More and more employers these days are offering their employees the chance to join the ‘Bike to Work’ scheme – mine included. I’m a huge fan of the scheme and have a bike that I paid for using it so today, I thought I’d tell you all you need to know about the scheme.
I bought a second hand bike a few years ago after I realised how much I enjoyed riding my exercise bike but I was so disappointed after my first couple of rides because I felt like it was ridiculously hard work just riding around the block so I relegated the bike to the back of the garage and went back to my exercise bike and the comfort of my kitchen.
I now know that there must have been something wrong with that bike as it felt like I was riding uphill even on the flat, and yes, for any bike people out there – I was absolutely in the right gear. I know that bit at least. 🤣
Fast forward to last Summer, we decided that we wanted to get a bit fitter while spending some quality time together as a family so we both looked into the Bike to Work scheme with our employers as we’re both lucky enough to be able to benefit from it.
We decided to go ahead and get a new bike each using the scheme which basically allows you to buy a bike (it even includes electric bikes) along with any accessories you might need to go with it through your employer. You can spread the cost of your purchases over 12 monthly tax-free instalments.
The money is taken out of your monthly gross pay so it’s deducted before tax and National Insurance are taken off which means that, for basic-rate taxpayers, you’re able to save up to about 3o% of the bike’s cost. Higher rate tax payers will save even more!
The bikes *should* be used for getting yourself to and from work with a very approx figure put on it by the government who set the scheme up of around 50% of your bike’s usage being to commute to work but I read somewhere that if you work from home at any point then you can still participate in the scheme if you will use your bike to pop to the shops in your lunchtime or for a ride in your break – I do cycle into our village every couple of days to pop to to the shops to buy something for tea from one of the little shops. But genuinely, if I didn’t, who would ever know? There’s no monitoring and no need to keep a record or anything.
I was initially a bit undecided about whether to sign up for the Bike to Work scheme so before we did, we popped to our local bike shop and had a chat with the guys in there who were super helpful and let me try a few bikes out. None of which felt as hard work as the one I’d bought off Facebook so I started to feel a bit excited about the prospect of new bikes.
The day we visited the bike shop, we both went home and ordered some vouchers through the Bike to Work scheme – it was super easy to order although both systems were different as they were through different employers. Mine just needed me to visit the relevant section of our Rewards site, tick the Bike to Work box and specify how much I wanted to borrow.
I was able to see at that point what the gross amount would be when it was deducted from my salary and how much that would be net after the usual tax and NI deductions. I was told that I would receive a voucher by email with a code in that I would need to share with the bike shop who would then hold the credit for me to spend. I believe that officially, my employer owns the bike until the end of my payment period.
My email came first, arriving after about ten days and my partners arrived just a couple of days after that so two weeks after signing up to the scheme, we were back in the bike shop choosing our bikes.
It took minutes in the shop to get the codes loaded onto the system and to be able to choose the bikes we wanted.
Although to be fair, the bikes I wanted were the cute bikes with the shopping baskets on the front but they didn’t have any in my size as I have quite short legs apparently. Who knew?
We got a bike each and a helmet for me and then we decided to get a bike each for the kids so we had one each.
You can also officially buy a couple of other things with the Bike to Work scheme vouchers:
- Safety accessories – things like helmets, bike lights, reflectors, mirrors, bells, locks…
- Essential accessories for your commute – things like clothing and shoes, mudguards, panniers, backpacks, child safety seats…
- Components and parts – things like bike pumps, puncture repair kits, cycle tool kits, tyre sealant, groupsets, wheels, cranksets, cassettes…
That’s the official list of what you can buy but our bike shop said that people use them for pretty much anything.
Next month is the last payment that I’ll be making for the Bike to Work scheme – it’s been coming out of my pay every month automatically since we got the bikes and I’ve been told I’ll get an email transferring ownership of the bike to me and then that will be that!
We’ve had so much fun on our bikes this last year and have really made the most of any good weather that we’ve had although we’ve been out in the rain plenty of times too!
We have a regular cycle route which is about a 3.5 mile circular to the pub down by the river where there happens to be a brilliant play park for the kids when we take them and we’ve invested in a bike rack so we can go a bit further afield with them and explore different places although the boot of our Q7 manages to do quite well when we squish them in.
We’ve also discovered a great community at our local bike club and take the kids to the cycle track once a week to learn skills and complete speed laps.
I live about five minutes ride from our little high street and since I’ve gone back to work after being poorly for the first few months of the year, I’ve really tried to take a lunch and get out of the house at least three times a week. It’s not a challenging ride but it does get me some fresh air and I take my backpack so I can get some food for tea – we have a local butchers, a greengrocers and a bakers tucked in amongst the five charity shops and seven pubs so I can always get something fresh and local for tea at the same time as getting out in the fresh air.
Having a bike this last year has been brilliant so my advice to you, if you have an employer who gives you the option to join a Bike to Work scheme – DO IT. 😁
And if you needed any more convincing… In May 2024, private plate specialists Regtransfers published an article around Walk to School Week, revealing that families could save over £400 a year – and reap serious health benefits – simply by walking all, or part, of the way to and from school. In a similar vein, Cycle To Work Day provides yet another perfect opportunity to weigh up the potential benefits and savings on offer as a result of changing from car to bike for your work commute.
In 2022, Cyclescheme estimated that cycling to work could save you £750 per year. Not long after, that figure increased to an impressive £1,262 annually. These savings come from reduced fuel costs, lower vehicle maintenance, and fewer parking expenses. Essentially, the further you cycle, the more you save.
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