BUSINESS TRAVELLERS who are frustrated by "archaic" expense claim processes are exacting revenge by defrauding their employers.
Research by KDS, which specialises in automated expense systems, says some staff "may be padding their expenses as retaliation for enduring convoluted claims procedures". At the same time, the researchers suggest, outmoded systems force claimants to waste valuable time completing their expenses - more than one-third of those polled say they spend up to an hour making claims, while 23 per cent admit they take longer.
KDS questioned 364 travel and expense professionals, as well as regular travellers, in the US, the UK and France. One in six Americans admit to infl ating their claims, compared with 10 per cent of French travellers and nine per cent of Brits.
KDS chief executive Yves Weisselberger said: "Expense claims remain a bête noire for many employees, and this survey shows how a minority seek to even the score.
"The greater message of this study is that companies are forsaking important cost-savings when they need them most, and submerging their people in admin when they should be out winning business."