BUSINESS TRAVEL - A NECESSARY EVIL

Business travel is something which companies have tried to reduce over the years, but for some reason it seems to have grown.

We were all promised that technology such as Video-conferencing would allow people to 'meet' when they were geographically spread, and although the technology has improved in recent years, doing business face to face continues to be the first choice.

In our experience, few things can cause more problems between employer and employees than policies covering business travel. Get it wrong and you can have disgruntled staff, inappropriately high costs, or even legal problems.

So if you or your staff have to travel for your company, we'd suggest the following things to consider:

Set down a written policy covering reasons for travel, authorisation process and expected level of expenses.

Make sure your policy meets Health and Safety and Inland Revenue regulations.

Issue a written copy of the policy to all existing staff and make it part of the new joiners contract information.

If people use their own cars, make sure they have valid driving licences and the appropriate level of insurance, and that their cars are suitable for the types of journey they are making.

If you are at all unsure whether an employee's own car is suitable, make arrangements to hire them a vehicle for the journey.

You could share your thoughts on 'business travel' with other business people.
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