Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

[Gasbo]

Is anyone able to offer me any advice. I have been dismissed from work following in excess of 30 years in the same company. Part of my duties were to visit customers in their own homes. I have to adhere to health and safety policies which mean that I have to locate the properties and park my vehicle legally in a position to exit the road etc. sometimes having to park away from the property due to parking restrictions etc. I have always planned the route using an A-Z and measured the mileage using my trip. The only detour would be on very rare occasions for petrol. I nor any of my colleagues have been advised that this method of arranging and recording mileage is not acceptable. Following an investigatory meeting with myself all staff in my particular team were advised that post codes of the properties visited needed to be entered in order that mileage could be checked, again no details provided as to how the mileage should be recorded except for the post code to be provided. I have been advised that the mileage that I recorded which is the actual mileage completed wholly in relation to my duties ( started and ended at work) was inflated against Google and it is classed as gross misconduct. The A-Z that I use was paid for by my employer.. I am in the process of taking the matter further. Any advice

[vanman]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Wow this does not look fair at all
Using your A to Z and looking with the naked eye will not give you the shortest route
But maybe the quickest if you know the local traffic hold ups
But putting it google maps will give you the shortest but it may cost your firm more pay time.

[des8]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

The problem is that Google maps are navigaton tools.
I understand they use publicly available maps to calculate route mileages between two points.
The mileage you get is only as accurate as the maps the web service relies on.
Inaccurate or outdated maps and the mileage is inaccurate.
http://www.ehow.com/info_12183818_ac...ogle-maps.html

Did they say how big the difference was between your recorded mileage and the Google measurements?
Have you had your vehicle's odometer checked for accuracy?

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Is anyone able to offer me any advice. I have been dismissed from work following in excess of 30 years in the same company. Part of my duties were to visit customers in their own homes. I have to adhere to health and safety policies which mean that I have to locate the properties and park my vehicle legally in a position to exit the road etc. sometimes having to park away from the property due to parking restrictions etc. I have always planned the route using an A-Z and measured the mileage using my trip. The only detour would be on very rare occasions for petrol. I nor any of my colleagues have been advised that this method of arranging and recording mileage is not acceptable. Following an investigatory meeting with myself all staff in my particular team were advised that post codes of the properties visited needed to be entered in order that mileage could be checked, again no details provided as to how the mileage should be recorded except for the post code to be provided. I have been advised that the mileage that I recorded which is the actual mileage completed wholly in relation to my duties ( started and ended at work) was inflated against Google and it is classed as gross misconduct. The A-Z that I use was paid for by my employer.. I am in the process of taking the matter further. Any advice

What date were you dismissed? Have you appealed the decision internally? You usually only have a few days to do this. It will be contained in your Disciplinary Policy.

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

The problem is that Google maps are navigaton tools.
I understand they use publicly available maps to calculate route mileages between two points.
The mileage you get is only as accurate as the maps the web service relies on.
Inaccurate or outdated maps and the mileage is inaccurate.
http://www.ehow.com/info_12183818_ac...ogle-maps.html

Did they say how big the difference was between your recorded mileage and the Google measurements?
Have you had your vehicle's odometer checked for accuracy?

As Des has said, I think we need to know a little bit more about what the employer accused you of. What was the size of the issue? Did you have any other disciplinary issues on your file?

[Gasbo]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Hi I have appealed and am waiting to hear but the TU were pretty confident before the disciplinary hearing and are hopeful now. They have told me what I have claimed and what Google States but I have been denied the oportunity to see the post codes of the addresses that I visited. This is over 12 months ago and I would be unable to say what the road conditions were at the time road closures, trafic, weather etc. I am greatful for any guidance/ help in this case

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Hi Gasbo,

Great to hear you're being represented by TU.

What was the difference? What did you claim and what did they say it should have been?

In the investigation report did they not itemise the differences between each of your visits?

Does the employer have a travel policy, that was in place at the time which covered how you record mileage?

[Gasbo]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

I haven't got all of the paperwork but it is between 1 and 10 miles inflated 5 - 20 percent over a period of months. I haven't had my odometer checked, what is the chance of it being wrong. Would I just take the car to the garage and speak to a mechanic?

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Where you say that you don't have all of the paperwork, did they provide you with their management bundle, i.e the documents the relied on to come to their decision?
I'd want to see them all itemised because it could simply be a) your handwriting was misunderstood on the claim form b) you made a simple error on one of your visits c) if it's a rolling add up form, you miscalculated the previous journey's.

I would argue, how could you properly defend your position or give an adequate explanation if you haven't been afforded with the issues with the claim on an itemised basis?

[Gasbo]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

The company has a travel policy, it says that we need to travel the most direct route detailing the accumulated mileage for the entire trip. It used to be that the distance between each visit was recorded and added at the end of the day but that changed some years ago. The company provided an A-Z and paid for it, have never provided a Sat Nav. We obviously have to locate the number of the house as opposed to simply being directed there. Sometimes having difficulty in locating the property.

[Gasbo]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Most of the paperwork has been provided but my rep has it at the moment. The claim was completed electronically. The mileage claim details have been provided but the actual addresses travelled to has been edited. So am having dificulty at the moment

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Ok, so given that the employer provided the A-Z, this was the approved method of working out the most direct route. Google is another way but this wasn't what was directed by your employer, nor does it seem feasible for you to use it if you're out on the road and don't have a smart phone provided.

This does seem like a really harsh decision! We are talking about 10 miles in total right over a number of months?

[orfoster]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Most of the paperwork has been provided but my rep has it at the moment. The claim was completed electronically. The mileage claim details have been provided but the actual addresses travelled to has been edited. So am having dificulty at the moment

Are you paid by the hour including your travel time?

You should have been provided with copies of your electronic submissions, if these haven't been provided I'd ask for them.

[Gasbo]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

Sorry , I forgot to say I had no disciplinary matters in my 30 + years

[Gasbo]

Re: Unfair dismissal following allegation of inflated mileage claims

I did receive a copy of the electronic claims but the addresses had been edited