Handling Work Expenditures
Posted on September 19, 2007 by Him and tagged credit, employment
Money Under 30 just wrote an article on how he handled work expenses, along with great tips on how you can do the same. The article had me thinking about the evolution of how I handle my reimbursable work expenditures and how it fit into our finances.
When I first started at my company, we didn't have much money stashed away in savings, and I had balances on (high interest rate) credit cards. There was no way that I was going front any of my own money in hopes of getting it reimbursed. I knew that other people had company issued credit cards, so I would have to ask them to purchase something for me. At first it was only under $50 items I would ask for, but then when it came time for me to make arrangements for my first business trip, I felt bad asking them to put $1,000+ on their company credit card and then have them deal with the paperwork associated with it. After that, I asked for my own company credit card.
Things went pretty smoothly after that. I put all work related expenses on the company credit card, saved receipts, and did all of the paperwork. During actual business meetings, I would always bring $100 in cash with me for the little things like cab rides or tips, diligently saving all of my receipts. Remember, with anything reimbursable, RECEIPTS ARE KING.
Fast forward to a few months ago. We have no credit card debt, and we're now using rewards cards that we put mostly everything we buy on, and then pay off each month. We even have a substantial (for us) amount of money in savings. All of these things allowed me to cover a lengthly business trip in which I incurred ~$1,800 in expenses. The credit card bill came before the reimbursement check, but we were able to pay with bill without much financial hardship. When the reimbursement check came, we deposited it directly into savings.
By having our own personal finances in order, we were able to not freak out about taking on a relatively big expense, all while earning rewards for business trips that I'd have to go on anyway.
How do you handle work expenses? Has it ever been a drain on you personal finances?
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Theresa | Sep 19, 2007
I put on a bunch of expenses on my personal credit card for my job. I dedicate one card (with a good reqards program) to be my "work" card. That way I do not intermingle my debt with work debt.
Once I get my expense "deposit" (anyone still get a check?) I immediately pay my cc electronically regardless of where I am in the billing cycyle. That way there is no chance I will spend the reimbursement.
Thanks for the nod to my article!
It sounds like we were in similar situations when we first started dealing with work expenses.
Getting that company card is great if your company offers them...mine still only provides them to senior managers even though we have a large sales and marketing force that is often traveling.
Rumor has it a few years before I joined the company an employee abused a corporate card and the company yanked the privilege for we underlings.
All it takes is one bad egg to screw it up for the rest of us!
MVP | Sep 20, 2007
It's outrageous that multi-million dollar companies expect their employees to essentially front the cash for THEIR business expenses. I've had a number of problems (lost receipts, forgotten gas code, etc.) with this system, and somehow the multi-million dollar company always comes out ahead. And I've heard horror stories about companies that require employees to have a company cc. If the company doesn't pay the bill or does so late, you're ultimately personally liable for it (check your contract). Let's not even get into the subject of mileage reimbursement!
We are where you used to be, with very little money in savings and having to use someone else's company card for business trips. I hope we will be where you are now within a few years!
Steve W | Sep 22, 2007
I put 12K of business expenses a year on a personal, Marriott Rewards CC, which I only use for expenses. I always submit expenses immediately. I've paid $00.00 in fees and interest, ever. And my family and I haven't paid for a personal hotel room in 6 years.
Unless your company is undependable or incredibly slow about reimbursing expenses (bad sign that), or no CC will issue you a card, there's no excuse for not using one. You just need to make sure that you don't mix business with personal.
Kate | Sep 24, 2007
I work for a public university and our travel policy states that we are not allowed to use any rewards, frequent flier benefits, etc., earned on business expenses for personal travel. Don't know how they would enforce it, but for folks who are thinking about this you might want to check and make sure it your employer doesn't have a policy against it.
CT Mom | Sep 25, 2007
I have a Corp Amex, which I am diligent about - our billing cycle charges late fees after 45 days (recently shortened from 60) and my employer will not reimburse late fees. So far so good ... no problems yet. My DH does not have a corp card, so he has to use a personal card, which I hate - two trips in 1 month added $5000 to the balance, and his co. is really slow about reimbursements. Still waiting on $1K reimbursement, and the trip was 4 weeks ago ... yet the bill (along with interest charges) still shows up on time! I'm paying out of savings, but I resent the fact that we even have to do that ...
Sarah | Sep 19, 2007
My major issue is when I would take out cash from my company card and then intermix it with my personal cash. Suddenly I would get the company card bill and owe a chunk of change.
Company policy does not allow us to put expenses on our personal cards, unless the vendor does not accept AMEX. (the joy of big companies and auditing capabilities!) Even if we could use our own cards, I don't think I would. I just wouldn't be comfortable with using my own money. But, my trips tend to be in the $3-4k range, and sometimes more.
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