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.
Perry Carpenter is co-author of "The Security Culture Playbook: An Executive Guide To Reducing Risk and Developing Your Human Defense Layer." [2022, Wiley] His second Wiley book published on the subject. He is chief evangelist and security officer for KnowBe4, provider of security awareness training and simulated phishing platforms used by more than 65,000 organizations around the globe. Contact him at perryc@knowbe4.com.
Jenna Everhart is senior vice president of human resources for Health-E Commerce, parent brand to FSA Store and HSA Store, the first and leading online stores for exclusively eligible FSA and HSA shopping, education, and employer solutions.
Michal Cieplinski, founder and CEO at CapStack, is also a co-founder at Pipe and a member of the founding team at Fundbox.
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:
