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.
Pam Kelley is the Product Line Manager for Wolters Kluwer Tax and Accounting workflow solutions, including CCH Axcess Practice, CCH Axcess Workstream CCH Axcess iQ and CCH ProSystem fx Practice Management. She has been with Wolters Kluwer for almost 20 years, first as a business analyst, then product owner, before moving to product management earlier this year. Prior to working for Wolters Kluwer, Pam’s background includes working as Development Manager for another time, billing & workflow solution provider as well as Accounting Manager in private accounting.
Damon Russel is the Product Line Manager at Wolters Kluwer responsible for driving strategic development, sales and retention, and portfolio management of document management and client collaboration solutions for Tax and Accounting Professionals. He has over 10 years of experience delivering enterprise software solutions for Wolters Kluwer customers and their clients around the globe.
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:
