CYCLE TO WORK SCHEMES

What is a cycle to work scheme? It’s just about the best way to get to own a lovely shiny new bicycle, that’s what! You don’t need us to tell you that riding bikes is great, and luckily we are not the only ones that think so. The government recognises that there are colossal benefits to more cycling.

People who ride bikes are happier and healthier and if you put a cycle journey in place of one that was made by car, bus or train then it’s good for the planet too. So, they would love to get more people cycling, particularly for their journeys to work. Luckily, lots of smart employers also recognise these benefits and that a cycling workforce is a happier, healthier workforce and here’s where the scheme comes in. The gov teams up with your employer to offer a very attractive route to get cycling.

So how does it work? Your employer loans the money to buy a bike and the government offers a very tidy tax break on the whole deal to make it a very attractive route to ownership. The repayments are split across a year (in most cases) and are taken directly out of your pay packet as a salary sacrifice, pre-tax, so you don’t pay tax on the amount of your purchase that is removed from your salary each pay-packet. This can mean up to a very handsome saving of around 30% off your purchase overall, so you see, it’s a great way to save money on owning a new bike and the payments are more manageable by being split over the year, keeping more of your money in your own pocket for longer while you are enjoying your lovely new bike.

Now, it does get a little complicated managing the tax arrangements and the salary sacrifice, so in most cases, employers will enlist the help of a cycle to work scheme provider. The provider is a third-party company who handles all the tricky tax arrangements and salary sacrifice calculations for you and your employer, and for this, the provider takes a small admin percentage but this ensures everything runs smoothly and is easy and headache-free for you and your employer.

There are lots of different providers offering the scheme and each will have their own arrangements and operating methods. You don’t need to worry about choosing a scheme, this is done by your employer. Most good employers will already have arrangements in place with a provider so you’ll need to contact your HR department or whoever manages such things at your workplace and find out which scheme they use. The provider will have a website with information about the specific arrangements and what is offered through their scheme and in most cases you will need to register through them in order to apply for the scheme.

Once you know your scheme and are registered then the fun begins, its time to choose a bike and accessorised package. You don’t need to go mad but there are a few essentials that we’d say are really vital to using and enjoying your bike that you really don’t want to be without and these will depend on what you plan to do with your bike. Of course, everyone needs a helmet and often some other clothes like padded cycle shorts will make cycling a lot more comfortable but for some people things like cycle locks, luggage rack and bags might be really useful and are well worth considering as part of your cyclescheme purchase as they are then included in the overall cost of the package, and of course, you make a bigger saving.

This is where we come in. Summit Cycles work with all the major providers and have been busy matching riders with their perfect bike for over 25 years. We can help you choose the right bike from the bewildering plethora of options available on the market today. We’ll help you find the right style of bike and then make sure you are sized correctly for the options available. Correct sizing is essential to ensure your bike fits and works well for you, this ensures your bike is comfortable and safe to ride. Our staff have knowledge and expertise gained from sizing thousands of riders and our store carries specialist measuring and fitting tools to make sure you are sized with accurate measurements. Throughout the process we’ll need to ask questions about the riding you want to do and how you intend to use your bike but the result will be a very happy partnership between bike and rider that will set you on the best possible path for enjoying your cycling.

There are many styles of bikes to choose from, bikes for sport, leisure, fitness and adventure. There are bikes to cruise quiet green lanes and bikes to take on rugged mountain tracks, bikes that will help build confidence in new riders or deliver performance to budding athletes, the styles on offer is seemingly limitless and there are always new developments in cycling to get excited about.

E-bikes have become hugely popular in recent years and their technology has advanced significantly alongside their popularity. As many cycle to work scheme providers now offer a route to e-bike ownership, motor assisted riding is now within reach of riders considering ownership through a cycle to work scheme. And with the higher price tag comes the potential of a bigger saving, something well worthy of considering.

Summit Cycles are e-bike specialists. We offer e-bikes from Trek and Specialized, two global leaders for the development of new bicycle technology who have built their reputation on building great bikes backed by solid customer support. The added complexity of motor, battery and control systems makes service, backup and support of an e-bike an even more important consideration when making a purchase. We trust these brands and have worked with them for many years, we know the quality of their bikes and their commitment making sure customer have a great experience. You get a great bike from a global brand at a nice price, from a local store with friendly faces who are on hand to help with any questions or problems you may have.

Once you’ve chosen a bike and accessories package, we’ll raise you a quote or give an amount that you’ll need to apply for via your cycle to work scheme provider. What happens at this stage can vary a little depending on the scheme but our staff will know and can run through what to expect in each individual case. Most of the time the application will go back to the provider and there will be a processing period which can be up to around a month. When your application has been accepted and processed you will usually get a confirmation or letter of acceptance to confirm that things are good to go ahead. In a lot of cases we will have already ordered your bike and the acceptance letter means we can release the bike to you.

Prior to collection we do all the really important stuff that needs doing before you can ride. One of our fully trained and accredited CYTECH cycle mechanics will build your bike and put it carry out a rigorous pre-delivery multi-point safety check to ensure it is safe and ready to ride. We’re proud to have the biggest and best equipped cycle workshop in West Wales that’s accredited by major manufacturer and motor system providers.

On final collection we’ll make sure you go away with final details like saddle and handlebars set just right for you and do some final checks to make sure our sizing was accurate and that your bike is a perfect fit. Then you are free to enjoy your new bike.

You’ll continue to make salary sacrifices through the term of the agreement as agreed with your scheme provider until the bike is paid for. Arrangements around the finalisation of the scheme vary between providers so you will need to see your scheme providers details for this. Some schemes operate more like a lease, with ownership of the bike retained by the employer or scheme until the bike is fully paid off and the scheme closing arrangements finished, others give you ownership right from the start. These details can easily be found out through the scheme provider and are worth considering when thinking about insurance arrangements as you should be aware that your liability to repay remains even if your bike is stolen. For this reason, you may want to make arrangements to insure your purchase, or at the very least, buy a good lock!

Hopefully, your bike handover won’t be the last we see of you. We’ll be here to help you along your cycle journey as we have for many thousands of our customers. We can provide the regular servicing and repairs that your bike will need to keep it running smoothly and our shop stocks a huge range of parts, accessories, clothing and many upgrades that can enhance your enjoyment of your cycling. Most importantly, our team are here to help and advise, to answer questions and give encouragement and ideas. We are all riders ourselves and love cycling, we commute, race, tour and just enjoy riding for riding’s sake. We are always happy to share our experience gained from many years of riding and helping others with their bikes so if you have any questions or are in need of advice, were happy to help and have been Aberystwyth’s local bike shop for over 25 years.

Find out more on our cycle to work scheme page HERE