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.
Jeff Sharer is LineSlip Solution's vice president of customer and product experience. He has more than 20 years of insurance experience as an underwriter, broker and risk manager. As the industry has digitized, Jeff has focused his work on transforming risk information management to make better risk decisions.
Jay Beynon is a financial advisor with Axió Capital Advisors at Stifel Independent Advisors and is based in Hunt Valley, Maryland.
Curt Farmer is the chairman, president and CEO of Comerica Inc. and Comerica Bank. Dallas-based Comerica has offices in 17 states and serves 14 of the 15 largest U.S. metropolitan areas as well as Canada and Mexico. Comerica reported total assets of $91.1 billion at March 31, 2023.
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:
