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.
Michelle Röse is co-founder and COO of Breakaway Advising, She has served for over 15 years in high-level financial roles including CFO, controller and business manager across a variety of industries.
Zoë Martin is an associate in Davis Malm's divorce and family law practice group.
She focuses on complex custody, parenting and support matters, modifications and division of substantial assets of various forms.
Carolyn Van Tine is a divorce and family law attorney at Davis Malm in Boston.
Her practice encompasses family law matters including divorce, separation, custody, parenting plans, child support, alimony, asset division, pre- and postnuptial agreements, parental relocation, paternity, modification, probate litigation, restraining orders and grandparents' rights. Her clients include professional athletes and celebrities involved in divorce and custody disputes.
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:
