Your link leads to the wrong article. The right article is here: [www.creditcards.com]

Even if the card was in his name and he was supposed to be reimbursed by his company, it's likely he can sue them for the remaining balance. They had an agreement to reimburse him for expenses accrued while he was an employee.

Weird. Companies choose to pay interest on company cards instead of just paying off each balance as it's accrued? That sounds incredibly wasteful and stupid to boot. Surely, even if cash were tight, there are lower interest rates to be had than through a credit card.

I doubt the company is responsible, I have a company card, and its in my name. I am ultimately responsible for it, not the company, I have to submit expense statements and if approved payroll pays off the card, if they aren't approved I would be SOL, as the card is solely in my name. This seems to be more the trend, similar how if you do something bad, your company would no longer shield you and you can be the direct defendant in a lawsuit, even if your actions were on behalf of the company.

I paid off a small balance and closed an account on a corporate Amex when leaving a company ten years ago. Amex then double-billed the final charge. Once to my name (which was already paid) and again separately to my former employer.

All the corporate cards I've ever had have a provision that I'm jointly and severally liable with the company for the balance.

Hey, look on the bright side: Those expenses are tax deductible. So he'll get all that money back in around 345 short days.

Sheesh. I've never really thought of this. But we have a corporate Amex card, so hopefully it's like the personal ones, and the balance has to be paid off each month.

And hopefully I don't get laid off :P

@ Matt Palmer

That's actually not true, if your actions accrued during the scope of employment you are covered and will be offered consul on behalf of the company, you have the option to your own lawyer however.

As far as the credit card, even if it's in your own name, so long as the charges were job related expenses that they rewarded from, they are responsible.

My suggestion is pay off the balance (or make a monthly payment) then seek damages from the company. If they don't cut a check, then take them to small claims court (unless we're talking large sums of money) then sue them.

I once had a Corporate Amex that I turned in when I left and Amex refunded the remaining prepaid balance on the Amex Rewards program to my employer (which we specifically had to pay on our own). I had to go back to my employer to get the balance.

This is a Dilbert cartoon right?

I don't think the part about an "Authorized user" not being responsible for the balance is correct, at least not as a blanket statement. When I added my wife as an authorized user on my Amex Blue, the agreement explicitly stated that she is ultimately responsible for any charges made on her card if I don't pay them. She isn't responsible for the entire account balance, just the stuff she charged to it.

@Skankingmike: Not true, for instance, if you are told to do something unethical or be fired, and you comply, you are solely liable, and good luck proving anything else.

@Esquire99: That makes sense, but that's for a consumer card, right? Since the CC companies go the trouble to make a product called business/corporate card, then I expect there to be different agreements.

Particularly since, with a corporate card, there can be 1 account with multiple users (far more than the 2-4 that the average consumer card permits).

@mmmsoap: I think the AmEx "corporate cards" are actually in the name of individual employees, not the company, and the employee is ultimately responsible. That's why companies like them so much; if someone makes unauthorized charges, they can just say "tough nipples" and make them pay up.

As stated by numerous posters - it can go either way. Either you're an authorized user on the company account with a card in your name (while liability rests solely with 'the company'), or you signed (or verbally signed over the phone) an agreement to be responsible for your charges.

Regardless, the company is also liable for the charges, not just the named person on the card. If there is an actual business owner, they are liable too.

It's even more fun if the layoffs are from the company going out of business. The company my husband used to work for went into receivership and some of the higher-ups who had corporate credit cards - even some who had already left the company - were getting harassed by the credit cards for payment. And many of them were scattered all over the world and didn't know which country's laws applied or not. A big fun mess.

And hell, my husband is still owed a month's pay and severance, but we have no hope of seeing any of that.

@ManiacDan: Not entirely true. You don't have to use a company credit card to pay for company expenses, but the company only has to reimburse you for the expenses that are company related.

I heard a story about someone who worked in a government agency who used their company card to pay for some medical procedure, then couldn't pay it back.
Heads rolled for that one, I'm sure

THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH FOR THREE YEARS.

Sorry for the shouting.

If you have a Business Credit Card, tied to the business, you ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE.
But the whole thing is so absolutely nebulous that in reality, nobody has any idea.
I am currently set up to begin to deal with this legally. Because that is, unfortunately, the only way any of this is going to get resolved.
What they did (four stinking cards) did was slap the entire balance on everybody's (all of the former employees) credit reports and hence, everybody got the same collection calls.
I have the agreement from Amex when the card was taken out: nowhere does it mention employee liability. In fact, quite the opposite, the agreement is specific about the Company being liable. In black and white.
I worked there, made charges on the cards for the company and they are trying to get me to pay?
Bullshit.
Maybe, just maybe, this will begin to work itself out now and more information will appear.
Whatever the point, I am taking my case to court and with two bug boxes of paperwork to back everything up, I hope to come out ahead. We will see.

So long as the expenses were accrued during his term with the company and are a result of actual business expenses, the Company is the liable party for the balance.

They don't get a "Get out of debt free" card when they lay people off.

Wow so many lawyers and so much free legal advice on here.

Would this not best be solved by a conference all with the card issuer, the employer's HR or AP department, and the recently laid off employee?

It only makes sense the employer is liable for the expenses. But the employee has a responsibility to submit expense reports to the company to justify the expense.

My employer REQUIRES all expenses to be paid using the company credit card. They also require company credit cards are to be used only for company business.

If you have a company credit card, for goodness sakes, keep it separate from your personal credit cards. If you get laid off from the company, submit all your expense reports and turn in your company credit card.

It all depends whose credit card it is. If the card is between you and the CC company... it's your credit line, and your responsibility. If it's between the company and the cc company (with your name on it), it's the companies problem.

It gets even worse if the company goes bankrupt... you're now in the middle as a "creditor" and may have to wait, and accept only a portion of the money. I heard long ago the best strategy is just to avoid using a credit card for company expenses if they are in financial trouble to avoid this.

@Matt Palmer: Seconded. I used to have a company AmEx. The company opened the account for me, but I had to provide my SS# and sign for it. The card had my name on it and the company's name and I was liable for all charges. I canceled it when they started paying coworkers' cards 3+ months late... and I will never own a company card like this again. (Why is a multi-billion dollar company asking me to extend my personal credit and liability on their behalf? Yeah, no thanks.)

@Trotsky: good luck. i hope you win.