OK, I know a lot of people have bent the rules on C2W, but this one surprised me.

A colleague has just come and asked me if he can use our C2W scheme to get his kids bikes for Christmas. I explained to him that it may be outside the scope of the scheme, what with it being called cycle to work, and there being a mention in the small print in our scheme about at least half the bikes mileage being to get to work.

He replied that his sister has got her kids bikes through the NHS scheme.

I then had to explain to him that it may be viewed rather badly if he did it. What with him being a senior manager with an executive agency of HMRC. Who administer the scheme for us.

He decided he would go and have a word with HR about it.

🙄

Might be bit late to order / receive the bikes for Christmas – maybe that’s the line to take – “bit late now, think of the fallout if/when they don’t arrive on time”

We’re fairly accommodating with C2W, but even we have refused kids bikes on the scheme. It’s taking the piss, basically

shouldn’t there be an equivalent cycle to school scheme?

Pretty sure it’s fraud by misrepresentation, never mind taking the piss.

He is pretty stupid and self absorbed, tbf. With hindsight, my reply should have been “You can always try and see what happens”

… then report him … and see what happens 🙂

Don’t call me shirley

Kcal – if he comes back and tells me he has done it, I would report him.

It’s exactly stuff like that which could get the whole scheme shut down for everyone if the media got hold of it on a slow news day.

Passive aggressive! Love it.

Best case scenario is that he goes ahead, but then finds he has to ride to work on a 20″ bike for the next two years to avoid prosecution.

I’m not sure of my facts so do check if you care but when I got a bike on CTW I think there was no stipulation that the bike I bought was the one I used for work. Does he use a bike for work at all?

Anyway, its a tax break on something that encourages cycling and improves the world for us all. Even outside the rules its a good thing.

This is HMRCs own scheme, took them 8 years to even introduce it, and our terms are a bit tighter than most other schemes.

I’m not fussed by someone buying a bike they could use for work but use mainly for other riding. Anything that encourages cycle use, kind of tax avoidance, probably legal but morally a grey area.

However, I’m not sure a HMRC manager should be using it to get his kids cheap bikes. That is fraud. And given the extra responsibilities we have to sign up to being part of the Revenue, I’m just astonished that he was so stupid as to think it would be OK.

It does seem to be taking it a bit too far, but a lot of the STW threads with C2W bikes are bikes that certainly won’t have half their milage as a commute.

However, I’m not sure a HMRC manager should be using it to get his kids cheap bikes. That is fraud.

Yes, that is blatant fraud, as opposed to, well, everyone else I know who’s got a bike on the C2W scheme who are just doing, you know, normal fraud.

I was trying to send a link to this thread to the Daily Mail but for some reason they’ve blocked all hyperlinks to STW 🙂

I was trying to send a link to this thread to the Daily Mail but for some reason they’ve blocked all hyperlinks to STW

We are not angry enough or dislike enough of the right minorities for them 😛

Take his company car off him and make him ride the 20″ be-tassled pink barbie bike to work and meetings each day?

It’s not like he’s trying to cover it up tho, he’s asking if it’s allowed.

You’ll be pleased to know that even at his exalted status, your hard earned taxes don’t get him a company car.

Flipping hate the C2W scheme. Such a rubbish and unfair way to spend potential government revenue. A scheme where the best paid get the biggest effective saving on the purchase of a consumer good is bobbins. Added to that only part of the population being able to access the saving makes it doubly unfair. They should have just chipped a few percentage off the VAT rate for bikes – simple to administer, accessible by all and fair.

All very fair points there convert.

Put the kids on the payroll 🙂

Management type in abuse of position shocker!

(But that doesn’t excuse those who get their bikes on C2W and know full well that they’re never/seldom going to ride to work)

+1 Convert

And

However, I’m not sure a HMRC manager should be using it to get his kids cheap bikes. That is fraud.

I think the fraud really sits with the company/organisation as they will be the one actually defrauding the Taxman/Taxpayers.

I reckon it’s worth an email to Jeremy Vine 😉

Ok, to clarify for those that skip read threads, he hasn’t committed fraud. He’s asked a stupid question as to whether he could do something that would effectively be fraud if he did it.

kids bikes should be tax free anyway

kids bikes should be tax free anyway

All bikes should be tax free big you had a government that genuinely wanted to change congestion/pollution patterns.

We’ve just had the c2w scheme introduced at work. I’ll be buying a bike on it but won’t be riding to work on it. I do whoever ride to work on another bike.

So I’m probably in the minority of people who use the scheme and cycle to work.

I certainly wouldn’t buy a kids bike on it, and I would expect a senior manager with the tax office to uphold the rules.

and income tax deductible?

Bikes should be tax free, but if they were, do you think their cost would reduce?

It happened to helmets a few years ago – they became VAT free. But any reduction in cost lasted about a year then the “next years model” was back where it was a year ago.

Bikes would be the same, just someone in the middle makes 20% more out of them….

C2W is a good scheme if you recognise it for being an interest free credit scheme. Less good if you think it’s a cheap way to buy a bike.

Flipping hate the C2W scheme. Such a rubbish and unfair way to spend potential government revenue. A scheme where the best paid get the biggest effective saving on the purchase of a consumer good is bobbins. Added to that only part of the population being able to access the saving makes it doubly unfair. They should have just chipped a few percentage off the VAT rate for bikes – simple to administer, accessible by all and fair.

Absolutely, make the first £1000 on any bike vat free. Everyone benefits to the same extent and no one needs to spend more that that to get a excellent commuting bike.

I’ve just recently completed a c2w scheme and completed a questionnaire where I told them I hardly ever use it for cycle commuting and almost exclusively for pleasure use. I’ve not had a knock on the door from mr taxman yet. I really don’t think they give a stuff even if someone reported it. They’re making a packet on this through vat and business taxes that easily offset the lost income tax. There are plenty of bike shops out there willing to break the rules so it wouldn’t be too difficult for them to catch those breaking the rules if they were at all interested. Anyway I’ve since been invited to get another bike on the scheme – I’m sure HMRC are not expecting me to ride two bikes to work everyday. I didn’t realize you could get kids bikes on the scheme. I don’t need another bike but I’ve got my eye on a nice Frog bike for my daughter.

Is it strange that at my work most people who bought a bike on the C2W actually ride it to work?