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.
Pierre E. Debbas is managing partner of Romer Debbas.
Adam Vander Weerdt is agribusiness region leader, for Westfield Insurance.
Jennifer Lee is the President and Co-CEO of Intradiem, a company transforming customer service operations through dynamic workforce orchestration and people-first innovation.
Jennifer's career began on the frontlines of the contact center, where she learned firsthand the challenges and potential of customer service work. Over two decades later, she now leads a company she once supported from the inside, proof that empathy and accountability can coexist at scale. Jennifer joined Intradiem in 2015 as Director of Customer Success. Since then, she has held positions as Chief Strategy Officer, Chief Operating Officer and President, before assuming her current role as Co-CEO.
A passionate advocate for human-centric leadership, Jennifer believes that technology should empower, not replace, people. Under her guidance, Intradiem has grown into a market leader known for combining operational excellence with a deeply human culture—one that values wellbeing, learning, and bold curiosity as much as results.
Recognized for her "frontline to CEO" journey, Jennifer frequently speaks about the future of work, leadership in the age of AI, and building resilient organizations rooted in purpose and compassion. She is driven by a simple belief: when you invest in people, performance follows.
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:
