Automated Expense Verification System Using Clearinghouse Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
The reimbursement of travel expenses is often inaccurate due to errors and fraud, particularly in large organizations, where changes in the airline industry and varying company policies complicate the process, leading to a significant drain on company resources.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method that involves storing reimbursement requests with reference numbers and receiving travel reservation records from payment clearinghouse systems to deny or alert on inconsistencies, such as canceled or exchanged reservations, ensuring accurate reimbursement by comparing employee-submitted requests with reliable clearinghouse data for compliance and fraud detection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual verification of travel expenses is performed, then accuracy of reimbursement can be maintained, but time consumption and labor costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual verification processes with an automated computer system that electronically compares reimbursement requests against travel reservation records stored in a database. The system automatically identifies discrepancies such as canceled, exchanged, or refunded reservations, eliminating the need for manual checking while maintaining high accuracy in reimbursement verification.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-verification by automatically comparing reimbursement data with travel reservation records without requiring manual intervention. The computer system independently performs the verification function, allowing the organization to maintain accurate reimbursement processing while reducing time and labor resources required for manual verification.
2Reliability
If comprehensive verification of travel expenses is implemented, then fraud detection capability improves, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a computer system as an intermediary between the reimbursement request and the travel reservation records. This intermediary automatically performs the comparison and identification of fraudulent or incorrect entries, providing comprehensive fraud detection capability while managing system complexity through automated processing rather than manual verification procedures.
3Productivity
If automated verification systems are deployed, then processing speed increases, but initial implementation costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a digital copy of travel reservation records stored in a computer database, which can be rapidly accessed and compared with reimbursement requests. This copying approach enables fast automated verification processing while avoiding the need for complex manual verification systems, thereby reducing implementation costs through the use of straightforward database storage and retrieval mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
An Expense Verification System (EVS) checks for fraud and errors in reimbursement requests. The EVS stores requests including reference numbers, and receives travel reservation records from a payment clearinghouse system. Each record includes a reference number and associated reservation data. The EVS selectively denies stored reimbursement requests as a function of data contained in the travel reservation record. Alternatively, the EVS selectively issues an alert as a function of data contained in the travel reservation record. Further, the EVS may parse a received reimbursement request to identify a respective reference number, compare the parsed reference number to the stored reimbursement requests to determine whether the parsed reference number matches a stored reference number, and deny the received reimbursement request if the parsed reference number matches a stored reference number. The EVS may store the received reimbursement request if the parsed reference number does not match a stored reference number.