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.
Andrew Mellin, MD, is vice president of medical informatics for Surescripts.
Steffi Gascón Hafen is a member of the Private Client Services and General Federal Tax practice groups in the Los Angeles and Orange County offices of the law firm Snell & Wilmer. She is a Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law, California Board of Legal Specialization.
Josh Collins is president of NueSynergy, a company that provides clients with full-service administration of consumer-driven and traditional account-based plans as well as COBRA and payroll. He is responsible for sales, product development, partner integration, finance and technology. With close to a decade of experience in the healthcare and financial industries, Collins has helped develop and implement benefit account-based products and programs for health plans and employers nationwide that support their program and cost control objectives.
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:
