I’m interested in a new bike and been to my LBS to enquire about ordering in the model I’m interested in. It’s not a cheap bike so I’d really like to try before I buy. LBS have asked for a 10% deposit which they have said will be none refundable. Is that legal? Do my statuatory rights not offer me any protection. I’d don’t expect the bike to be a duffer but I’d like to know where I stand. Advise please. Cheers.

Is there not a demo day anywhere near you soon? Or maybe another shop that has one in that you could try?

Legally, as long as it’s a “deposit” and not a “partial payment” then the shop can make it non-refundable if they wish (and you agree). What constitutes deposit vs part payment is open to interpretation of course, but I think 10% is generally considered to be about right.

Look at it from their point of view – if it’s a bike they don’t hold in stock normally, then they’re going to lose out if they order it in and you change your mind. They’d probably end up selling it for more than 10% less than you’re paying.

Can you agree a mutually-acceptable way forward with them? If it was us, we’d not want to order something in for someone on the off chance they might want it, but nor would we expect someone to commit 100% to a bike without seeing it. Perhaps ask them if they’d carry the deposit across to another purchase of a different bike with them, if the one they’re ordering doesn’t suit? What are you specifically concerned about – sizing, spec, or performance of the bike? Is it something which you’d be able to be 100% certain about seeing it in the flesh, or something you’d only know about after (possibly multiple) rides?

Non refundable deposit is legally fine you are securing the opportunity to purchase however once you have gone ahead and purchased your statutory right will apply to the full value of the bike including deposit.

Buy the whole thing, but pay over the phone. it’s then mail-order as far as I know, and you can return the bike within 14 days if it’s in resellable condition. I think.

Buy the whole thing, but pay over the phone. it’s then mail-order as far as I know, and you can return the bike within 14 days if it’s in resellable condition. I think.

Any shop that knows anything at all won’t fall for that. It’s a well known scam when using a stolen card (I’m not suggesting you have a stolen card) Pay over the phone with no PIN required, collect bike, then payment is returned 10 days later, and the shop has no cover. I’ve seen it happen.

OP – From the shops point of view it sounds like you’re trying to use them as a test ride centre. If they don’t operate a test fleet then can potentially loose money like that. They want to help you out but they have to cover their own backs. 🙂

If the deposit is usable against another bike they sell then fair enough. It’s a good way of minimising people using them as a test ride centre before they buy it elsewhere online.

I’d really like to try before I buy.

What do you mean by this exactly?

But if you’re getting bad vibes from the shop already, I’d follow your instinct and look elsewhere.

Any shop that knows anything at all won’t fall for that.

I did it, not to get protection but because I didn’t know my PIN (which I was completely honest about). Good well established and respected shop too.

You were lucky they trusted you. Regular customer?
It really is the first step in a well known scam.

As above it a very well known scam which people often get away with, “I’m going to pay over the phone and my “mate” will pick it up later” then the payment is returned as it was a stolen card.

So don’t bother with that rubish, Often a deposit is required if they are buying £x ammount of stock they wouldn’t normally have but most shops would let you transfer the deposit if it was the wrong size etc.

When you say try do you mean sit on or have a proper test ride?

First purchase from them! Obviously good judges of character 😛

Is the shop a dealer of the manufacturer you want? If so, I wouldn’t expect to pay a deposit. If not, it’s understandable. Just order one online and get the distance selling regs protection.

Just to give the LBS side of it* – if they have to order in a bike specially for you, then it’s something they don’t sell much of. they may well have trouble shifting it without making a loss if you don’t want it. It’s a risk for them to take, so they’re trying to make sure you really are keen, not a time-waster.

*I’m not really a LBS – most brands I do, I have a demonstrator to try out then your bike is built to order, and I take a 50% deposit.

Thanks for the info everyone.

I’m going to leave the deposit as I appreciate the LBS perspective (no demo days until March next year) so they have to cover their risk. I wouldn’t buy a new car without a test ride and the same really applies to a new bike for me. My last bike was from Canyon and they have a 30 day return policy of with full refund which gave peace of mind. On this occasion if I truly don’t like the feel of the bike I’ll be out of pocket by close to £400. The LBS website does suggest they would get me on another bike if that was the case so will make further enquireries tomorrow.

I assume that if the bike is free of defects then my right to return for full refund is not an option.

Why not ask on a mtb forum if anyone has the bike your after and see if you can get a cheaky test ride ?

Is the shop a dealer of the manufacturer you want? If so, I wouldn’t expect to pay a deposit. If not, it’s understandable

If they’re not a dealer, they probably can’t get one at all…… Not always but mostly.
That said, Specialized and I think Trek have a central stock of demo bikes that dealers can call on. They may charge the customer a small amount for this which should be refundable upon purchase.

You might be better laying down £30 on getting yourself measured for a bike fitting. I thought it was voodoo/homeopathy but was talked into it when I bought an expensive road bike a few years ago. Fitted perfectly, still does. It may be more expensive these days, but still cheaper than all the physio from riding an ill fitting bike.

It’s a difficult one this. Even as the UK distributor of Nicolai I was never able to take test rides – even if I visited the factory – as I need an XL frame. No one would run one as a demo bike and none of the staff had the frame I’d ride in my size. Riding a bike that’s way too small doesn’t tell you much.

More to the point a demo ride around the car park won’t tell you anything and a long enough ride off road to really tell if you like it will take far more than your deposit off the resale value.

The Mojo/Nicolai approach works – but look what they’re charging for that.

My last bike was from Canyon and they have a 30 day return policy of with full refund which gave peace of mind. On this occasion if I truly don’t like the feel of the bike I’ll be out of pocket by close to £400. The LBS website does suggest they would get me on another bike if that was the case so will make further enquireries tomorrow.

I assume that if the bike is free of defects then my right to return for full refund is not an option.

Can i ask, have you confirmed with the shop that they will give you a refund post test-ride? As far as im aware they have no legal requirement to give you any refund (nevermind 90%) once you walk out the door, unless it is faulty. The 10% is to get the bike in the shop to look at, not ride.

I’m going to leave the deposit as I appreciate the LBS perspective… On this occasion if I truly don’t like the feel of the bike I’ll be out of pocket by close to £400

So you’re prepared to pay £400 for a test ride? 😯 There’s no way you could spend a fraction of that money to ride the same bike?!

You could have a weekend in the Alps on a hire-bike for that sort of cash, let alone any UK-based dealer with a demo bike.

Can’t they get a demo in from their distributor, given the value of the bike?

Find an STWer with the same bike, and travel to meet em at convenient trails and buy em lunch?

yeah, ring the distributor.

Find an STWer with the same bike, and travel to meet em at convenient trails and buy em lunch?

This is what we tried to encourage. For small brands demo bikes are expensive and demo days both expensive and time consuming with most people turning up to them having no intention of buying a bike but just wanting to ride (/abuse) something expensive or a group turning up with one interested customer and 4 of his mates along to kick some tyres.

Swapping bikes with someone who owns one gives a chance to ride on proper trails (and when I did it myself the chance to ride something different that fitted me – interesting however old/broken/whatever from my own). We always tried to look after owners who supported us in this way.

MTBs are like knickers – the only way to know they’re really right for you is to try them out properly, and that makes them unsellable to anyone else.

It’s a problem – I’ve got about £20k-worth of demo bikes sitting in the shop for people to try out, but these are recumbents and folding bikes which don’t come in several different sizes. They also don’t completely change the models every year, and the demo bikes don’t get massive abuse so I usually get a reasonable amount back for them when I sell them on.

“I assume that if the bike is free of defects then my right to return for full refund is not an option.”
sorry I meant to specifically state that in my answer above but my child’s bed time interrupted. Yep if the bike fine as in defect free and matches description then you can’t get a refund . Your statutory rights are that the bike is of merchantable quality and matches the description.

MTBs are like knickers – the only way to know they’re really right for you is to try them out properly

I need that slogan on a t-shirt. 😀

From memory a couple of local shops wanted £50 to cover the courier fees for trying a bike for size.
Mind you that was a couple of years ago I think.

If you asked nicely they might make it a transferrable deposit – if the bike you wanted really turned out to be dog, use it against something else?

Sharing the risk.

Other options are

Buy it from Evans, they’ll move it in group and let you try it for 20 mins on pavement. Which is better than not trying the knickers on at all

Or

Buy from Rutland Cycles and use the 30 day test ride. Although, you remain committed to buying a bike that they stock and are limited to changing your mind twice. But still quite an attractive scheme IMHO

http://www.rutlandcycling.com/pages/30-day-test-ride-terms.aspx

Wiggle do a similar thing

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/h/option/30testride

But the bike can be upto 15% off. The Rutland scheme is full retail only

The shop I work in requires a 10% deposit for any bike not in stock. Because we have to buy it, and are stuck with it if the Customer changed their mind. The deposit is transferable though…