ProCard Reviewer Tips
PR001A
Procurement Services
Montey Caston
Updated January 22, 2014
Objective
• Understand what a ProCard approvers
responsibilities entail.
• Learn to use Pathway, cardholder
statements and receipts to ensure
accurate transaction documentation.
Awareness
• Ignorance of the law excuses no one
• Cardholders and Approvers who accept
and use the ProCard are responsible for
knowing and upholding policy.
Here at DePaul
• 835 Active Cardholders
• 200 Approving Officials
• In 2013
– 72,000 Transactions, $17.6 million
– 360 transactions or $88,000 per AO
– $245 = average transaction (up from $203)
– $321,000 not approved on time
– 37% spent from April - June
Responsibility of Approver
• Determine department’s need of card(s).
• Ensure cardholders are compliant with
university policies.
• Review submitted transactions to ensure
proper documentation, appropriateness of
business expenses and proper chartfield
allocation.
• Reject transactions that do not meet
requirements and conduct timely follow-up
with cardholder.
Responsibility of Approver
• Have a clear understanding of why each
purchase was made and who authorized
the purchase.
• Ask Questions!
• Report any suspected fraud to
Procurement Services and Internal Audit.
Establishing a Review Process
• Managers are the university’s first level of
defense.
• Determine realistic monthly review processes
as well as departmental policy for storing
receipts.
• Perform random checks outside of regular
statement approval timeline.
– The threat of a future investigation reduces the
occurrence of fraudulent behavior from 75% to
only 43%.
Accessing the Data
• Printed & Submitted monthly cardholder
statement
• PaymentNet transaction query tool
• Other reports & data in PaymentNet
• Vendor Receipts
Levels of Data
• Transaction date, Dollar amount
Level 1
• Vendor name, location, category
• Purchase ID, sales tax amount
Level 2 • Merchant Alias
• Item description, unit cost, quantity
Level 3 • Passenger name, location and dates
of travel
Using the Data
• Compare data provided by the vendor with
information and documents provided by the
cardholder.
• Line item detail (Level 3) from Pathway, if
available, should match original, itemized
receipt.
• Travel dates and passenger names should
match dates of conference and attendees
identified in cardholder notations.
Reviewing Backup Documentation
• Determine acceptable forms of backup.
• Know what you’re looking at.
• Compare documentation/receipts with other
expenses from the same vendor.
Is this a receipt?
Reviewing Backup Documentation
• Receipts confirm payment has been made and
the transaction is complete.
– They include dates, amount, purchase method, tax
amount, shipping amount
• Receipts do not include:
– Buttons or icons labeled “Submit to order”,
“Checkout”, or “Update Shopping Cart”.
– Estimated tax
– Estimated shipping
Additional Areas of Concern
• Transactions reported as fraud/disputed
–
Follow up to see that credit was received
–
If transaction is fraud, the card should be cancelled immediately
• Meals and Entertainment
• Travel (Hotels, Airfare & Lodging)
• Spending Restrictions
–
Grants – Alcohol, International Airfare
• 3rd Party Reimbursements
–
Items paid upfront by DePaul but to be reimbursed by a 3rd party (conference dues, meals,
etc.)
Meals & Entertainment
• Review Checklist:
– Compare last 4 digits of credit card number on receipt
to employee’s credit card number(s).
– Check where the receipt was issued, e.g. “Bar,” “Patio
Bar,” “Room Service,” etc.
– Review the time that receipt was generated and
compare to the meal being submitted (Saturday at
9:34 p.m. and identified as lunch?).
– Check receipt to see if number in party is identified
and compare to list of attendees.
– Compare the expenses, receipts, and times for other
employees in attendance.
Meals & Entertainment
• Review Checklist (cont.)
– Compare the meal location and time to the
employee’s itinerary and schedule.
– Does the meal fall on the day of departure or return?
– Is the signature authorization receipt the only
documentation submitted or is an itemized receipt
also available?
– Does the receipt include items or charges other than
food/drink (e.g. purchase of restaurant gift card along
with the meal for personal use at a later time.)?
– In addition to the business purpose, are the names,
titles, and affiliations to DePaul documented for all
attendees?
Travel
• Review Checklist:
– Does the traveling employee name match the
passenger name provided by the level 3 detail?
– Do the dates of travel match the dates of conference
and/or hotel stay?
– Is an itinerary the only documentation provided by the
cardholder or is a boarding pass also included?
– Was this trip preapproved or is there evidence of a
clear, legitimate business purpose?
– Does this employee regularly purchase airfare or
have a history of canceled trips?
Hotel and Lodging
• Review Checklist:
– Are original receipts made available for all expenses?
– Are all pages of the hotel invoice present?
– Is the itinerary the only supporting piece of
documentation?
– Check for the number of occupants on the receipt and
compare check-in and check-out dates with dates of
travel.
– Were personal expenses billed to the room?
Other Review Tips
• Never too busy to avoid accountability.
• Get to know the cardholder and understand their
role to determine regular spending habits.
• Check to see if the cardholder has also submitted
expense reimbursements.
• Hold all cardholders to the same standards.
Who to Call if Fraud is Suspected?
• Procurement Services
– (312) 362-7510
• Internal Audit
– (312) 362-8392
• Misconduct Reporting Hotline
– (877) 236-8390
• JPMorganChase
– (800) 316-6056
Questions?
Q&A