News

FRAUD and misdemeanours committed by business travellers cost UK companies £250 million a year according to a new study.

The research, carried out by on-line business travel guide CityOrganiser.com, found one in 25 business travellers make a fraudulent expenses claim for overseas travel while one in every 50 admitted taking a romantic companion away on their company’s money.

Male travellers were twice as likely to make a fraudulent expenses claim while none of the women questioned had ever invited a companion on a trip.

It also found 3% of business travellers had lost a laptop computer overseas, one in 25 had lost a company-owned mobile phone, the same number had lost a briefcase, 2% had lost a personal organiser and 1% confessed to losing confidential company documents.

CityOrganiser estimated lost property costs and an average fraudulent expenses claim of £50 works out at £250 million on eight million business trips a year.

The survey was carried out among 450 businessmen and women who frequently travel overseas for their job.