Company use of personal credit card.

Vettriano

Hi
It is taken for granted by the company I work for that I will use my credit card to pay for car hire, diesel, office supplies, travel, accomodation, etc.
I already owe money on this card which means every time I use the card for the company I start paying interest immediatley. I now have three business trips over the past 5 weeks not paid for.
In the past 8 months expenses have totaled almost €5000.
I don't get a warm feeling from company credit card request.
What should I do? Also I was asked to organise a bespoke utility fitting to be made for the office. The quote was accepted, the fitting is now made, and now my employer has said they won't pay...

edellc

Vettriano wrote: »

Hi
It is taken for granted by the company I work for that I will use my credit card to pay for car hire, diesel, office supplies, travel, accomodation, etc.
I already owe money on this card which means every time I use the card for the company I start paying interest immediatley. I now have three business trips over the past 5 weeks not paid for.
In the past 8 months expenses have totaled almost €5000.
I don't get a warm feeling from company credit card request.
What should I do? Also I was asked to organise a bespoke utility fitting to be made for the office. The quote was accepted, the fitting is now made, and now my employer has said they won't pay...

I worked in accounts and it was the norm for sales reps to pay for their own expenses and then once a month tally them all up and hand in the receipts, which I would give them a cheque refund....I think it may be in their contract but that was how it was done where I worked

Have you checked your contract as to what it says about company expenses, also are you handing in receipts monthly and getting a reimbursable in a timely manner

It really depends on what your contracts states, if it does state that you will be reimbursed and you are not getting this then you need to go to management and speak to them, or the financial controller of the company...email them also so as you have a paper trail

Also why has the employer said he wont pay, do you have it in writing the request for the utility either email or letter and do you have the acceptance of the quote and authority to proceed with the request in writing

Its very important when you have a conversation regarding monies that you confirm it in email as in " as per our conversation today (whatever date) in relation to (whatever the topic) I wish to confirm that the following was confirmed (and what was spoken and agreed)....this is all fairly normal practice and it covers your ass

And is the bill for the utility in your name or the companies if its in the companies name its not your problem, give your managers name to the person looking for payment and let them deal with it

Nody

To be honest employee paying for T&E expenses is fairly standard until they get organized better (usually the routine goes, excel/paper > basic T&E system > advanced T&E system > company credit card program). There are a few things you can try though.

1) Ask for a rolling cash advance; show how much you're paying every month and ask to have that as a cash advance that's reconciled monthly

2) Ask for a new personal credit card but ask the company to back it (i.e. they confirm to the bank if you default they will pay it) as this will give you a higher limit

3) Ask for a company paid credit card (i.e. company is requesting a credit line that you use)

Now based on what you're saying you're unlikely to get any of them but don't hurt to ask.

Vettriano

Thank you for your replies.
Yes I have an email from my manager to go ahead with the fitting of this bespoke utility.
But his manager has, and is still, saying NO.
I have told my manager it is now up to his, to talk directly with the supplier.
With regards to the credit card, I have requested a company paid, or company backed credit card. After explaining I had owed money on my own credit card and all transactions were gaining interest from day one (no interest free period, as confirmed by the bank) his answer was get a second personal credit card.
I'm not paid "top dollar" and using my credit card does create a cash flow problem for me.
At the moment I have transactions from end of April still not paid.
I'm afraid if I say no to the company using my credit card it will be the end game for me.
I feel this recession is really letting companies use people.
If I were to expect my holidays to be paid by the company credit card that would be the inverse of what is actually happening. Would the company do that for me!

edellc

OP DO NOT GET ANOTHER CREDIT CARD

seriously that is just beyond words any legit company will never ever ask you to do such a thing, tell them no that the bank said no, anything just do not do it

Its one thing to run up debt for yourself but to be stupid enough to do it with company expenses when they are clearing not reimbursing you and are not guaranteeing your debt it just ridicules

Push them to reimburse you send them an invoice for your expenses, with receipts which I hope you have kept, find it in your contract where it says that they reimburse you your expenses and highlight this to your manager, you are an employee and are incurring these expenses on your companies say so, but stop putting them on your card, tell the company its maxed out and any future expenses expected of you once it is said to you inform them that it will need to be put on the company credit card or a cheque will need to be written prior to the expenses occurred for payment.

As for all expenses for the end of April still not paid for, to you thats a big deal but in reality its not, all purchase invoices that includes your expense sheet, for the month of April will still be getting in putted its only the beginning of May, once they are then statements will be reconciled and payments will be processed. In a normal company this can take you up to the middle of May or even the end as most companies pay within 30 days of invoices being issued, but some companies can take longer.....It is not good business sense to not pay employees their expenses in a timely manner, but as I said it is only the beginning of May so Aprils expenses are not overdue to you just yet

Find your contact and see what it says about expenses but its not panic stations just yet for April

fasttalkerchat

A lot of companies pay expenses the month after they are incurred. IMO you should tell your companies that you no longer use credit cards because you are worried about debts. Ask for a advancement to pay for these expenses.

allibastor

Vettriano wrote: »

Hi
It is taken for granted by the company I work for that I will use my credit card to pay for car hire, diesel, office supplies, travel, accomodation, etc.
I already owe money on this card which means every time I use the card for the company I start paying interest immediatley. I now have three business trips over the past 5 weeks not paid for.
In the past 8 months expenses have totaled almost €5000.
I don't get a warm feeling from company credit card request.
What should I do? Also I was asked to organise a bespoke utility fitting to be made for the office. The quote was accepted, the fitting is now made, and now my employer has said they won't pay...

Hi OP.

can i ask you a question. how long does it take your company to pay your expenses. i am unsure from your post if it is a problem with you having a lot of built up expenses, or is it that they do not pay the expenses on time? could you clear this up for me and i could give better advice as someone who regularly gets expenses of 1200 a month.

thanks,

Vettriano

Sorry; I meant from the end of March, March 28th to be exact, for company related expenses that still have not been paid and a lot since then.
I have personal debth on my card that means I am being charged interest on all transactions from day one. (Thanks for all your comments).

edellc

Dont put anymore on your card, tell them you need to be reimbursed your card is maxed out, have you collected all your receipts and put an expense sheet into the accounts department?

allibastor

Hi Op.

From what i gather it sounds like they are just slow to pay, and you are in the position of needing the money fast. Nothing wrong there.

If i can give you advice from someone who deals with this very problem.

get yourself a new card, one with lets say a thousand limit. try and get the best interest deal you can. make sure this card is used only for work.

at the end of each month hand in both your receipts and your statement and ask the company to pay this, and note that charges that build up as a result of their late payment will have to be sorted.

Most companies where travel is required will do this method of expenses. are your a sales rep or something like this.

just be sure to sit down with your manager and highlight to them that you will be taking a new card to cover work, and only work expenses and that the timely paying of this card will be their problem.

hope this helps, i have been in this situation many times and found getting the card meant i could free up my own cash flow for my own life.

Vettriano

Hi Allibastor;
Thank you all for your comments.
Your advice about the new card is what the company told me.
I am not a sales rep, I am an engineer basically runing a department.
I personally think it is not the employees responsibility to take out a personal credit card to credit the employers business. I wouldn't mind the odd less than 50 Euro tx on my card or the odd flight, but to expect an employee to extend credit for office supplies weekly car hire, fuel, IT equipment (small stuff like routers etc), flights, biscuits and coffee for customers, etc is a bit silly. This should be done using a corporate card after all it is for the day to day runing of the business. What would happen if I withdrew my credit. I would not be able to visit customers, etc. These are operational expenses, as an integral part of the business, Not my expenses. I would like to hear the answer if I expected to put a personal holiday trip on the corporate card... My guess is, I would be told NO, a corporate card is for business use only. Extending this logic, one would assume a personal card is not for business use; yet it is obviously an expectation to the point that you feel afraid to challenge it. I am still awaiting expenses to be reimbursed from April. My bank told me my employer was taking a liberty. I must admit I am begining to feel that I am being taken for a fool.

Vettriano

Correction; I am still awaiting expenses to be reimbursed from March

ToxicPaddy

I think the company is really pushing it by expecting you to place all these expenses on your own card. Could you simply refuse to do so in the future?
Or another excuse is to cancel the card as soon as the balance is cleared.

Once they ask you to do this again, tell them that due to the amount of interest you built up due to their late reimbursement of the expenses you were owed, it cause some financial problems so you had no choice but to cancel the card and transfer the balance to a personal loan.

Explain that as a result, the bank is now refusing to give you another credit card and its down to their tardiness in paying you what you were due and make it sound like you're really p*ssed off about it. You'd be surprised what happens when you show your feelings on the matter.

Might not work, but could be worth a shot

n900guy

I think the situations i crazy. You are basically lending them money and getting the money by borrowing it from your credit card. They should be reimbursing all interest, everything, every month. But chances are they won't because that's why they have an employee paying for things in the first place..

allibastor

he simple answer is if you are not happy with how it is run, tell them you are not using your card anymore. simple. i thought maybe you were a rep or something which it would be somehwhat expected to use the card in this way.

just tell them you are no longer using your card and if things like this need to be done you will require a cash advance. if they cannot do this they do not sound like a company who will be around long. might be time to do a runner

ToxicPaddy

allibastor wrote: »

he simple answer is if you are not happy with how it is run, tell them you are not using your card anymore. simple. i thought maybe you were a rep or something which it would be somehwhat expected to use the card in this way.

just tell them you are no longer using your card and if things like this need to be done you will require a cash advance. if they cannot do this they do not sound like a company who will be around long. might be time to do a runner

I think allibastor might be right on this one.. if thats how they conduct business, which imo is very unprofessional, I'd be asking serious questions about how long they will be around.

Might be time to start looking elsewhere

blindsider

Me: Hi boss, look I have a problem with my Credit card. I had some unexpected car/house/dog/cat bills and my Credit card is maxed out. I won't be able to use it for the next 6 months.

Boss: Oh.

Me: Will I talk to Accounts about this, or do you want to?

Either way, make it somebody else's problem.

I would not get another card if they are slow to pay expenses on time - you only end up in an argument about paying late fees and interest.

Re the utility thing you boss asked you about (you have confirmation email)....again, make this your boss's problem. Forward the email to your boss, CC his/her boss and the Head of Accounts. Ask for payment within the week, and keep going to Accounts regularly until it's paid.

Obviously, the more it cost, the more urgent it is.

Best of luck!

allibastor

ToxicPaddy wrote: »

I think allibastor might be right on this one.. if thats how they conduct business, which imo is very unprofessional, I'd be asking serious questions about how long they will be around.

Might be time to start looking elsewhere

Just to point out, 60% of the time, i am right all the time!!!


no to be fair i have seen a few companies which operate this way and they have been less the reputable. you have to ask why they have such a problem with getting a card, aare they in financial trouble or have some credit jugdements against them.

just food for thought.

Vettriano

Hi blind, yes I have the email; thankfully.
And for me I think blinds idea might be the easiest way out. Unless they get arkward.
And; Allibastor, I was just thinking the same my self when the utility fixture was not paid. I since found out that two service bills have not been paid, one has been cancelled by the provider...
Also I've been trying to set up another account and that provider is stalling all the time, even after business references...
Something dosn't seem right. I am going to put in for all my expenses again including todays which is another €200 apx, with interest this time.
I think cc all involved is a good idea and put a time limit on it before I offload it.
All your comments have been great. At least I can act accordingly now without wondering is it just me thinking it dosn't feel right.
Thanks agian.

allibastor

Vettriano wrote: »

Hi blind, yes I have the email; thankfully.
And for me I think blinds idea might be the easiest way out. Unless they get arkward.
And; Allibastor, I was just thinking the same my self when the utility fixture was not paid. I since found out that two service bills have not been paid, one has been cancelled by the provider...
Also I've been trying to set up another account and that provider is stalling all the time, even after business references...
Something dosn't seem right. I am going to put in for all my expenses again including todays which is another €200 apx, with interest this time.
I think cc all involved is a good idea and put a time limit on it before I offload it.
All your comments have been great. At least I can act accordingly now without wondering is it just me thinking it dosn't feel right.
Thanks agian.

hey hope it goes well for you, do just be clear also to keep a copy of all your receipts and such for your own record. if things get a bit hairy, which it sounds like they will, you need those to be able to furnish to the smalls claims court if things go belly up.

hopefully will not though and they will cop on.