The weirdest business expense submissions of 2022: Can you top these?

Your A/P staffers have seen their share of outrageous business expense reimbursement requests from employees. But how do they compare to the “Craziest Expenses” for 2022 compiled by global expense management company Emburse?

See if you can guess which business expenses were green-lighted and which were declined, then share this list with your team for a laugh.

Business expenses under $500

Although the dollar amounts may be on the smaller side, these reimbursement requests are whoppers because of how unusual they are:

• $110 for a tent because a cost-conscious employee decided against expensing $800 for a hotel room – which we assume was the only lodging option available. Status: Denied (although the company’s VP approved it).
• $200 in dues for an exec’s membership in a hair restoration club. Status: Denied.
• $45 for three cases of ramen noodles when an overseas traveler was forced to quarantine because of COVID. Status: Approved.
• $75 for a tracksuit and some alcohol wipes that served as a road warrior’s makeshift bedbug delousing kit. Status: Approved.
• $0.49 for a single pencil from an office supply store for an employee who must’ve suddenly run out of working pens in their home office. Status: Approved.

Big-ticket reimbursement requests

Stuff that happens on the job can be stranger than a TV sitcom. Imagine having these high-priced business expenses cross your desk, then hearing the employee’s explanation:

• $700 for car repairs after a large raccoon jumped in front of an employee’s car, damaging the engine and cutting a business trip short. Status: Approved.
• $2,200 for airfare to Paris for an employee’s spouse. Status: Unknown. (This company may need to review its travel policy.)
• $4,500 for rental car repairs after an employee inexperienced with driving stick-shift damaged the rental’s transmission. Status: Approved.
• $10,000 for new “home office furnishings,” including a washer/dryer combo. Status: Unknown.
• $74,575 to purchase a replacement for a car that was allegedly totaled in a rental car parking lot. Status: Denied. (The rental company falsely told an employee he had to pay, but Accounting intervened when the employee’s card was rejected.)
• $180,000 for two BMWs that an employee charged to his personal card to impress a client. Status: Approved. (The company’s expense policy was changed and it billed the client for the cars.)