Expenses: FAQ's for Diamond Users

• Diamond Employees;
• Peer Reviewed Users; and
• Third parties whose expense claims have been pre-authorised by Diamond, including applicants for employment, seconded workers, students, volunteers, interns, members of Diamond’s committees/panels or other third party representatives, agents or external consultants and business partners. It does not apply to contractors or agency workers who we do not expect to submit expense claims to Diamond.

We will reimburse actual and necessary expenses incurred by certain Peer Reviewed Users for Instrument Time at Diamond to the extent that they are reasonable and wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the course of your Instrument Time and subject to the following:

• A Peer Reviewed User based at their UK home establishment at the point of their Instrument Time will be eligible for reimbursement of expenses and/or financial support from Diamond.
• A Peer Reviewed User based at their home establishment outside the UK, but in the European Union (or in another country that is eligible for European Union funds), at the point of their Instrument Time, is encouraged to seek funding from European projects, but should contact Diamond’s User Office to check if we can financially support the experiment.
• Proprietary Users and Peer Reviewed Users based at their home establishment outside the European Union at the point of their Instrument Time are not eligible for reimbursement of expenses or financial support from Diamond.

We will only reimburse expense claims if they are:

• Reasonable and incurred and claimed in accordance with the Expenses Policy and the Financial support and Expenses Procedure for Diamond users;
• In the course of your travel or subsistence for Diamond business or Instrument Time at Diamond or as specifically allowed under this policy and the relevant procedure document;
• Submitted via Diamond’s appropriate expense claims system;
• Submitted within 90 days of being incurred;
• Properly identified and supported by relevant documents (for example: receipts or tickets);
• Authorised in advance where required.

The following non-exhaustive list of items will not be reimbursed by Diamond: Food or drink consumed on your journey to or from Diamond; movies; alcohol or accomodation minibar costs; phone call charges; mobile accessories; laundry services; personal hygiene items. 

Your claims for reimbursement of expenses must be made using Diamond’s online claims system, which can be accessed via the user administration system. 

Your claim will only be processed once you have submitted the claim in the system. If your claim remains in the section 'Created and with Users' it will not be considered to have been submitted. If the claim remains in this area for more than 90 days without being submitted, it will be rejected.

We will make payment within one month of your claim being approved via electronic bank transfer and you will receive an email confirming payment.

During the claims process queries may arise to clarify or correct claims being made, which can extend the approval process. It is vital that detail is provided against receipts to enable the approval process to run as smoothly as possible and keep the processing time to a minimum.

You will only be eligible to receive financial support for travel to and from a Session at Diamond if you are designated ‘Diamond Pays’ on the investigator list for a Session. At the point of submitting the Session Investigators Form, the Principal Investigator or Alternate Contact will nominate members of the team for financial support, by designating them either ‘Diamond Pays’ or ‘User Pays’. The only Diamond Users entitled to receive financial support from us are those designated ‘Diamond Pays’.

Reimbursement of travel expenses will only be provided where:

• Claims are reasonable;
• The most economical means of transport practicable has been used; and
• Diamond Users travel together where reasonably possible.

Travel costs will be reimbursed from the Diamond User's establishment or home to Diamond, whichever is shorter in distance to Diamond.

Diamond Users who have a commuting time of less than 2 hours are expected to make their way to Diamond on the day the experiment is due to start. Accommodation for the night before, may be booked by the Diamond User office if a valid reason for an earlier arrival can be given.

Diamond Users who live within an hour commute of Diamond and who are not working overnight are expected to make their way to Diamond on the day the experiment is due to start. Accommodation cannot be booked.

This might include:

• Where busses or trains would lead to a cheaper fare than taking a taxi, own car or hire car – between Oxford and Diamond this means the Science Shuttle or public transport should be used if at all possible, and claims that do not show reasonable justification for using alternative transport will be challenged.
• Train fares booked in advance at off-peak rates in contrast to train tickets bought at full price on the day of travel.

Taxis should not be used unless no other form of public transport is available. Exceptions where taxis may be used are when:

• The overall cost is cheaper than using public transport because of the number of individuals sharing the vehicle;
• The traveller has special needs (for example, a medical need); or
• There is a personal safety risk.

If you think you will need a taxi please contact the User Office where an appropriate decision can be made and if required the User Office can make the open booking on your behalf. We will e.g. provide open taxis for you to get to and from the hotel as necessary.
An open booking is made with taxi companies that Diamond has agreements with and it is important to alert the User Office if you need a taxi. Any bookings made without the User Office’s prior agreement will be reduced to the cost of an open booking in the claims system.

If you are designated ‘Diamond Pays’ on the investigator list for a Session, you may, where it is cost effective to do so, and where you have prior approval from Diamond’s User Office, hire an appropriate car for the purposes of travelling to Diamond for your Session, but solely for the duration of the trip and Session and no longer. We would expect team members to travel together in the hire car.

Diamond will not reimburse milage costs if a hire car is used.

If you are designated ‘Diamond Pays’ on the investigator list for a Session, and where it is cost effective for you to use your car for travel to your Session, you can claim a mileage allowance. Lone travelling by car is strongly discouraged. Where there is more than one person driving from the same establishment, it is expected they will car share.

For local journeys between Oxford and Diamond: Where busses or trains would lead to a cheaper fare than using your own car you should use the Science Shuttle or public transport if at all possible. Detail of the reasons for using own or hired vehicles during this journey need to be provided in the claim. Claims that do not show reasonable justification for using alternative transport will be challenged. 

Diamond will reimburse a car mileage claim of travel that is no more than a daily commute from the Diamond User's home to Diamond and back home. Adequate evidence of the distance travelled and justification must be provided in the relevant description field. Please see FAQ7 for the criteria relating to travel cost reimbursement.

You should secure low cost airfares by booking in advance and using economy seats. Diamond will only reimburse economy air travel. When booking, please consider the baggage you bring to Diamond and ensure you have adequate luggage allowance. Diamond will not pay excess baggage fees.

Airport transfers should be by the most economical route possible, for example, where busses or trains to airports exist these should be chosen, or adequate justification provided. Where a taxi or own vehicle is used and this leads to additional car parking costs such claims will be challenged.
 

Diamond’s User Office will book accommodation for you according to the request set out by the Principal Investigator or Alternate Contact on the Session Investigators Form (available from within Diamond’s user administration system).

We will only pay for accommodation for those who are designated ‘Diamond Pays’ on the investigator list for a Session). We will still arrange accommodation for you if you are not designated ‘Diamond Pays’ but you will be required to pay the accommodation provider directly for your stay at the point of use. Where you fail to make use of the accommodation we have booked or you leave without paying, your contact details will be passed to the third party accommodation provider in order to secure payment.

Children are not permitted on site, either in Diamond House or the synchrotron building
From time to time we understand that you may be travelling with your family and special conditions may apply.

 The following arrangements require prior agreement with the User Office:

• As family accommodation is not available at the onsite guest house, we ask that you book a family room at a nearby hotel (within 10 miles of Diamond). A list can be provided by the User Office.
• If Diamond is due to pay for your stay, we will reimburse half the family room cost, limited to £120 per night including breakfast.
• Diamond will provide taxis for you to get to and from the hotel as necessary.
• A private room at Diamond can be provided for nursing mothers and fridges are available upon request.