RCR travel and expenses policy November 2014

Transcription

1 RCR travel and expenses policy November 2014 Contents 1 Background 2 General principles 3 Receipts 4 Authorisation 5 Advice and assistance 6 Air travel 7 Rail Travel 8 Hotels 9 Personal car travel 10 Taxis 11 Hire cars 12 Lunch 13 Evening Meal 14 Stay with friends / relatives 15 UK Speakers expenses 16 Overseas speakers 17 Sundry 1 November 2014 Issue 5

2 1. Background This document sets out the policy for claiming travel and associated expenses from the Royal College of Radiologists in connection with authorised College business. Travel expenses are a significant cost to the College. There are, particularly for longer journeys, potentially considerable savings to be made from pre-booking train and airline tickets. Similar savings are possible with hotel accommodation. Prebooked of College-related travel, but not hotel accommodation, is arranged through the appointed travel agent, Supersonic Travel Ltd. Fellows, members and others make a considerable contribution to the work of the RCR including attending RCR Boards and committees. Unfortunately, it is not possible within available resources to offer first or business class travel. This policy offers the opportunity to use first class rail travel when the cost is no more than a prebooked standard fare. 2. General principles Whilst increasing use is made of audio- and video-conferencing, face to face meetings remain the basis for the majority of College business. The use of a travel agency to pre-book travel can result in savings. However, where those travelling on College business are prepared to spend time pre-booking their own travel and accommodation, this may prove to be cheaper. Particularly with longer rail and air journeys, there can be an enormous difference between the cost of a pre-booked, off-peak service and a fully flexible ticket purchased on the day of travel. Fully flexible bookings usually represent poor value for money and one of the purposes of this policy is to reduce such bookings to an absolute minimum. The College s appointed travel agent, Supersonic Travel Ltd, is given lists of RCR scheduled meetings and the names and addresses of all those expected to attend. The agency will contact attendees six to eight weeks before the meeting and offer to arrange travel. If accommodation is necessary, see section 2.3. Only if attendees are prepared to pre-book their own travel, should they decline the assistance of the agency. The RCR will not meet any claims for travel, accommodation or associated expenses in regard to attendance at any College general meetings (including all Annual General Meetings and all Extraordinary General Meetings) neither will it offer attendees at such meetings travel and accommodation booking through its travel agency. In respect of attendance at RCR Committee, Board and Council meetings by those based outside the UK, expenses will be reimbursed only from the point of entry into the United Kingdom as defined by Council and not from more distant place of habitation. The RCR will not pay travel costs in respect of individuals appointed by other bodies as observers on RCR Boards and Committees. Claims for hotel stays must fall within the maxima set out within this policy. The College will check all claims and authorise reimbursement up to the maximum figures only. 2

3 Attendees are expected to adhere to this policy and behave with honesty and integrity when making expenses claims. HM Revenue and Customs requires that all expenses claims are appropriate, scrutinised and supported by receipts containing the details of the travel and of course we shall continue to meet this obligation. Whilst this policy has been drafted to be clear and to cover most circumstances, it is not possible to provide for all situations which may arise. Accordingly, the Treasurer is given discretion under this policy to vary the provisions taking account of particular circumstances ensuring that as far as possible there is consistent treatment of all travel and expenses claims. 3. Receipts and claims Claimants are expected to retain and submit evidence to support the expenses claim. This might include the ticket or a photocopy of the ticket used, the e-booking document or a print of the grid showing the range of fares available at the time of booking. Credit card receipts alone are insufficient. The only expenses not requiring a receipt are when providing a receipt is difficult or impossible such as for London tube or bus fares, pre-paid cards such as Oyster cards although details of the journey and purpose should be provided and those incurred when staying with friends/relatives. Where more than one source of funding is being used for a particular journey (eg sponsorship and the RCR), this should be clearly stated and the relevant proportion of the claim attributed to the RCR identified. If uncertain, the advice of the Treasurer or Executive Director, Finance and Resources should be sought in advance. 4. Authorisation Claims should be entered on the RCR approved claim form identifying which activity a claim applies to. Claim forms should be returned to the member of College staff responsible for the activity as soon as possible and certainly no later than three months after the event. Claims received after this period may not be accepted. All expenses claims will be checked by the appropriate member of staff to ensure that they comply with this policy and signed by an authorised member of staff. Where an item is claimed that may be outwith the policy, the claim form will be forwarded to the Treasurer or Executive Director, Finance and Resources for decision. Retrospective reviews will be regularly performed on a sample of expenses claims and their related receipts to confirm compliance with this policy. 5. Advice and assistance Any queries on particular claims should be directed to the member of staff responsible for the activity in the first instance. Alternatively, queries may be directed to the Treasurer or Executive Director, Finance and Resources by . Where a claimant is uncertain if a claim is acceptable, assistance should be sought before the cost is incurred. 6. Air travel Except where the individual wishes to book directly within the terms of this policy, all air travel should be pre-booked directly with the RCR s approved travel agent, Supersonic Travel (Tel No: or peter@supersonictravel.biz). 3

4 Economy air travel will normally be offered. From time to time, when deemed in the interests of the RCR, Officers may agree to permit business class travel on intercontinental journeys using the most economical fare. Where business or first Class travel is required by the claimant and they wish to pay the difference, the relevant pre-booked economy fare should be identified in advance and agreed with the Treasurer so that the appropriate allowance can be determined. 7. Rail travel Rail travel will normally be offered at standard class. The cost of advance purchase economy fares purchased on peak rate services can sometimes exceed the cost of first class travel on off-peak services. When this situation arises and it is suitable to the individual, first class off peak travel can be requested from the travel agency (phone or or and separately to book overnight hotel accommodation. When a pre-booked ticket is arranged, the onus is on the claimant to use the ticket on the appropriate service. If the claimant chooses to travel on an alternative service, the claimant will be expected to pay the difference. If a meeting appears to be running over time such that the attendee might miss a booked train or plane, he or she should bring this to the attention of the meeting chair as soon as possible. The chair will then be expected to permit the attendee to leave. Chairs have been asked to make every effort to keep to pre-announced meeting times. 8. Hotels Most RCR meetings are timed to allow attendees to get to and from meetings in a single day. Therefore, the entitlement to claim accommodation is generally limited to one of the following situations: 1. Where the claimant is required to stay overnight to attend another RCR meeting on the following day; 2. Where a meeting is scheduled to start before 9.30am or finish after 7.00pm; 3. Where a meeting runs over several days; 4. Where it can be proved that it is impractical to get to a meeting without travelling overnight; 5. Where the combined cost of off-peak travel and hotel accommodation can be shown to be less than advance purchase travel on peak time services, and the claimant chooses to exercise this option. Hotel accommodation, where applicable, will normally be reimbursed up to the following maxima: the overall cost of bed and breakfast should not exceed 120 (outside London) and 165 (in London) per night. Incidental expenses (eg drinks, videos, telephone calls) incurred whilst staying in a hotel will not normally be allowed. The RCR has negotiated preferential rate arrangements from mid-2013 with Club Quarters who operate the hotel at 61 Lincoln s Inn Fields next door to the College building and at preferential rates with certain other hotels in central London. Details can be found on the College website. For reasons outside our control, however, these preferential rates are frequently unavailable. With the exception of Club Quarters which is only accessible under the RCR's membership arrangements, it may be possible to obtain best value by using the hotel website, contacting the hotel directly or through a search engine such as Hotels.com or travelsupermarket.com. Room rates, particularly in London, fluctuate wildly so it is better to book as early as 4

5 possible. Late deals, though possible, are not widely available in London. Because of varying room rates, it may not be possible to stay in your preferred hotel on any given night while staying within the allowed maxima. 9. Personal car travel A personal car may be used on RCR business when this form of transport is the overall cheapest or most practical means of travel. Claimants may only use a private car for business purposes if they have full comprehensive insurance cover, which specifically includes use for business purposes. Car mileage will be reimbursed according to the College-approved rate (currently 40p per mile). When more than one person is travelling in the car on approved RCR business, a single additional passenger rate of 5p per mile can be claimed by the driver of the vehicle. The names of those Fellows and members travelling in the car must be stated on the claim. The RCR will reimburse parking and toll fees incurred on approved business travel where the cost of travel including the amount claimed for mileage is less than other forms of travel or where the car is the only practical means of travel. Only the standard per day congestion charge is reclaimable via expenses, provided it is incurred whilst travelling on RCR business. The RCR will not pay any additional costs, eg where the driver omitted to pay the standard charge. 10. Taxis The RCR will reimburse the cost of taxis for short journeys of up to five miles within a town or city to facilitate transport where necessary between a mainline station/place of work/airport. Claimants may be asked to confirm that use of a taxi is the cheapest or most appropriate means of conducting approved RCR business. 11. Hire cars This will only be permitted in exceptional circumstances. Advance approval should be obtained from the Treasurer or Executive Director, Finance and Resources. 12. Lunch Meetings held at the RCR that span the lunchtime period will normally have lunch provided (but not meetings ending before or starting after lunchtime) so a claim will not normally arise. Where approved RCR work is being done at another site, a claim for a lunch allowance limited to the actual receipted expenditure up to a maximum of per eligible claimant will be allowed. 13. Evening meal Where an overnight stay is required (as in 8 above), the cost of an evening meal can be claimed up to a maximum of 35 per eligible claimant. 14. Stay with friends/relatives If staying with friends or relatives, rather than in a hotel, the maximum rate that can be paid under an HMRC dispensation is 25 per night including accommodation and any evening meal. It is acceptable to claim for this stating the name and address of the person with whom you stayed. This statement is in lieu of a formal receipt. 15. CPD meetings and conferences UK speakers expenses The College usually expects that UK-based speakers (if Fellows or members of the College) claim their registration fee and travel expenses from their employer. If this is not possible, the College will reimburse the costs of travel in accordance with this 5

6 policy. Honoraria are not given to Fellows and members of the College speaking at College meetings. If an external speaker who requires a lecture fee is proposed, this must be agreed in advance through the Faculty concerned and within the budget approved for the event. 16. CPD meetings and conferences overseas speakers expenses As a general principle, overseas speakers and eponymous lecturers should be invited to offer added value over and above the invited lecture, perhaps by hosting a seminar, giving a short lecture programme or tailored clinical visits to local radiological training institutions e.g. academies, teaching hospitals. The final expenses package will reflect this added value as follows: (a) those travelling from Europe will be offered a maximum package of up to 1500 ( 2000 with added value ) against receipts, or (b) those invited from venues further afield e.g. USA, Canada or Japan/Korea will be offered up to 3000 ( 4000 with added value ) against receipts. It is expected that the budget for the event will have been planned and approved to allow for such costs and so expenses should fall within the budget. 17. Sundry Cancellations Where attendees incur a cost from pre-booking a ticket to attend an RCR meeting and, for a legitimate reason have to cancel their attendance, they will be entitled to enter a claim to have the actual cost incurred repaid. This should be accompanied by a letter outlining the reason for cancellation. The Treasurer will need to be satisfied that the cancellation was reasonable. Where a booking made through Supersonic has to be cancelled, Fellows and members should contact Supersonic as soon as possible. Excess baggage The RCR will only reimburse excess baggage costs that result from carrying equipment/materials on behalf of the RCR. Vaccinations The cost of receiving vaccinations required for overseas travel on behalf of the RCR can be reclaimed from the RCR. Officers travel Any necessary overnight accommodation and expenses in respect of College related work will be reimbursed or paid directly by the RCR as appropriate in accordance with the principles in this policy. Recipients of the Gold Medal and Honorary Fellowship Individuals who accept the awards of Gold Medal and Honorary Fellowship may submit expenses claims as follows: (a) UK residents up to 500 for travel and one night s accommodation (b) From Europe up to 1,000 for travel and one night s accommodation (c) From outside Europe expenses to be based on the price of a fixed business class direct return flight plus two nights hotel accommodation or three nights if travelling from the US or equivalent and from further afield Those invited to provide citations at the Admission Ceremony for recipients of the Gold Medal and Honorary Fellowship will receive the same expenses allowance as UK residents as above. 6