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Get on your bike?

Changing times

During the pandemic the number of people using a bike has grown by 300% in some places. Many people are using cycling for exercise, but it is also being seen as a good way to avoid public transport when commuting to work. In fact, once life returns to normal, more of your staff might be keen to make use of a bike for their journey to work. That’s good news because cycling can help to improve the health of your staff, while reducing your overall environmental footprint due to decreasing the use of cars and buses for commuting.

Cycle to work scheme

As an employer, you have a chance to get on the front foot by being proactive in encouraging more of your staff to get on their bikes. This will help them get back to work sooner (as they will be able to maintain social distancing) while providing a useful employee benefit.

Cyclescheme ( https://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/ ) allows your staff to obtain commuter bikes and cycling accessories via their employer, while spreading the cost over twelve months and making savings via a tax break.

What sort of savings?

Staff can get between 25% and 39% off the cost of a new bicycle or equipment. And because they get to pay in monthly instalments, there’s no upfront cost. Given that cycling is the cheapest form of transport, they should be making monthly savings on their commuting costs too. The scheme also saves participating businesses money. You will initially pay for your employees’ bikes with them paying you back in instalments deducted from their gross salary, so you recoup the cost.

Plus there are savings to be had by not having to make employers’ NI contributions - typically 13.8% - on the value of each Cyclescheme package. So every employee who buys a £1,000 bike saves you £138.

What next?

If you’re interested in starting the scheme for your staff, just sign up online (see The next step ). You’ll be given an employer code which your employees can use to gain the discount when shopping online. They will also need to complete an application, giving their payroll number.

One of the biggest barriers to taking up cycling is staff not wanting to arrive at work hot and sweaty. More and more businesses are installing shower facilities, so it might be worth considering if you think it will be beneficial to your employees.

Cycling commuters tend to be more productive because they arrive on time and take fewer days off sick - so the more people you can encourage to take up cycling, the better it will be for your business. Cyclescheme has plenty of marketing materials you can use to promote it around your premises.

Tip. Promote cycle commuting during work time, or see if anybody already signed up wants to talk about their experiences.

For a link to Cyclescheme, visit http://tipsandadvice-environment.co.uk/download (EN 15.02.06).