Thank you to all those who participated in our Travel History Trivia, published in the spring edition of the Compass Newsletter! Now that the quiz is closed and we have selected the winner, it is time to share the answers.
1. May an employee be reimbursed for the costs incurred in washing a rental car before returning it to the car vendor?
Answer: Yes, according to the GSA Civilian Board of Contract
Appeals. An employee of the Customs and Border Protection,
Department of Homeland Security (agency), among other costs, requested
reimbursement of $16.00 for the cost of washing his rental car before
returning it to the car vendor. The employee claimed that the
rental car was so dirty from driving on dirt roads while conducting
official business that he could not see through the windows. The agency
denied reimbursement of the car washing cost stating it was not a travel
expense, but rather, a matter of “personal taste or preference” citing a
prior GSA BCA case (Lawrence F. Fragomeli, GSBCA 16086-RELO,
03-2 BCA ¶ 32,349) which denied an employee’s claim for the cost of
washing a personally-owned vehicle during relocation to a new duty
station.
The GSA Board of Contract Appeals ruled reimbursement of claimant’s
cost for washing his rental car was allowable because the employee was
restoring the car to its condition when he first rented it, and his
action avoided additional charges from the rental car company. See In the Matter of GLENN F., CBCA 7227-TRAV, November 24, 2021.
2. May an employee who inadvertently used a third party
website to change his scheduled return flight be reimbursed for the cost
incurred in using the third party?
Answer: No, according to the GSA Civilian Board of Contract
Appeals. An employee with the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), was driving to the San Diego airport for a return trip when he
hit unexpected traffic and needed to reschedule his return flight that
had been booked by the EPA’s TMC. The employee claimed that he did
not have the number of the agency’s TMC and did not want to incur the
TMC fee so he used the virtual voice assistant on his mobile phone for
United Airlines Reservations to change to a later return flight.
According to the employee, the voice assistant identified a phone number
for “United Airlines San Diego,” and the employee, while still in
hands-free mode, asked it to connect him. After the call was connected,
United Airlines hold music played until a phone representative answered,
confirmed that he was with United Airlines, and indicated that the
flight change was subject to a $232 change fee, even though his original
flight was on a GSA city pair fare. The employee provided his
government credit card for the change fee. When the employee arrived at
the United Airlines counter, he asked for a refund of the change fee.
Upon investigation, the United Airlines representative found no change
fee in its system and upon calling the number the employee used the
person on the other end of the call refused to identify himself or the
company and hung up. The employee had been the victim of a phone
scam. However the Board, while sympathizing with the employee denied
reimbursement holding that “the applicable regulations required [him] to
make flight changes in the circumstances here through the EPA’s
existing travel management service, which, had he done so, would have
avoided his involvement in the third party’s chicanery.” See In the Matter of STEWART SIMPSON, CBCA 6271-TRAV, February 19, 2019.
3. Must an employee who used his personal credit card
for travel expenses provide the agency with the personal credit card
statement when requested by the agency?
Answer: Yes. A Department of State employee used his
personal credit card for TDY travel expenses to Guatemala City,
Guatemala, for temporary duty (TDY). He requested reimbursement of
those expenses including lodging costs. The charges on that
receipt were in Guatemalan currency. The agency requested that the
employee submit his personal credit card statement, with redactions for
all charges unrelated to the lodging expenses, to verify the exact
exchange rate used so that it could accurately determine lodging expense
amounts and his reimbursement, in dollars. The employee objected
to providing his personal credit card statement. The GSA Civilian
Board of Contract Appeals held that the agency’s request for the
personal credit card statement was reasonable and consistent with the
Federal Travel Regulation. See In the Matter of MARCUS R. JACKSON, CBCA 5564-TRAV, May 31, 2017.
4. May an employee be reimbursed for an upgrade on his car
rental which he claims he did not request but which was reflected on the
rental agreement?
Answer: No. An employee of the Army Corps of Engineers
was authorized a non-four-wheel drive rental vehicle during the TDY to
Baltimore, MD. The employee stated he requested a compact car and
signed the rental agreement when he picked of the car. The rental
agreement showed an “X” and the word “AGREED” in capital letters next to
the phrase “agreed upon upgrade at $10.00 per day.” After travel,
the employee submitted a claim for reimbursement of the rental car
charges, including the $30 total upgrade charges. The Army
initially paid the charges, but upon a subsequent audit, the Army
concluded it overpaid claimant by $30 due to an unauthorized upgrade of
the rental vehicle. The employee disputed that he should be responsible
for the overcharge claiming that the vehicle upgrade was done without
his knowledge or permission and that he did not sign or initial the line
next to the upgrade charge. The GSA Civilian Board of Contract
Appeals held that the employee could not be reimbursed for the upgrade.
It found that the terms of the rental agreement were clear, and none of
those terms regarding additional charges were initialed or signed
individually. Furthermore, the employee’s signature at the bottom of the
agreement attests to the review of, and signifies concurrence with, the
charges listed in the rental agreement. To the extent that claimant
denies ever agreeing to the upgrade–despite the clear terms of the
agreement and his signature on it–the employee’s dispute was with the
rental company, not the Army. See In the Matter of THOMAS L. NORTH, CBCA 5442-TRAV, October 27, 2016.
5. May an employee who was authorized TDY travel for
training that took place within 50 miles of his permanent duty station
be reimbursed his TDY expenses, including lodging?
Answer: No. An employee of ICE whose permanent duty station (PDS) was at ICE’s Baltimore Field
Office in Maryland was authorized TDY to attend a three-day training
program at ICE’s headquarters building in Washington, D.C. In
connection with the training, the employee stayed at a hotel in
Alexandria, VA. The hotel in Alexandria at which the employee
stayed and the training location in Washington are both located within a
fifty-mile driving distance from his PDS.
After the travel, the employee sought reimbursement for his lodging
costs which his agency subsequently denied because his temporary duty
station was within fifty miles of his PDS. The employee claimed
that he was entitled to reimbursement because the travel for the
mandatory training was authorized in advance and that the agency had
impliedly waived the fifty-mile rule. The GSA Civilian Board of Contract
Appeals held the employee was not entitled to reimbursement of his TDY
costs despite the travel authorization as it “is well established that
the Government may not authorize the payment of money if not in
accordance with statute and regulation….Hence, any misinformation from
an ICE employee that [the employee] detrimentally relied on cannot bind
the agency when it conflicts with the FTR. The Board also held as an ICE
employee he was subject to the ICE Travel Handbook, which does
not provide for the waiver of the fifty-mile rule. Although
ineligible for reimbursement of TDY travel expenses, the employee was
eligible for reimbursement of his local travel expenses. See In the Matter of BRANDON G. ZUMBANO CBCA 6302-TRAV May 16, 2019.
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