Can I deduct my electric scooter as a legitimate business expense on my taxes?

Yes, you likely can deduct the electric scooter as a business expense, but there are some important considerations. Since you're using it primarily (90%) for business purposes, you'd need to allocate the personal use portion. You can only deduct the business portion - so roughly 90% of the cost in your case. As for how to deduct it, you have options. If you're a sole proprietor, you'd use Schedule C. The scooter would qualify as transportation equipment, and depending on your situation, you could potentially use Section 179 to deduct the full business portion in the year of purchase rather than depreciating it over several years. Just make sure you keep detailed records of your business usage versus personal usage.

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Be careful about the type of business entity you have. If you're just a sole proprietor or single-member LLC filing Schedule C, then you can deduct business assets like this scooter as mentioned above. But if you have an S-Corp and you're an employee of your company, the rules change. In that case, unreimbursed employee expenses aren't deductible on your personal taxes anymore since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Your business would need to reimburse you through an accountable plan.

Dont forget you might be able to claim the lock and phone holder separately as supplies if they're under the $200 de minimis threshold that many small businesses can use! That way they wouldnt have to be bundled with the scooter depreciation. My accountant does this with smaller accessories for my business equipment all the time.

Great question! I've been through similar situations with business transportation deductions. Just to add another perspective - make sure you consider the total cost of ownership when calculating your deduction. Beyond the initial purchase price, you can also deduct business-related maintenance, repairs, insurance (if applicable), and even electricity costs for charging if you can reasonably allocate the business portion. One thing I learned the hard way is to start your mileage/usage log immediately if you haven't already. The IRS loves contemporaneous records, so don't wait until tax time to start tracking. A simple smartphone app or even a basic notebook works fine. Just record the date, purpose of trip, and mileage for business uses. This documentation becomes invaluable if you ever face questions about your claimed business percentage. Also, since you mentioned client meetings - if you're billing clients for travel time or expenses, make sure your deduction approach aligns with how you're handling that income side of things.

One additional consideration that hasn't been mentioned yet - if you're planning to use Section 179 for immediate expensing of the scooter, be aware that there's a recapture provision if your business use drops below 50% in any subsequent year. So if you deduct 90% of the cost this year but next year you only use it 40% for business, you'd have to recapture some of that deduction. Also, I'd recommend taking photos of your scooter showing any business-related modifications or accessories (like that phone mount for navigation to client sites). Visual documentation can be helpful if you ever need to demonstrate the business nature of the equipment. And definitely keep your purchase receipt, warranty info, and any maintenance records organized - treat it like any other business asset for record-keeping purposes. Since you mentioned downtown parking costs, you might also want to calculate how much you're saving monthly on parking fees. While you can't deduct those avoided costs, having that data helps justify the business necessity of the scooter purchase if anyone ever questions the legitimacy of the expense.