Employee Expenses

G

greeneman

Registered User
Messages
65
WE sent an employee from Cork to Dublin 8 times this year for a training course.
He used his own car. WE don't have a policy in this area.
He has completed his expenses.
He wants €232 for the first 3 trips. I can almost live with that.

But he wants €434 for the fourth and subsequent trips.

He showed me the calculation. It is 520 km (Cork to Dublin round trip) @ €0.8353 per km = €434 per trip. These are civil service rates !
This is insane! Even if he used €100 in diesel and another €100 for wear and tear that seems like loads.

Why the big increase after 1500 kms ?
Where do they get these rates ?

Please tell me where we are going wrong here.
 
The civil service rates are the maximum rates that can be used. The rate goes up after 1,500km You do not have to use them though.

<1.500 km 44.79c per km
1,501 - 5,500 km 83.53c per km
5,501 - 25,000 km 32.21c per km
> 25,000 km 25.85c per km

There is also the subsistence Rates
10 hours + 33.61
5 - 10 hours 14.01

What is going wrong is you sent an employee from Cork to Dublin 8 times without having formal mileage rates in place.


Steven
www.bluewaterfp.ie
 
greeneman said:
WE sent an employee from Cork to Dublin 8 times this year for a training course.
He used his own car. WE don't have a policy in this area.
He has completed his expenses.
He wants €232 for the first 3 trips. I can almost live with that.

But he wants €434 for the fourth and subsequent trips.

He showed me the calculation. It is 520 km (Cork to Dublin round trip) @ €0.8353 per km = €434 per trip. These are civil service rates !
This is insane! Even if he used €100 in diesel and another €100 for wear and tear that seems like loads.

Why the big increase after 1500 kms ?
Where do they get these rates ?

Please tell me where we are going wrong here.
Click to expand...

You don't have a policy so the guy used the default position which is the known civil service rates, these are used much more widely than just in the civil service.
 
Tell them to use the train (book early and get a better rate) and to get taxis both sides. Unless the training facility is very far from the station it will work out much cheaper.

This will afford them time to study on the way down and back too.
 
Dear All,
Thanks for your prompt responses and insights. I find this forum a great resource because of generous people like you.
Its the train and Luas from now on.
If they have to use the car I will give them €0.40 per km. I think that will be fair. Policy will be updated.
 
AirCoach also provide a very good and reasonably priced service at €22 return. Journey time is 3 hours and buses leave on the hour from Batchelor's Walk (?) Dublin and from the Quays in Cork (not far from railway station)
 
greeneman said:
If they have to use the car I will give them €0.40 per km. I think that will be fair. Policy will be updated.
Click to expand...
We pay €0.35 per Km so €0.40 sounds fair.
Remember that he's also entitled to €33.61 a day for subsistence if he's away for more than 10 hours at a time.

Andrew Murphy said:
AirCoach also provide a very good and reasonably priced service at €22 return. Journey time is 3 hours and buses leave on the hour from Batchelor's Walk (?) Dublin and from the Quays in Cork (not far from railway station)
Click to expand...
I wouldn't make someone travelling for work use the bus. That just seems mean, disrespectful even, and will damage your relationship with your employees.
 
Last edited:
Why not set up a MyTaxi corporate account for the use of your staff in Cork and Dublin ?
 
Purple said:
I wouldn't make someone travelling for work use the bus. That just seems mean, disrespectful even, and will damage your relationship with your employees.
Click to expand...

The aircoach is very comfortable with a lot of leg room and a guaranteed seat. I would actually prefer to travel by aircoach than by train from Dublin - Cork
 
Civil Servants mileage rates will not be paid without approval.

Approval will not be given if suitable public transport is available.

If one decides to use their private car to travel to Cork when suitable public transport is available, civil servants will only be entitled to claim the cost of public transport.

‘’(viii) If public transport was available and no allowable reason exists for use of an officers private vehicle the maximum mileage allowance claimable must not exceed the cost of public transport….’’

Lots of other interesting info here;

[broken link removed]

I know a few civil servants who frequently use buses or trains to different parts of the country for official business. There are times for various reasons when travel by car is the only option and approval will be given.
 
twofor1 said:
Civil Servants mileage rates will not be paid without approval.

Approval will not be given if suitable public transport is available.

If one decides to use their private car to travel to Cork when suitable public transport is available, civil servants will only be entitled to claim the cost of public transport.

‘’(viii) If public transport was available and no allowable reason exists for use of an officers private vehicle the maximum mileage allowance claimable must not exceed the cost of public transport….’’

Lots of other interesting info here;

[broken link removed]

I know a few civil servants who frequently use buses or trains to different parts of the country for official business. There are times for various reasons when travel by car is the only option and approval will be given.
Click to expand...

Indeed. Once worked for a private company that had the same rule. Was so much effort for people to get to train/bus stations that it was a bloody nightmare. So people starting booking trains after 9am and trains back that left them back in Dublin no later than 5.30pm. Was just completely pointless going but people didn't appreciate being told use public transport when it took many people a hour to get from parts of Dublin to Heuston station alone. They changed the policy and realised that staff weren't out to rob them. They just wanted their expenses and not be put out by being asked to travel.
 
T McGibney said:
If you expect your staff to travel as part of the work, the least you can do is pay them their expenses.
Click to expand...
Yes, at least that. You are asking people to change their routine and that may mean different child minding arrangements etc. The very least you should do is make sure their day is not even longer because you resent them getting their travel costs covered. If travel is a routine part of their job or if they are particularly well paid that's different but otherwise they should, at the very least, have their expenses covered using the most convenient form of transport they choose.
 
Do the civil service have training mileage rates ? They are significantly less than normal rates (18c per km )and if it was a training course you could use these ?
 
muno said:
Do the civil service have training mileage rates ? They are significantly less than normal rates (18c per km )and if it was a training course you could use these ?
Click to expand...
Cab you post a link to that please?
If I was only getting 18c per km I'd refuse to travel and I'd be seriously p'd off with my boss for being such a tightfisted miserable git.
 
T McGibney said:
No mention here https://circulars.gov.ie/pdf/circular/per/2017/05.pdf and Google throws up little else as far as I can see.
Click to expand...

The appendix on page 3 of that document sets out reduced mileage rates, which apply in certain circumstances. (I'm trying to find a circular or circulars which set out those circumstances, but I'm pretty sure one of them is attendance at certain courses of education or training.)

The practice where I work is that you can always choose to drive if you want, but if there's a suitable public transport option that would result in a lower claim, that's the limit of what you can claim.

Like most things, you can get down to ridiculous hypotheticals in applying the letter of the regulations to the real world in practice...:

Take an employee who lives and works at a remove from the nearest bus/train station, then they can claim mileage from home/work to the nearest station, then a bus/train fare, and possibly a transfer, then if the location they're attending isn't next door to a bus/train station, another public transport fare (or taxi fare) at the other end... and same again on return... when the reality is that anyone with access to a car would drive.

Someone has to decide what constitutes "suitable" public transport in applying the rules.

Much easier in the private sector to just agree a mileage rate you can live with, or vouched reimbursement where applicable, and carry on.
 
We had that rubbish with revenue a few years back. They told us that we couldn't just apply a blanket rate and that we should tell people to use public transport where available. We ignored them and it hasn't come up since.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top