Cycle to work scheme - any point?

To those saying "just get a bike in the end of season sale instead", why not use the scheme to buy an end of season sake bike and double up on savings? While not always epic savings, this scheme will always be cheaper than buying the bike outright so long as you take the extended hire option.

And not a single person at my comapny who bought a bike on the scheme has ever ridden it to work.

I might get a second one now I'm out of the scheme. For the GF.
 
I'm going to have to look into this again. As the savings don't match to what I read at work last time.

Also is there any bike shops that also sell cyclotiricity or similar conversion kits.
 
Skeeter said:
To those saying "just get a bike in the end of season sale instead", why not use the scheme to buy an end of season sake bike and double up on savings? While not always epic savings, this scheme will always be cheaper than buying the bike outright so long as you take the extended hire option.

And not a single person at my comapny who bought a bike on the scheme has ever ridden it to work.

I might get a second one now I'm out of the scheme. For the GF.
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Some shops specifically exclude sale bikes from the scheme they are affiliated to. For example, one of my local stores...
http://www.hargrovescycles.co.uk/sale/road-bikes.html?cyclescheme=4048

Ah yes, buying a bike through your work scheme for another family member or a mate, another reason why this scheme has/is being downgraded by HMRC. ;)
 
Dimple said:
I really have no idea why I would tell the Police and inform my insurance why my £850 bike got stolen.
How silly of me because i have money to burn.
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You've forgotten the context of that point, I'll refresh your memory:-

amigafan2003 said:
Why can't you sell it?
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Dimple said:
I did post the email in another thread if you can find it.
Something like it is still under contract to them until the extended 3 years is over.
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amigafan2003 said:
And how would they know you've sold it?
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Dimple said:
I'm that unlucky I would be the one they would do a spot check on.
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Gixer said:
In all the years I run the scheme, which was about 3, no one ever had a spot check. You just have to be clever with your wording just like cyclescheme is with theirs. Your bike got stolen didn't it!! ;)
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Dimple said:
I would have to prove I went to the Police & Insurance about my stolen £850 bike.
I appreciate what you are saying and I take far worse risks but I don't want to with this.
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So my "Why would you have to tell your insurance and Police that your bike got stolen?" comment was in reference to a bike that you'd sold but told cyclescheme had been stolen - i.e. why would you tell the police and insurance your bike had been stolen when it hadn't.
 
platypus said:
It's because of abuses like this that the system has been so drastically watered down, and will probably be phased out.
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How is it any different to me buying myself a second bike?

The scheme allows me to get a new bike every 18 months, so how is getting one every 18 months abusing the scheme? :confused:

The scheme even allows you to buy 2 bikes with 1 voucher!
 
amigafan2003 said:
You've forgotten the context of that point, I'll refresh your memory:-

So my "Why would you have to tell your insurance and Police that your bike got stolen?" comment was in reference to a bike that you'd sold but told cyclescheme had been stolen - i.e. why would you tell the police and insurance your bike had been stolen when it hadn't.
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You've lost me, so you agree with me, if a bike got (imaginary) stolen you would have to report it for some kind of proof?
So if Cyclescheme did do a spot check you agree I would have to have a Police number & Insurance claim and if I didn't I'd be rumbled because I obviously can't say 'Oh I couldn't be bothered' on an £850 bike?

When I worked on a factory workmates were doing this all the time with fishing equipment and other stuff.
 
So if Cyclescheme did do a spot check you agree I would have to have a Police number & Insurance claim and if I didn't I'd be rumbled because I obviously can't say 'Oh I couldn't be bothered' on an £850 bike?
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Your house insurance (as an example) only covers single items upto £500 in value, so that's why you didn't bother reporting it to your insurers and the police never do anything anyway.

Why would you need proof of it being stolen - is it not being in your possession not enough? There's nothing to say you HAVE to report a theft to the police/insurers. In fact, cyclescheme only suggest (not insist on) having the bike insured.

It's all hypothetical anyway - it's not in cycleschemes interest to check if people still have the bike which is why there isn't a single instance of them checking.
 
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amigafan2003 said:
Well according to thier calculation it's only worth £212 after the first year and your excess is £250, so that's why you didn't bother reporting it to your insurers and the police never do anything anyway.
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You are confusing me now.
So you are saying if you bought an £850 bike on Cyclescheme and it got 'stolen' you wouldn't bother reporting it?
 
amigafan2003 said:
Your house insurance (as an example) only covers single items upto £500 in value, so that's why you didn't bother reporting it to your insurers and the police never do anything anyway.
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Not mine.
I have prices for all my bikes, music equipment and other toys and they are insured at the price I paid for them.
I had to write a list of what I'd got and what price they cost.
 
platypus said:
It's because of abuses like this that the system has been so drastically watered down, and will probably be phased out.
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Repeatedly buying bikes isn't an abuse of the scheme - it is explicitly allowed.

The "abuse" was companies and employees saying that a 1 year old bike, that cost £1000 has lost all of its value and can be written off. That doesn't fit with standard accounting conventions and HMRC said "Oi, stop it." So now you have extended hire.
 
Dimple said:
Not mine.
I have prices for all my bikes, music equipment and other toys and they are insured at the price I paid for them.
I had to write a list of what I'd got and what price they cost.
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Cyclescheme don't know that.

All I'm trying to illustrate is that cyclescheme have no practical way of stopping you selling the bike whenever you want - just don't go shouting about it from the rooftops - or sell it to someone at work!

Anyway, you don't get where I'm coming from so we'll leave it there.
 
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Cyclescheme do not really give a toss what you actually do with the bike once it is in your possession. They have all the legal gumph written down that you sign into so that their side of the setup is all legal in HMRC's eyes. When you sign into the agreement cyclescheme basically hand over all onus of what happens to the bike to you. You sign in stating that you will pay ALL 12 installments even if you bike were to get stolen. You'd still receive your email from cyclescheme asking if you wanted to extend your hire period too. Cyclescheme do not employ someone to go around to carry out random checks as to what people do with their bikes, they aren't interested. Once they get that 5% or 7% deposit to extend the hire period they've got their bit of the deal that they're interested in.

Just remember that the shops that allow bikes to be purchased for partners, children etc are also exploiting the system. To be fair if it is getting people to be more active, myself I'm not fussed about the small loophole. When you think about the HUGE loopholes that companies or the rich use to avoid tax then ho hum. I know it doesn't make it right but meh.

On a note many contents insurances now cover up to £1k on bikes, mine does with no extra cost at all. If you have an old policy you keep renewing this wont be the case but the ones I looked at last year when comparing had up to a £1k limit as standard.

I get where you're coming from Amiga. If you read how things are all worded and took them as gospel you'd never get a bike through the scheme. You never actually own the bike, it's worded that the bike could be taken back by the employer if they wished etc. the whole scheme runs on clever wording and wink wink, nudge nudges.
 
I'm not trying to lead you to change your mind Dimple. It is your choice what you do at the end of the day. I think Amiga and I were just trying to put your mind at ease if you did want to sell your bike that no one will come chasing after you but I fully understand the reasons you're choosing not to.
 
grumpysculler said:
Repeatedly buying bikes isn't an abuse of the scheme - it is explicitly allowed.

The "abuse" was companies and employees saying that a 1 year old bike, that cost £1000 has lost all of its value and can be written off. That doesn't fit with standard accounting conventions and HMRC said "Oi, stop it." So now you have extended hire.
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Exactly. I totally agree with them hiking the purchase price up. The first time I heard about these schemes was when someone I worked with was calculating how much money he could make getting and selling bikes. He was going to use his and his wife's to buy 2 bikes each and then flog them on ebay immediately.

Hiking the price stops this and means it's only worth it now if you do the full 4 year hire. Using the scheme to get a bike every 12/18 months is exactly how its designed to work.

Plus its a sale my local bike shop wouldn't otherwise get, and another tick in the governments statistics about how brilliant they are at getting people on bikes.
 
Tefal said:
for £1000 id want an engine in the bike :p
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Already done ;)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v25/amigafan2003/bbd3180d.jpg

If the image is larger than 1280 pixels wide please resize, link only or put in spoiler tags. Thank you.

Skeeter said:
Hiking the price stops this and means it's only worth it now if you do the full 4 year hire. Using the scheme to get a bike every 12/18 months is exactly how its designed to work.
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You can still do the "four year hire" thing even if you sell the bike the day after you get it ;)

Oh, and I've never had anything extra added to a bike purchased under scheme - more often than not I get about £100 off the rrp as I buy end of year models. I've done 4 bikes thorugh the scheem. No more now though as I'm retired :-(
 
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