[dd]

If an a"Asset" earns you money then surely a van is an asset.

[Marc Stock]

If an a"Asset" earns you money then surely a van is an asset.

The van cannot be an asset as the van is unable to drive itself and clean the windows for you.

The van itself is a Liability. In our case with window cleaning the business goodwill is the asset. The van only becomes an asset if it directly makes a profit in its own right. (You sell it, hire it out)

It's interesting isn't it.

[dd]

If an a"Asset" earns you money then surely a van is an asset.

The van cannot be an asset as the van is unable to drive itself and clean the windows for you.

The van itself is a Liability. In our case with window cleaning the business goodwill is the asset. The van only becomes an asset if it directly makes a profit in its own right. (You sell it, hire it out)

It's interesting isn't it.

By that definition then none of our equipment used for work is an "Asset".

For someone like me who is a sole trader (not a Ltd Company) I am guessing this sort of information is not really important when filling in tax return.

To make life simple (my main goal) I just claim vehicle expenses as a mileage allowance at 45p/mile on first 10,000 - which I do not exceed.

[The Jester of Wibbly]

The van is an asset if you own it.  Any outstanding finance is the liability. ........

The main difference between assets and liabilities is that assets provide a future economic benefit, while liabilities present a future obligation. An indicator of a successful business is one that has a high proportion of assets to liabilities.

There are several other issues relating to the difference between assets and liabilities, which are:

One must also examine the ability of a business to convert an asset into cash within a short period of time. Even if there are far more assets than liabilities, a business cannot pay its liabilities in a timely manner if the assets cannot be converted into cash.

The aggregate difference between assets and liabilities is equity, which is the net residual ownership of owners in a business.

For an individual, the primary asset may be his or her house. Offsetting this is a mortgage, which is a liability. The difference between the house asset and the mortgage is the equity of the owner in the house