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.
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Brij Sharma is the Co-founder and a Managing Partner at NTV. Brij has more than 25 years of experience as a successful entrepreneur and investor in the U.S., India, and GCC Region.
Brij founded Tela Sourcing, Inc., an outsourcing company focused on servicing the U.S. healthcare insurance market. Tela served more than 50 health insurance clients and was recognized by Gartner as one of the leading specialized company in healthcare services. Brij successfully sold Tela to TriZetto, Inc., a healthcare technology and solution company controlled by Apax Private Equity.
Most recently, through a joint venture with Davita Inc., Brij founded Express Clinics, a network of owned primary care and population health management centers in India. Davita is a Fortune 500 U.S.-based healthcare company. Ultimately, Brij provided a successful exit to Davita by purchasing their shareholding.
Brij is also the Founder of MDIndia, one of the largest third-party administrators of health insurance services in India. MDIndia manages more than 40 million lives, processes over $1 billion in premiums and provides healthcare access through a contracted national network of more than 4,500 hospitals and healthcare centers.
Brij has an MBA from Yale University and is an engineering graduate of the College of Engineering, Pune, India. Brij is an active investor and has ongoing involvement with ventures in the healthcare technology, outsourcing, and mobile commerce space. Brij has also been an advisor since 2010 to the $50 million Somerset Private Equity Fund, which is focused on healthcare investments in India.
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:
