More than a third of workers say they never claim back their expenses, according to new research.
Allstar Business Solutions also reveal that 58 per cent routinely don’t claim unless they are owed more than £5 as they think that the amount is ‘too little’.
Workers avoid claiming expenses
Pay and reclaim processes are notorious for being poorly managed, as employees have to jump through hoops to be reimbursed.
Both employees and businesses suffer as a result, because employees who don’t feel comfortable reclaiming are more likely to avoid racking up the costs in the first place.
In fact, the survey of 2,001 British workers indicated that as many as a quarter have postponed or cancelled meetings to avoid paying the cost themselves, with men more likely to cancel meetings to save on paying expenses up front.
A further third of employees report that they have felt ‘financially unstable’ because they had to take on large or unexpected expenses.
The process can be very restrictive for younger employees or those within lower pay bands – 60 per cent don’t set aside money from their monthly earnings in case of business expenses.
Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of people describe the process as frustrating, with the average employee having to wait a whopping four weeks on average before their expenses are paid.
Women claim less than men
What’s more, women claim less than half on work expenses than men.
The research shows that women reclaim £92.95 per month on average while men on average will reclaim £184.34.
Women are more likely to have an average monthly meal expense of under £10, while men are almost twice as likely to claim meals for over £100.
More than 60 per cent of women said they had no monthly hotel costs, compared to 47 per cent of men. This may be because they can save money by staying with friends or family, or because there are fewer women in high-powered roles – it’s unclear at this point.
Women are less likely to claim because they don’t know the process or are worried about getting into trouble with their employer.
Men on the other hand were less likely to claim for a variety of reasons, from thinking that the amount was too little to feeling embarrassed about reclaiming.
Further reading on expenses
