Should I snitch on cashback 'womble'?

bananz

Oh and the actual travellers all collected their own frequent flyer/reward points themselves too! We had lists of everyone's details to input into travel bookings! How is it different?

warehouse

happyinflorida wrote: »

The one thing everyone should learn from this is - don't tell anyone what you are doing!

Bingo. Best advice yet.

evilel

I've done this for my company (flowers and gifts for staff funerals/babies etc and one off business purchases) and my boss positively encourages it. As long as I'm making sure the company gets the best deal, cashback site or no, then he couldn't give a monkeys if I get to that best price via quidco or nectar or topcashback.

The company card is in my name. The cashback site pays pennies usually. And my boss always has a willing candidate to take on these jobs which can be seen as extracurricular and annoying. No harm, no foul.

I use a cashback credit card when travelling on business too. I see it as the same thing. I think you'd be daft not to. The company isn't the least bit interested and to kick up a fuss about the pennies involved is more manhours and hassle than its worth.

Leave em be. Get in on the action if you can. If the company has a policy it can be checked in a company handbook and if they don't, make hay while the sun shines. I agree she shouldn't have trumpeted her windfall all around the office though, then you wouldn't be poking your nose in to how she's doing her job - which is probably really efficiently and innovatively.

mrsrolfie

It may be worth warning her to check the policy on before she boasts too much about it, as at my work if you have a work credit card you're not allowed to collect Nectar points, Clubcard points etc. If we did this it's classed as fraud/gross misconduct.

I wouldn't tell Management about it, however if she's boasting someone else may do, so I definitely think it's worth warning her.

johnkanes

Essentially it all depends on the company's policy. I used to work with someone who did somethign similar (amongst other things) and ultimately lost their job. The issue for the company was that the temptation was for the purchasing to be done to maximise the personal gain element rather than actually getting the best deal for the company. I would advise anyone doing this to make sure everything is open and transaparent, in line with company policy, and that they can demonstrate decisions are being made in the company's interests rather than their own. If you feel the need to hide this from others (and particularly management), it suggests that you think you shouldn;t be doing it or that you know the company would take a dim view.

In terms of whether to report it, for me it would depend on my relationship with the person and whether I thought I could have a private conversation with them essentially saying all the above. If I could, that would be my chosen course of action (at least in the first place) but I would have to seriously consider reporting it - not least because I wouldn;t want to be implicated in any way if it "came out" by other means.

florere

Part of her job is to make hotel bookings, if the company hasn't given her a card and she is using her own money, later refunded, I think she should keep the bonuses. If it's a company card it's theirs, of course she should be paying income tax on it, it is earned income. I think the OP would end up with egg on her face if she told, the management might already know and be looking the other way and nobody likes a whistleblower. Look what's happened to Snowdon, and I don't think that anyone is surprised at his revelations.:)

Fitzmichael

double_mummy wrote: »

hmmmmmmmm a weird one this week

If all the caveats in this message are met (and I think it's up to her whether she follows a site's rules), then all that remains is the question whether she is contractually bound to find the best prices (which will take up more time and effort); if that doesn't mean investigating every possibility, including cashback, especially if she does it in her own time, I don't see why she shouldn't take the money - and I'm regarded as a stickler for honesty. ................ but now I (age 72) am thinking my Dad might have had higher regard for an employee (and her future prospects) if she answered that she should use the cashback site and tell him. He would have let her keep at least a share of the money.

tallgirld

Oh please why are you even considering snitching? I assume you do not like this colleague or something.

I think you should mind your own business as you may be very embarrassed if management actually said it was ok for her to do it and that they already know.

Do not risk making yourself look bitter.

PegasusPJ

thriftyemma wrote: »

I think either way it is theft. If the booker is using the company credit card, it has tax implications. If they are using their own card, I would say that's classed as expenses fraud. If a booking cost (let's say) £100, and the booker got 10% cb, the total paid would be £90. But she still submits a claim for the full £100. In my eyes, that's theft.
All these people saying keep quiet, it's none of the OP's business, would you say the same if the booker was booking themselves a holiday on company expenses? Where do you draw the line? It's ok to steal one night's stay, but 10 nights is too much?! Theft is theft.
I think it's the OP's civic duty to report it, and all the people calling sour grapes are just condoning theft.

problem with your logic is that cashback is never guaranteed and takes weeks/months. I've had several that got refused (probably cookie problems), so you could not accurately claim expenses that includes the cashback.. meaning you would not use it (since you'd risk being out of pocket) and therefore cost the company exactly the same as if you get it.

plus what about cashback or miles on your CC (you can't opt out of that for a specific item).. all my CC have either one or the other and so I could not use them at all without 'fraud' by your logic.

Anyway, we're not talking £1000s here..
and not only would I certainly pocket a BOGOF coffee, but I can't think of a place I ever worked at (and I temp so worked at a lot) that would begrudge me for it!

frankly ratting out your colleague for that is just petty.

Johnbyte

Easy one for me. She should be reported, unless your morals are such that it's ok as long as you're not on the receiving end of fraud. Which is what it is, unless the employer knows about it. If they do, it's a perk.