UK EMPLOYEES spend on average one hour a month calculating their business expense claims, wasting man-hours worth £3.4 billion a year, according to new research from budget hotel chain Premier Inn.
The Whitbread-owned company's Business Expenses Index also reveals that one in four employees is claiming more than ever before - partly because the recession is prompting them to be more scrupulous, and partly because they are "travelling more in order to win business or get work".
Travel and accommodation ranked highest in the breakdown of what people are claiming on expenses, with a total of £83 per month, followed by food and drink at almost £38 per month, phone bills (£24 per month) and entertaining clients (£21 per month).
Only two per cent, however, claim for a second home - and then at an average of only £250 per month.
- June sees the opening of the Premier Inn Hull City Centre, to be followed by new properties in Lisburn and Doncaster in October and Crawley a month later.