The temptation of Cycle to Work Scheme

[Stuart]

Our HR department announced the latest round of our cycle to work scheme last night. I don't need it, but the temptation to order £1000 of carbon framed road bike loveliness to replace my 5 year old home built e-bay job is soooo tempting.

Anyone know if there is any limit to how many times you can participate? I bought my Rockhopper using it a couple of years ago, and saved 50% on the list price, and it is a great way to buy bikes.

[neil_bolton]

Do it.

You'll never have another chance to sneakily buy an expensive bike on the cheap with a great excuse for the lady

Also, it means you get the chance to start loads of "What bike" threads, and listen to me bore you to death about how great Commencals are, whilst fighting off the Cove/Dialled Bikes/Orange boys

[WildCards]

neil_bolton said:

Do it.

You'll never have another chance to sneakily buy an expensive bike on the cheap with a great excuse for the lady

Also, it means you get the chance to start loads of "What bike" threads, and listen to me bore you to death about how great Commencals are, whilst fighting off the Cove/Dialled Bikes/Orange boys

Wot ee sed ^^

[littleandy0410]

As far as I know, you can use the scheme as soon as your payments have finished for the last one and your employers run it again. A friend of a friend has a ridiculous collection of bikes, most of which have been bought through the scheme. Many ££££s worth!

I'm only jealous as the RAF don't run the scheme so I can't get my hands on cheap bikes! Grrr!

[Mr POD]

Stuart, in my office, is the cycle nutter. Does 50 miles a day for fun. he's trying to advance this idea with HR.

Ideas he also is pushing. Moving the bike shed, so it's next to the front door, putting in showers (there is a shower on the first floor management area) and 40p a mile for traveling to our other site (which is 4 miles away)

He thinks I should cycle 15 miles each way to work ? er no.

[Stuart]

Didn't think I'd get a chorus of disapproval at the suggestion, so thanks chaps.

Trouble is, I can't bring myself to get rid of my home built special, and it'd be worth pennies on fleabay I expect. So I'd need to sneak a bigger shed into the garden and paint it the same colour as ours without her knowing. Oh, and get rid of the old one.

I need to find a way: the revelation that I can have a carbon framed Specialized Tarmac for a penny under a grand (or just over £500 with the tax benefit) is astonishing. 105 today is effectively the same as the Ultegra 10 stuff that I kitted my bike out with two years ago, right?

[pete]

Stuart said:

105 today is effectively the same as the Ultegra 10 stuff that I kitted my bike out with two years ago, right?

Not really - it's still a lot heavier than Ultegra was 2 years ago, even if it has got all of the same technical advances.

Pete

[tjdixon911]

My company has also announced the scheme, but i work 67 miles from home so biking to work is not really an option! Can i still get on the scheme? I quite fancy getting a decent mountain bike through it!

[littleandy0410]

tjdixon911 said:

My company has also announced the scheme, but i work 67 miles from home so biking to work is not really an option! Can i still get on the scheme? I quite fancy getting a decent mountain bike through it!

I think the "rules" say that you're supposed to cycle to work, or part of your journey, a certain amount of the time. (Can't remember the percentage, but it's not that high.) Therefore, cycling to the train station would be fine, or even cycling from your front door to your driveway! But I think it's only your work who have to police/manage it anyway. Are they really going to monitor whether you're using it?

If the RAF finally get round to doing the scheme, I plan on getting a hardtail MTB to go with my full susser and my road bike, and I work 40 miles away across terrible fen roads. I have no intention of cycling that route! (Although I lift share with a guy about half way, so next spring I plan on cycling to his a couple of times a week in good weather)

[tjdixon911]

littleandy0410 said:

tjdixon911 said:

My company has also announced the scheme, but i work 67 miles from home so biking to work is not really an option! Can i still get on the scheme? I quite fancy getting a decent mountain bike through it!

I think the "rules" say that you're supposed to cycle to work, or part of your journey, a certain amount of the time. (Can't remember the percentage, but it's not that high.) Therefore, cycling to the train station would be fine, or even cycling from your front door to your driveway! But I think it's only your work who have to police/manage it anyway. Are they really going to monitor whether you're using it?

If the RAF finally get round to doing the scheme, I plan on getting a hardtail MTB to go with my full susser and my road bike, and I work 40 miles away across terrible fen roads. I have no intention of cycling that route! (Although I lift share with a guy about half way, so next spring I plan on cycling to his a couple of times a week in good weather)

Thanks for the info, I think I read the percentage as being 50% of the time from memory.... I could easily park the car up somewhere and bike the last leg of the journey occasionally....

How does the purchasing work, is the bike essentially bought on finance and the payments taken from your Gross Salary?

[Carreauchompeur]

I thought this was just a one-off tax break?

If not, I am tempted to update the off-road section of my stable, having bought a lovely Cube roadbike earlier this year...

[raceboy]

I think this covers most of the points...

http://www.cycle2work.info/employees/index.html

Just a shame theres little chance of my firm adopting it....if only because most of the time I'm off sick due to cycling accidents...