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.
Almost all employers plan to make changes to their company culture and workflow one year into the pandemic.
Ayesha leads the District Capital Group at RBC Wealth Management in the Washington, D.C. complex, with 25 years of experience in the wealth management industry.
RBC Wealth Management, a division of RBC Capital Markets, LLC, Member NYSE/FINRA/SIPC.
Jackie C. Klaber is a Managing Director and the Head of Opportunistic Investing at Rockefeller Capital Management, responsible for sourcing and structuring differentiated alternative investment opportunities for the firm’s clients. She previously worked at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. She holds a JD/MBA from Yale Law School and Yale School of Management, a master's degree from Columbia University, and a bachelor's degree from Yale College.
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:
