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.
Lee M. Shavel is Verisk's president and chief executive officer. He brings over 30 years of experience advising and leading publicly traded companies to Verisk—determining strategies and policies, overseeing financial performance and furthering company culture.
Samantha Russell is chief evangelist at FMG, where she helps financial advisors create digital marketing strategies that produce exponential growth through channels such as content marketing, SEO, website development, social media and video. A prolific speaker and content contributor, she is an InvestmentNews 40 Under 40 award winner, a ThinkAdvisor Luminary and a WealthManagement.com "10 to Watch."
Milo Spirig joined Accrual in 2025. Milo spent more than a decade in fintech at Brex, Stripe, and Citibank. At Brex, Milo led product teams building corporate travel, accounts payable, and API products. Previously, at Stripe, Milo led strategic financial partnerships, focused on expanding the global footprint with card networks and financial institutions. Milo received his MBA from INSEAD and holds a BA in Financial Economics from the University of Rochester.
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:
