Corporate Amex Credit Card - Expenses

dranzer01

Under 'Travel/Business expenses' , what can/could fall within that?

I have a remote position, so lunches/drinks/dinners all expense within that parameter?

The company provided a vague overview and awaiting clarification on that in the interim.

Anyone here who has a company card for expenses, what do you use it for exactly?

400ixl

Will be down to your company policy.

Few companies these days pay for lunch.
Dinner only when staying away and breakfast for the same.
They will likely have limits on what you can claim for each meal (e.g. £15 for breakfast, £25 evening Meal)

Travel expenses are a typical use (e.g. train tickets) but not fuel as you likely claim a mileage allowance for that.

DullGreyGuy

Every company will have is own travel policy, they vary massively between companies. 

Have had a "corporate card", this was to be used for travel, subsistence and client/supplier entertainment. So for example, with my last employer, long distance flights were booked by a booking agent and billed directly to the company but for shorthaul flights you were to book directly with carriers like EasyJet and use your corporate card.

Hotels were booked by the booking agent but to be settled by you on checkout using the card. Generally you were booked B&B and had a fixed allowance for food/drinks in the evening. Lunch would depend on if you were onsite (in which case self funded but subsidensed kitchen anyway) or an allowance if you were offsite.

Entertainment there were various guidelines depending on the seniority of the company and people you were meeting but always the best route was to agree in advance a budget and then stick to it. Just google where you are going and estimate the bill based on the fact your guests will be ordering steak not burgers. 

I've also had a "purchasing card" which was another class of credit card issued by the employer but was intended for buying other classes of goods/services like stationary, or print etc. Normally its only separated if you are doing a reasonable amount of it... if once in a blue moon you run out to buy some flip chart paper because you've run out for a workshop it doesn't warrant separating them out. 

WillPS

As others have said, go with your company's policies.

I've always claimed lunch expenses while away for a few days on the grounds that at home I have the ability to sort out a pack up for myself but away I have to buy out. If it's a one day thing that doesn't really apply however.

Never had a corporate card but I was told to get one the next time I was requested in Dublin (which never happened because of Covid).

dranzer01

I queried it and they said something along the lines of 'domestic is only for breakfast/dinner'. It is very frustrating when it is not said in plain english but shrouded in all technical jargon.

I basically want to know can I get deliveroo's and uber eats (breakfasts/lunch-dinner) while I am working remotely within the UK 'during working hours'. 

Conversely, I have worked with a number of people previously who had company cards and they would always be using them to buy us drinks at lunch time, sometimes even after work... So that is where my confusion is, because there are a lot of people who use a company card on various things and expense it back.

MorningcoffeeIV

dranzer01 said:

I basically want to know can I get deliveroo's and uber eats (breakfasts/lunch-dinner) while I am working remotely within the UK 'during working hours'. 

From hhat they've told you, it's breakfast and dinner.  Whether you can use Deliveroo and Uber eats depends on whether it's reasonable.

A £30 takeaway may not be considered reasonable if there are cheaper options. On the other hand, if the only alternative is the hotel restaurant in a remote area, it would.

CliveOfIndia

dranzer01 said:

I queried it and they said something along the lines of 'domestic is only for breakfast/dinner'. It is very frustrating when it is not said in plain english but shrouded in all technical jargon.

Can you email your HR department for clarification?  Most companies who issue their staff with corporate cards will have a clearly-documented expenses policy, detailing what can be claimed under what circumstances.  I'd hazard a guess that "domestic" in this context refers to travel within the UK, there may well be different policies if you need to travel abroad.  And most companies will have different policies if you stay somewhere overnight versus a day trip to a client site, for instance.

dranzer01 said:

Conversely, I have worked with a number of people previously who had company cards and they would always be using them to buy us drinks at lunch time, sometimes even after work.

Again, this will be down to an individual company's policies.  Some will allow a "reasonable sum" for entertaining clients, for instance, depending on your job role.

You really need to get clarification from your company, no-one here can really make a guess with any degree of certainty.  I've worked for many companies over my career and they have all had very different expense policies - from extremely generous to downright stingy

MattMattMattUK

dranzer01 said:

I queried it and they said something along the lines of 'domestic is only for breakfast/dinner'. It is very frustrating when it is not said in plain english but shrouded in all technical jargon.

As others have said, it comes down to what is reasonable, that is circumstantial and so cannot always be defined in absolute options. 

dranzer01 said:

I basically want to know can I get deliveroo's and uber eats (breakfasts/lunch-dinner) while I am working remotely within the UK 'during working hours'. 

I would suspect from every company I have worked for in the past, you probably cannot as they would not be deemed reasonable. Deliveroo/Uber Eats is much more expensive than buying the food from the shop, likely to exceed hotel prices in most cases. 

dranzer01 said:

Conversely, I have worked with a number of people previously who had company cards and they would always be using them to buy us drinks at lunch time, sometimes even after work... So that is where my confusion is, because there are a lot of people who use a company card on various things and expense it back.

Different companies have different policies, most that are run properly will apply with the HMRC guidance, even HMRC use the term "reasonable". Many employers place a restriction on alcohol as in general the view is that one does not need alcohol with meals, they may have slightly different rules for specific sanctioned events such as staff parties, client entertainment etc. whilst in other employers consuming alcohol on a company lunch, during work time, might be deemed misconduct. 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/incidental-overnight-expenses-480-appendix-8#

I run my own limited companies, personally I would not deem it reasonable for me to order food via Deliveroo, Uber Eats, Just Eat etc. for myself and expense it on the company, I doubt my accountant would deem it reasonable either. Even more so if I tried to use it for delivery of tea, coffee and snacks.

lr1277

Some thoughts which you might not agree with. Edited to add: I am asking the following questions as I don't understand the setup in which you are working.

Over 20 years ago, I was in IT consultancy and was expected to work at the client's site/office every weekday.

Breakfast on the 2nd and subsequet days was covered as it was provided by the hotel. Dinner was covered, within limits. Lunch was never covered.

Only those in sales/marketing roles were allowed to expense drinks/food if they were entertaining clients. Back then I was a junior consultant (not in an official sales role) and if I was going to expense a meal, I would have to get my manager's say so.

This is the bit you might disagree with:

You say you are working remotely. Is that from home or are you on-site?

If you ae at home and remote working, then nothing is covered. If you are on client site, then certain meals might be covered.

My employer never covered lunch, because if I was at my base office, I would have to go out and buy lunch anyway.

If I was on a client site and it was a day trip fom home, then no food would be covered. Only if I was working away would breakfast and dinner be covered (whatever the means/location of the meal). Lunch would not be covered because as I said if I was at my base office, I would have to buy it anyway.

If you are on-site, what do the staff who are working there do for meals? Can you not be away from your office/desk for more than 30 minutes to go out and get a meal? Is that wny you want meals delivered to you?

Essentially as my experience is more than 20 years old, (HMRC) rules may have changed since then.

I think the principle is based on your employment contract and the normal practices when working at your employer's office.