Employees working from home during the coronavirus pandemic claimed some outlandish expenses this year, including pricey exercise bikes, facelifts and private jets.
Emburse, an expense management software company, released a compilation Wednesday of some of the craziest expenses it has seen claimed this year, some of which were actually approved. That included $1,895, which was approved as a contribution for an employee's Peloton Bike under the explanation of “for health and wellness.” On the other hand, a $7,600 expense claim for a facelift was submitted under the category of “repairs and maintenance” but was rejected, despite the pressing need to look one’s best during a Zoom meeting.
Mike Hughes is a principal platform evangelist at OutSystems.
Bhupinder Kour is a technology writer and works as a content writer at a mobile app and chatbot development company. She holds a degree in technology and is focused on making technology digestible to all. She describes herself as someone who stays updated with the latest tech trends, and is always armed to write and spread the knowledge.
Jennifer Weidler Karpchuk is a senior counsel at law firm Chamberlain Hrdlicka in Philadelphia. She focuses her practice on state and local tax compliance and litigation, and represents clients in a range of taxation matters, with an emphasis on the minimization of state and local tax obligations. Reach her by email at jennifer.karpchuk@chamberlainlaw.com or call (610) 772-2314.
Some expenses weren’t for working from home, but more about getting out of the house safely. An expense claim for a private jet charter costing over $20,000 was submitted and approved under the explanation of “required to limit COVID exposure for international shoots.” Another travel-related expense claim was $2,500 for a helicopter ride, which was not approved.
The $79 expense claim for a dog crate could perhaps be used for travel at some point when that's safer, but in these times it was more plausibly to provide "crate training [for] a new COVID puppy to not run into Zoom meetings."
Below is an infographic produced by Emburse showing this and several other head-scratching claims:
