Cycle to Work scheme

[potsy]

The payment is made to the company, as it's them you are 'leasing' the bike from. I didn't have to make an additional payment to keep the bike with my employer
As a rule tho they say the final payment will not be more than 1 months payment

Yes indeed, you normally have to pay a final nominal fee. For my company (Halfords scheme) it's £20 IIRC

The purchase price cannot be set in advance and, if you pay anything less than market value, you will be liable to pay tax on the difference.

Confusing advice here guys,Whats to stop an employer deciding my final payment will be £300-£400 if that's what the market value of the bike is after 12 months?
Would love to get my work to join the scheme but as they are extremely against doing anything to make the employees life easier then I'm not holding my breath

 

[vickster]

sorry yet another question on this subject,,

the limit at present is £500 at royal mail to purchase at halfords.

can i use the voucher at anywhere but halfords and can i exceed the £500 with an additional payment, if not, why not. i can"nt get my head around the fact that it"s your money but can"t buy where you want to,!

has anyone used the scheme in the telford area and used a l.b.s of their choice and purchased above £500 limit..

many thanks dia............

I had a Halfords voucher via C2W and it stated very clearly, you could not add extra and there would be no refund either (just had to make up to the figure with accessories). It is your money, but you are benefitting from a tax break. If you want to buy wherever you want and what you want, you can choose to pay out of your own cash, but you'll get 30-50% less bike

Halfords can order most bikes in and there are some LBS that take their vouchers (but I think they are all in/around London)

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/...551&categoryId=173002&acCategory=true#q708908
Halfords has the largest selection of cycles and cycling safety equipment in the UK, and sells more bikes than any other retailer. As a participant of the Halfords Cycle2Work scheme, there are a number of ways you can get your bike.

• Visit your local Halfords/Bikehut store and redeem your LoC for a bike they have in stock
• visit your local Halfords/Bikehut and discuss the brands they are able to order in, choosing from Condor, Dahon, Dawes, Diamondback, Dolan, GT, Kona, Merida, Pashley, Raleigh, Saracen, Van Nicholas, Voodoo and many more (orders are normally fulfilled within 5 working days provided supplier has stock)
• visit Condor, On Your Bike or Pearsons: these are each associates of the Halfords Cycle2Work scheme and will accept you letter of collection in store
• Still can't find what you are looking for? Simply call Halfords' dedicated Cycle2Work team on 08450 778 850 or click here and we will do our best to source your dream bike for you.

 

[Norm]

I've never filled a tax return in during my working life, so i've told no lies to the taxman I doubt i'll ever spend time at 'her majesty's pleasure' for the offence, surely it's my employer's fault & i'm sure the union would have a field day with it

Oh dear oh dear. Not completing a tax return just means that you'll get slapped with late filing penalties on top of the fines. And it's your responsibility to tell HMRC what your income is.

Confusing advice here guys,Whats to stop an employer deciding my final payment will be £300-£400 if that's what the market value of the bike is after 12 months?

Nothing confusing, potsy, that is what they should be charging. If they charge any less, it should be declared.

Have a look at the many, many other threads on this subject.

 

[potsy]

all academic to me norm as I won't be in the scheme anyway but was under the impression you saved 30-40% off retail price,but if the final charge is market value that would surely cancel the saving out?

 

[2Loose]

Norm is totally correct as far as the letter of the agreement goes.

However, there is a potential issue with cycleschemecycle2work etc. charging so much per month for the hire if they are then going to charge full market value at the end of the year. e.g. No financial incentive to use the scheme etc. In current practice such schemes charge close to a 12th of the non taxable amount of the bike per month, therefore recouping their outlay, and passing on the tax saving to the employee, then a 'transfer fee' at the end of the yearly agreement which I guess is not only for their profit, but the legal shenanigans of the scheme.

This is exactly why they generally don't charge full market value at the end of the year, but a token amount instead.

 

[Norm]

all academic to me norm as I won't be in the scheme anyway but was under the impression you saved 30-40% off retail price,but if the final charge is market value that would surely cancel the saving out?

It only cancels the saving if you have paid 100% of the market price in rental payments. If the salary sacrifice rental payments were, for instance, only to cover 60% of the market price (there's nothing anywhere to say what the rental payments should be, they could be anything), then you could pay 40% to buy the bike.

It would reduce the savings but that's what the legislation requires.

For more, have a butcher's at the "death to cycle to work" thread.

 

[battered]

I'm sure Norm is right in the letter of the law but in most schemes the buyout at the end is very small. You can potentially go to prison for tax evasion, and it may be percieved that this is tax evasion, but you can also potentially lose your licence for driving past a speed camera 4 times at 31 mph. In practice things are a bit different, as an employee you can reasonably assume your employer asks you to make the correct PAYE payments etc and it's hardly the individual's responsibility to audit his own PAYE tax affairs, even if he had the required skills. HMG want the scheme to work and have people on bikes, not for them to end up in prison.

As for the employer asking for £400 at the end of the scheme, well, he could, in theory, he'd then be stuck with a grubby bike that he had to dispose of, a brassed off employee, and a bike to work scheme that nobody wanted a part of any more.

The experience of my friends is that the buyout value at the end is very modest, the employer sorts out all the declarations etc, HMRC let it all jog along as it should and everyone is happy. In this context the employer setting a ceiling of £500 or £750 is reasonable, it's his bike after all even if he's not going to ask for it back (unless possibly if the employee resigns 1 month in he might).

 

[StuartB]

Just to update everyone.

My employer has a good scheme. We get 44% off, the cost spread across a year. At the end of the year, the buyout is a fixed 5%. If you work in government, you will probably find the same!

Regards

Stu

 

[ian emmerson]

Just to update everyone.

My employer has a good scheme. We get 44% off, the cost spread across a year. At the end of the year, the buyout is a fixed 5%. If you work in government, you will probably find the same!

Regards

Stu

I recieved my final payment fee today which is the same as what i have been paying for the last 12 months , £31.
If i wish to return the bike to my employer then i am asked to pay £50 to cover collection costs etc.
I think i will keep the bike !!!!

 

[Soltydog]

I recieved my final payment fee today which is the same as what i have been paying for the last 12 months , £31.
If i wish to return the bike to my employer then i am asked to pay £50 to cover collection costs etc.
I think i will keep the bike !!!!

That's a bit barmy, but I like it
Hope you declare it on your tax return, otherwise you could be sharing a cell with me

 

[festival]

Just a thought for halfords c2w voucher users . They can get a lot more bikes than it seems when you visit the store & depends on the staff if the can be bothered to inform you of all brands available. They also source bikes from a third party such as specialized, trek etc They don't like doing this as there is less profit for them & are fazing it out. You will have to persuade the H.O. if you want to try.
Also it has been known for a customer to wave a £500 voucher in store but request,say a £700 bike . This sale can be achieved by selling a £500 bike & then in a separate transaction return it and buy the bike of choice & pay the difference. Some stores are so desperate to hit sales targets the will accomadate you. In my experience nobody has ever been caught out. Its obviously a risk but can be done.

 

[g00se]

I recieved my final payment fee today which is the same as what i have been paying for the last 12 months , £31.
If i wish to return the bike to my employer then i am asked to pay £50 to cover collection costs etc.
I think i will keep the bike !!!!

Same here - the final cost will be the same as the disposal costs.

 

[The Jogger]

Just a thought for halfords c2w voucher users . They can get a lot more bikes than it seems when you visit the store & depends on the staff if the can be bothered to inform you of all brands available. They also source bikes from a third party such as specialized, trek etc They don't like doing this as there is less profit for them & are fazing it out. You will have to persuade the H.O. if you want to try.

I once got halfords to source a spesh sirrus, on c2w. When I got the bike it felt a bit small, the guy in the store said it was fine, it was actually too small but halfords , claimed as it wasn't one of there bikes they wouldn't change. ####ers. The next year I used my halfords vouchers in an LBS. As I will with my next Bike in August. So be careful if you get them to source a bike for you, as I found them to be dodgy buggers.

 

[Demoose]

Hi on the cycle to work scheme do you get to keep the bike after the year, i was reading about it and it says you are just hiring the bike from your company

Yes you do keep the bike after 1 year. Your company will charge you a paltry sum as a one off payment then it's completely yours. I got a £1200 Brompton on the scheme and paid £60 as a one off payment.

 

[festival]

Originally posted by The Jogger
When I got the bike it felt a bit small, the guy in the store said it was fine, it was actually too small but halfords , claimed as it wasn't one of there bikes they wouldn't change. ####ers.

Believe me it was not my intention to promote halfords. But with the right knowledge,right product & right (very rare) staff the price can be right too, sometimes.
Knowing as i do the way they operate it was perfectly possible for them to return the bike & order the correct size even if you had done your own home work without proper advice & ordered the wrong size via the c2w office.
This happens often when customers make the wrong choice & either don't ask for or get the wrong advice.
The staff were either incompetent or lazy,probably both.