Cycle to Work — Employees FAQs • Employees • Cycle to Work • Customer Service • About Us • Alpine Bikes

The Cycle to Work Scheme is a Government green transport initiative that allows your employer to offer employees the option of hiring bicycles and cycle equipment over either a 12 or 18 month period without having to pay Tax or National Insurance on the payments.

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If you choose to participate in the scheme, your employer will provide you with a bicycle or cycle equipment on loan in return for you agreeing to nominate a specified amount of salary for this purpose. This nominated amount will not be subject to Tax or National Insurance deductions. A Salary sacrifice is a legally binding change in the contractual arrangements between employee and employer. Generally, the employment contract is amended to reduce the employee’s entitlement to cash pay on the basis that the employee receives an alternate non-cash benefit instead.

At the end of the hire period, your employer may seek to dispose of the bicycle equipment at a fair market value. But please note that this cannot be guaranteed until the end of the hire period.

It is common in such circumstances to offer to sell the equipment to the person who has had the equipment on hire. However, you should be aware that such practice and expectations are merely indications based on historical factors and cannot be guaranteed for the future. Any subsequent sale would also be pursuant to a separate agreement, entered into after the conclusion of the hire.

In order to benefit from the Tax and National Insurance savings the bicycle must be used primarily for journeys to and from work or between work sites.

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Employees who have contracts of employment that outlast the duration of the salary sacrifice period.

In Scotland employees need to be 16 years or over.

Employees must pay tax via the PAYE system.

Employees must not drop below the minimum wage once the loan repayment has been deducted.

You may wish to contact your HR department to confirm your eligibility to join the scheme.

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If your employer operates a Cycle to Work BACS Account with Alpine Bikes, the Cycle to Work Scheme is usually permanently available.

If your employer operates an Cycle to Work Invoice Account with Alpine Bikes, please contact your HR office or refer to your staff intranet site to confirm the start and finish date of your employer's scheme.

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A salary sacrifice occurs when an employee agrees to a reduction in pay in return for the employer providing a non cash benefit. The reduction comes out of the employee's gross, rather than net pay. This causes a reduction in income tax and National Insurance payments, which is where the savings are made.

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Alpine Bikes shops are open seven days a week. Times vary depending on the store however you can find your nearest store and the opening times on www.alpinebikes.com/shops

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The bicycle must be suitable for travelling to and from work. For this reason children’s bicycles are not available to hire under the scheme. All other types of bikes are suitable to choose under the scheme including sale and special offer bikes.

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Normally, only one bicycle can be hired per employee. However a second bicycle can be made available under exceptional circumstances at your employer's discretion. For instance, you might want to cycle from home to your nearest railway station and lock the bike there. Then you pick up the second bike at the station where you get off the train to complete your commute.

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The bike must be suitable for journeys to and from work. As well as the bicycle, the salary sacrifice scheme also covers cyclists’ safety equipment including:

• Helmets
• Bells and horns
• Lights
• Reflective clothing including jackets, gloves and over trousers
• Mirrors and mudguards to ensure riders visibility is not impaired
• Trouser bands / clips
• Panniers, luggage carriers and straps to allow luggage to be safely carried
• Locks and chains to ensure cycles can be safely secured
• Pumps, puncture repair kits, cycle tool kits and tyre sealant to allow for minor repairs.

Please note that this is not a comprehensive list of the safety equipment you can choose. The combined value of the bike and accessories can be anything up to £1000 however if your employer has a consumer credit licence you may be eligible for more.

There are a few exceptions that are expressly not available under the salary sacrifice scheme. These include:

• Magazines.
• Books.
• Maps.
• Food and drink.
• Childs seats.
• Boot racks.
• Bicycle storage equipment.

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No, you are unable to choose just safety equipment on the scheme and a complete bike must be a part of the hire agreement.

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No, if you only require a bicycle and currently have all the related safety equipment you need, it is not a requirement that you must choose safety equipment.

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As the bicycle equipment will belong to your employer you must:

• Make sure that the bicycle equipment is insured. The easiest way to do this is to get it added to your household contents insurance, if it is not already covered. Replacement equipment is not available under the scheme. If the bicycle equipment goes missing or is damaged, you will still have to pay the monthly amount for the remaining months of the Hire. Remember to always lock your bike up securely and ask your employer about secure bicycle storage facilities at you workplace.
• Keep the bicycle equipment clean and in good order.

The following rules apply so that you don’t pay tax on this benefit:

• The bicycle equipment is used primarily by you to commute to work.
• The bicycle equipment remains the property of your employer.

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With most Cycle to Work Schemes you will have a maximum hire of £1,000, although this may vary depending on your employer. Please contact your HR department or refer to your staff intranet site for more specific information.

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You cannot spend more than the maximum value of Hire by paying additional money to Alpine Bikes. If you do require additional items that will take you over the maximum value of Hire, the staff at Alpine Bikes will be able to help you purchase these on a separate transaction that is separate from your salary sacrifice arrangement. The view of the HMRC (Inland Revenue) is that if an employee was to contribute towards the value of a bike or equipment, this would be deemed shared ownership and the hire would not be covered by the tax exemption.

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Once the Hire Agreement is received and authorised by the employer you are committing to the full repayment period. The Hire Agreement is regulated under the Consumer Credit Act and is not cancellable. The only exception is where your employment ends before the bicycle equipment has been collected and your employer has contacted the Alpine Bikes to inform them of this.

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It is your responsibility to insure the bike against damage and theft. If the bike is damaged or stolen the hire agreement is not cancellable and you will still be required to pay for the bicycle and safety equipment hired. If damaged, you will also be required to pay for repairs.

Bikes can be covered by your household content insurance and treated like any other possession. Check your insurance policy and make sure it covers the bike nationwide and that it pays for a replacement in case of a “total loss”.

Insurance companies such as Endsleigh or Cyclecover (Butterworth) cover you in case of loss of or damage to cycle and accessories in a crash, theft of cycle and accessories (but not theft of accessories alone) and malicious damage.

CTC (National Cycling Association) members benefit from third party liability, legal aid and personal accident cover.

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Although you will have full use of the bike for the period of the hire, in order to obtain the tax advantages it is a requirement that ownership of the bicycle remains with your

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You will have to repay the outstanding amount that is left to pay from your final payslip. However, this amount will not be tax-free as it will be taken from your net salary.

So, for example, if you leave a year into the hire agreement for a £300 bicycle, and you have paid £200 so far, you will have to pay the remaining £100 outstanding on the bicycle. You will not be entitled to receive the Tax and National Insurance savings on this outstanding £100. However, you will still have benefited from saving the Tax and National Insurance contributions on the first £200.

If your final salary does not cover the outstanding amount, you will be sent an invoice for the remainder of the balance.

Please think very carefully before joining the scheme. If you think you may leave employment with your employer before the period of hire is over, it is not recommended you join.

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Your employer and Alpine Bikes will arrange for the Alpine Bikes Cycle to Work mobile workshop to visit your workplace to keep your bike in top condition. After 3 months Alpine Bikes will arrange a safety workshop to ensure that your bike is safe on the road.

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When you choose your bicycle equipment, Alpine Bikes can advise you of the warranty period, as they vary with each bicycle.

If you experience problems within the duration of the warranty period, take your bicycle back to the Alpine Bikes who will liaise with the supplier on your behalf.

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After the period of hire in which your salary was deducted, your employer may seek to dispose of the bicycle/equipment for a fair market value. Please note that your employer cannot guarantee it will sell the bicycle/equipment to the person who has hired them but historically this is often the case. Any subsequent sale would also be pursuant to a separate agreement, entered into after the conclusion of the hire.

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Yes, there may be an impact on your entitlement to benefit payments such as Statutory Maternity or Paternity Pay, Statutory Sick Pay and Working Tax Credit, as they will be calculated on your reduced pay. There may also be an impact on your state pension. We advise you to seriously consider the effect that a reduction in pay may have before you decide to join the scheme.

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No. The Inland Revenue do not expect you to keep a mileage record of your usage of the bike.

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No. The scheme is set up so that under the current tax rules you do not have to pay tax on the benefit and therefore you do not have to notify the Inland Revenue.

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