Ruling on using tricks to take more from the company than the value of the rent that it pays
Question A decision has been issued by the company we work for that they will cover the following expenses: the price of renting a house to a maximum of 1500 pounds sterling per month, and 200 pounds sterling per month to cover utility bills (water, electricity and gas). The company will pay the amount of…
Question
Praise be to Allah.
If the matter is as you describe, then you have to tell the
company the truth and not use tricks to take from the company that which it
has not given permission for. If the rent of the house is 900 pounds, it is
not permissible to write it as 1200, whether that includes the utility bills
or not, because the company has differentiated between the two things and
has allocated a specific limit for each.
It is no secret that honesty is one of the greatest of
characteristics and it is the means of all goodness, as the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “I enjoin you to be
truthful, for truthfulness leads to righteousness and righteousness leads to
Paradise. A man may continue to tell the truth and endeavour to be truthful
until he is recorded with Allaah as a speaker of truth. And beware of lying,
for lying leads to wickedness and wickedness leads to Hell. A man may
continue to tell lies and endeavour to tell lies, until he is recorded with
Allaah as a liar.”
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5743)and Muslim (2607).
Recording the amounts as something other than what they
really are involves lying and deceit, and using tricks in order to consume
wealth unlawfully. All of that is haraam. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning): “O you who
believe! Eat not up your property among yourselves unjustly” [an-Nisa’ 4:29].
And the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever
deceives us is not one of us.” Narrated by Muslim (101).
So you have to be honest and tell the truth about the
situation; that is the way that leads to salvation, goodness and blessing.
If anyone has done that previously, he has to return the
money that he took when he was not entitled to it, to the company. If he
fears that this will cause him trouble, then he may send the money to the
company by any means, and he does not have to tell the administration of the
company what he did.
See also the answer to question no.
47086 and
71249
And Allah knows best.