EIM32325 - Travel expenses: travel for necessary attendance: safeguards against abuse: journeys treated as private travel: example

An employee lives in Cannock and has a permanent workplace in West Bromwich. One weekend she visits her grandmother in Lichfield. On Monday morning she drives from Lichfield direct to visit a client in Stafford.

Although the employee began her journey from Lichfield for personal reasons, and her journey is 6 miles longer than it would otherwise have been, the journey is primarily made for a business reason. So it is not substantially private travel, see EIM32320. She is entitled to mileage allowance relief for that journey, see EIM31626.

This example shows that you should not use the rule against substantially private travel to deny a deduction where small sums and small distances are involved.