For the record, I do not agree with the premise in the title of this thread. I do not commit fraud thinking it will avoid questions. To avoid questions I tell the truth and document it.

Completely agree. Not beeing the judge on any other poster's morale, just hoping everybody is happy after both company and tax audit.

But reviving a 10 year old thread to vent this all over again - maybe not so easy forgiven...

:p

Happened to me with a contractor recently. He was willing to write an estimate and a receipt for $1,000 over the actual cost "to cover my deductible." I declined, partly out of a sense of ethics and partly because I figured our insurance company wasn't born yesterday and had seen through lots of more sophisticated dodges than anything this contractor and I were likely to come up with. As it happened, that was the right move: my insurer insisted on seeing the cancelled check.

I got fed up with travel departments buying cheapest ticket so I charged a per hour rate for travel from my front door to the hotel. On a flight from LAS to MSP changing in EWR the connection got cancelled. Instead of 6 hours for travel it ended up 25, including my time to sleep in a hotel.

An employer balked at my using valet at the airport for 36 hours or less and insisted I use economy parking. I could take 3 bags easily as I was next to,the airport. On longer flights my wife would drop me off (and I didn't charge mileage). I used econ parking for a 2 week trip. And on that trip instead of taking 140 lbs. of equipment (I was elite on DL and could check 3 bags at 70 lbs.) I was forced to use Allegiant. I sent the 140 lbs. FedEX overnight. The cost was more that the ticket difference - $950.00

Because of the new United changes I book tickets last minute to get the highest fare.

I buy chocolates from duty free for my customers to share out when I am giving my closing presentation at the end of my visit. Often they really appreciate chocolates from England and this creates a pleasant environment when I leave.

To expense this legitimately involves a lot of paperwork for the sake of £20-30. So I expense it as a meal. My boss knows and he's fine with it.

Smart employers look at patterns and ranges. If a typical 3-day trip to the UK costs $X, and the total voucher is for approximately that, they give the voucher a once over and approve it. If it's out of whack, that's the time to start looking.

If you don't trust someone with the nickels & dimes, don't trust them with the company's brand.

The only exception here is for US companies overseas (or non-US with equivalent laws), where FCPA and other anti-bribery statutes really mean documenting every client entertainment and goodwill expense down to the penny and with a receipt.

I can beat #2. $709.57 CAD for Mary Brown's Chicken last year in Fort McMurray, AB.

I've worked at places with strict expense policies, and ones without any expense policies. I have to say, it is the ones without that cause me the most stress! I never claim anything dishonestly - and I don't eat / stay / fly any differently to how I do on my own dime (and would happily show them that yes, I purchase extra legroom seats when flying economy, eat meals with wine, stay in decent hotels on club floors if ever asked). No one has had an issue with it, but there are times when it would make me happier if they said $X per diem, or 'this is the policy on seat booking fees' etc.

I have other employees asking me what is allowed and not allowed - since no one knows as there is very little in the way of policy. I tell them what I do, and so far, no one has got into trouble that I know of! But a few rules / guidelines would go a long way into employees feeling that they are not playing Russian roulette with their expenses!

I ask Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental hotels to charge me for their most expensive shirt hanger their laundry services sell. Laundry services don't sell hangers, so they just give me nice ones from the hotel. Sometimes they just give me hangers for free, but most of the times they charge me, and I get reimbursed for laundry.

I don't want to spend $30 a hanger for my dress shirts, and I have OCD so all/most my hangers have to be the same.

edit: just realized the thread is asking for what 'fraud' to avoid question... None? If questioned, I just say it's for cleaning my suits.

That's odd. The ones that didn't actually caused me to spend less. Some policies are just stupid. So I play this stupid game.

I got tired of fighting with our internal travel system when it kept trying to put me on a flight that was double the one I wanted to take-same airline, same route, just a different time. I was actually trying to take the less convenient one.

After 15 minutes of fighting with the system, I gave up.

Mike