letter before action usually does it; after that, in England and Wales, the small claims track of the county court handles claims up to £10,000. The guides to invoice disputes and small claims for an unpaid invoice walk through each step.

Common panel beater invoicing mistakes

• Excess and insurer share on one invoice. Invoice the insurer for its share with the claim number, and the driver separately for the excess.
• No claim number. Insurers match invoices to claims and delay those without the reference.
• Supplementary work without authorisation. If you find extra damage once panels are off, get the insurer's or owner's approval before repairing it.
• Showing VAT when you are not VAT registered. You can only charge VAT with a VAT number, and adding it anyway is an offence. If you are not registered, your invoice shows a total with no VAT line.
• Editing an invoice after sending it. Correct a mistake with a credit note and a new invoice, so your records and your customer's match. The guide to correcting an invoice shows how.

Checklist before you send it

Run through this before every invoice goes out. Each point is a reason invoices get paid late:

• The invoice number is the next in your sequence and has never been used.
• The customer's name and address are right, with their purchase order or reference if they use one.
• Each line shows what was done, the quantity, the unit and the rate.
• The subtotal and total add up, and VAT appears only if you are VAT registered.
• The invoice date, a due date and your bank details are on it.
• A copy is saved with your records before you press send.

Keep a copy of every invoice

Every invoice you issue is a record of income. Keep a copy of each one, digital is fine, along with the payments that settle them. From 6 April 2026, sole traders with qualifying income over £50,000 must keep digital records and send HMRC quarterly updates under Making Tax Digital, with the threshold falling to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028. The MTD requirement checker tells you when it applies to you, and how long to keep invoices covers the retention rules.

Download the panel beater invoice template

The template comes in four forms. The Word version opens in Microsoft Word, Google Docs and Pages: replace the words in square brackets and save. The Excel version opens in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers, and works as a calculator, so each line, the subtotal, the VAT and the total update as you type. The PDF is ready to print. Or skip the download and fill it in online with the free invoice generator, which opens with these panel beater lines already in place and makes a PDF in your own colours, with your logo.

When a template stops being enough, a TapTax account, free to start, creates and sends your invoices, tracks which are paid, and files your quarterly updates to HMRC from the same records. Our guide for panel beaters covers the tax side: expenses, National Insurance and Making Tax Digital.