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.
Chris Gory is the founder of Orchard Benefits.
Jeffery Mayger is a cybersecurity consultant with industry engagements including utilities, oil/gas, defense and financial services organizations. He has over 20 years of experience and has held senior leadership positions including Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for global mining company Sibelco. His Information Security background includes designations as Certified Information Security Professional (CISSP), Certified SCADA Security Architect (CSSA), and Payment Card Industry Professional (PCIP).
Chris Andrew is a counter fraud subject matter expert at Mind Foundry. He brings over 20 years of financial services experience delivering AI and analytics-based solutions in fraud, financial crime and automation across the insurance and banking industries. Chris works with insurance clients to deliver state-of-the-art AI solutions that help tackle high-stakes problems, focusing on human outcomes and the long-term impact of AI interventions.
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:
