To feel a bit annoyed this is why I got rejected?

That’s ridiculous.

5 rounds of interviews?! Were you applying for a job as prime minister? I’ve never had more than one interview for a job in my life.

The only time I’ve had to travel a long distance, the company offered to pay the train fare.

Is this one of those stupid fucking tests like the 'coffee cup' one where if you don't offer to wash the cup you don't get the job?

What did you say to the request OP?

Surprised how many posters think 5 rounds is excessive. It's definitely the standard now. 7-8 rounds is on the high end but companies have been doing 7 rounds for years now.

I don't know where you all are working but I have never been offered reimbursement for interview travel! Nor has it ever been booked for me.

Thats appalling. Don’t pay it. What a bloody cheek!

Do not pay. What a cf!!!

Wtf kind of job requires five rounds of interviews? Sounds incredibly inefficient. Send a bill for your travel costs and deduct the coffee.

That is barely plausible. I mean it's outrageous?!!

Five rounds of interviews, hours of prep and travel, probably £300 in costs and this fucko wants £3.40 for a coffee she offered to buy you at an interview she invited you to. Mind blowing shit.

I honestly think that would be the worst employer in the world. You had a lucky escape.

Even when I worked for scammers in direct comission only sales the boss bought us lunch?!

She shouldn't have offered to buy you a cup of coffee if she couldn't afford it. It was perfectly reasonable to expect that when someone offers to buy you a coffee that is a gift, not a loan. You don't owe them anything.

The lady who has the thread complaining her husband doesn’t have a new job after 2 weeks or something, needs to read this thread.

In that situation where the manager has asked for everyones order you would expect they are paying, I probably would have checked. Manager clearly thought they could expense it & found they couldn’t. Incredibly petty & you had a lucky escape there

FIVE interview rounds? And you had to travel cross country for the 5th with no expenses reimbursed?
I would have expected my coffee to be paid for too.
Work out all your time and expenses for all 5 rounds and send them a bill.

Absolutely don't pay that £3.50, let the manager claim it on her expenses.

A memorable brown nose perhaps!

You've got half an idea though. "I won't be reimbursing the cost of the coffee due to the travel expenses I incurred. However, I would be very happy to stand ....... (name of person - always remember names) a hot drink in return if you think I would suit any position in the future".

But like others say, they might be a bunch of wankers.

Dreadful. AI was supposed to make things more efficient was it not.. They need to sieve out poorer applications before any interview or psychometric testing.

And yes - agree with your last para, good idea.

5 rounds of interviews? And £240 on train fares? And you didn't get the money refunded for the train fares? And now they want the money back for a drink that cost less than four quid?

What fresh hell?!

You need to make a claim for the train fares - I would! If they won't pay, it's advisable to check in future (with any prospective employer) that they pay for travel expenses.

Who on earth is this company? Name and shame @ToeSucker ! And what job was it for? I have never heard anything like this!

I’d love to know which company.

I’m embarrassed on their behalf. Who doesn’t buy their interviewee a coffee?

I’m cringing on behalf of the HR person who had to relay that message.

5 interviews?! Sod that for a game of soldiers. There's not a job out there that I'd jump thru so many hoops for. I wouldn't be prepared to do more than 2 interviews at the most.

Omg this wasn't a medical devices company was it?

Came here to say this

Sorry I can't believe this.

Nobody asks for £3 back from someone after an interview in that situation. It's just not believable.

The absolute shame and pettiness of asking for the 3 quid. Putting folks through 5 rounds of interviews, which isn’t the norm , the pp is wrong, making them pay their own expenses and then asking them to send 3 quid for the coffee. The shame of it.

Exactly what I was going to say!

Expenses such as this are tax deductable business expenses for the company of they are part of the usual interview procedure. It would not have ocurred to me to offer the payment.

Good companies should cover reasonable travel expenses for interviewees.

I don't often say this, but I would absolutely name and shame the company on social media.

Bollocks to this. Companies are only getting away with 5 or more interviews because people are playing along. The OP says she attended 5 interviews, so not AI guff, on top of which there would have been an application, CV etc.

After the third interview I'd have been tempted to ask the purpose of any further interviews and withdrawn if they were not going to cover travel expenses as a minimum (and if the post was senior enough to warrant 5 interviews, compensation for the time lost in taking annual leave in order to travel to multiple interviews).

Is something missing, does it say you were rejected as you owed the money, or was it you also owe the money,

either way thays petty as fuck and they should have reimbursed rhe travel.