Cycle to Work, ever had it checked?

First off I use the C2W scheme (actually my wifes) so I know how it works. What I’m intrested in has anyone ever had their company check up on them (clearly my wifes doesn’t)? i.e. checking if they are using it for travel work? Basically I have a friend (really) who works for Barclays. They do the scheme, but he is adamant that he can’t use it because he travels 40 mile each way and therefore clearly wont be using it for work. I have said there is no chance they will ever check and even if they did he could either say he uses it on nice days, parking 5 miles from work at a friends house and riding in. Or even stick it in the boot of his car, wear lycra and go into the office. But he is still adamant that “they are sh*t hot” at this kind of thing at said bank and he would get found out. (pitty they weren’t so sh*t hot in the money markets..lol). He is a bit of an over cautious type (which he wont mind me saying).

Experiences? Be nice to hear from somebody at Barclays.

Dunno about Barclays’s but it specifically states in the cyclescheme faq that it won’t be monitored.

Thats what I told him, he is very very over cautious

IIRC the CycleScheme site has it worded along these lines

“The tax free status of the scheme requires an individual to use the cycle for commuting to work some or all of the time and for part or whole of the journey.”

So strictly speaking he could drive to work and ride the bike from the car park to the bank entrance 😉

I have to use either the train or a ferry for part of my journey so I can’t see how they could say he has to ride all the way? I seem to remember reading that the scheme was also aimed at people driving to car parks outside a city then riding in?

I don’t think there is actually any obligation to ride it to work. The scheme is just an incentive to help get people riding, that’s all. Doesn’t really matter if you ride to work or at the weekends, from a public health point of view. And it’d be utterly un-policable anyway.

And I’ve heard people buy full DH bikes on the scheme too – go figure.

Oh and Barclays are doing better than most of the other UK banks, so I’d say they are good on the money markets 🙂

Thats what I told him, he is very very over cautious

Shame he wasn’t in charge of investments then

Shame he wasn’t in charge of investments then

lol…. Unfortunatly its IT, which explain his cautious nature.

mate of mine was evaluating getting a folder so he could get the train into Waterloo and then ride from there to Wapping. That would have qualified.

So tell him to get the bike and every so often park up a few miles from the office and ride in. That should tick the box, not that anyone would ever check anyway.

or even better, just come with some bike gear in a bag and say that you biked to a train station and left it locked up at the station.

My mate works for Barclays – I think he’s used the bike once or twice to cycle to work since he got it. He’s certainly never mentioned anything about them checking up.

Or, better still, ride the bike to work…!

I know! Craaaaazy, isn’t it?

😉

Or, better still, ride the bike to work…!

I know its a very good idea, but he is a newbie and currently he would die riding across the carpark. Also I think 80 mile a day would take a bit long. We’re 35+ and although some of us (me) would love nothing better than a couple of hours each way in the saddle (if you could put a bit of mud and a few hills in the way) our wives and children would probably get a bit pissed.

I’ll put it to him mind…… 😉

I was, of course, only kidding. 🙂

However, what one of my colleagues does is this: Monday morning drive to work, Monday evening ride home. Tuesday morning ride to work, Tuesday evening drive home. Wednesday morning drive to work, etc.

Now, his journey is only 20 miles each way, which is rather mor manageable, but a 40 mile trip would be pretty good once fit. This assumes he’s going to buy a road bike…

If he’s going to buy a MTB, and currently drives to work (you mentioned car park), then why doesn’t he try driving part way, and riding the rest.

It’s all about biulding up fitness, and if he’s buying a bike for weekend use (MTB or otherwise), he’ll appreciate the fitness gains riding to work can have.

I’d bet both bollox that my work would never check whether I rode in, but they’d cancel my car-park ticket the day I signed up

There are companies out there that do check. Also there are people in the companies that run the schemes, like me, that keep an eye on forums and can look in to cases like the OP’s where his wife has joined the scheme but actually isn’t using the bike.

Ooooh – be afraid!

LOL

Cycle2Work (Cycle2Work)

Member Since
February 4, 2009 (13 minutes)

oh yes?

T R O L L me thinks

Met a guy who works offshore for shell who got one on the scheme (he has to tell them he takes it to the train station and locks it there for a fortnight ,even though his bag for a fortnight is too big to carry on a bike)

i was under the impression that they couldn’t stop you if you lived too far away as that would be discrimination!

Believe if you only use it for part of the journey it still counts

Watch if it is the Halfords C2W scheme you are doing. I have not long bought a Specialized FSR XC Comp from them (£1000 voucher) and have just been told by specialized that my warrenty is void because I bought it from a non authorised dealer. Halfords did not tell me about this and I aint happy. Bought the spesh because of the life time warrenty and find out that I dont get it. Only get a rubbish one year effort from Halfords!!!

The warranty is for a year as that is the period that your employer owns the cycle. At the end of the hire period, if you choose to become the owner of that cycle it effectively becomes second hand and therefore the warranty will not be covered by the manufacturer (as is typical with most if not all bike manufacturers)

I feel so guilty, I think I will make my wife ride to work on it tomorrow 😳

But specialized only told him the warranty is void cos it was through an unauthorized dealer – not just cos it was cyclescheme.

Yeah but Halfords fail to explain that!!!

Just about to take this up with my companies account manager. Beware all that are looking into the scheme, its not all is cracked up to be. I paid 600 odd pounds for a bike that if it breaks I have no come back!!!

Xan… you don’t own the bike though, your company does, you just pay to hire the bike from the company for the year. They are then completely within their rights to keep the bike and not sell it to you at the end of that year.

So, for the year that you hire the bike from the company, the company gets warranty from Halfords. After that period the company doesn’t care about warranty if they have sold the bike on to you, because as stated above the bike then becomes secondhand.

Granted, it’s a bit of a bugger when manufacturers warranties end up like this, but I would imagine that even through a Spesh distributor the same issue would apply as you are not the initial owner of the bike.

but surely If the company owns the bike and I am responcible for its up keep, if the bike break due to a Manufacturers fault it need to be fixed. My scheme is for 3 years and if the frame breaks in that time I could then be paying for a bike that I can not use.

Tell him to read section 4 and 5 in FAQ section of the factsheet

Three years? Blimey… not heard of anyone doing it for more than a year, in which case, you are probably screwed on the warranty.

To be fair to Halfords though, the 3 years part is your companies doing, and not part of what Halfords do, they just supply the bikes.

Also, a friend has just got a bike from Merlin through Halfords on the scheme, and the person on the phone who she spoke to warned her that the warranties might not be upheld by Merlin… although I thought this was more likely to be because Halfords make more money by selling their own bikes through the scheme…

It was a bit long I know but I was thinking component I can replace if they break, but a frame is a different story. Just checked the cycle to work FAQ and it looks like I am covered.

It says

If you have obtained a special order bike through the scheme, Halfords will provide the same cover as you would have received if you had purchased the bike from that manufacturer yourself. Halford will provide a dedicated Cycle2Work number for you to report such issues

So why cant the business centre tell me about this??

I am a mobile service engineer , van full of tools i still had a bike on the scheme, rode to work once.

Having this looked into just now. If I am wrong and the warranty is valid I appologise. From the above comment just looks like the staore and the business centre have gave me the wrong information.

Does he use the train? If so then he clearly could be using the bike to get from home to the station couldn’t he?

If he is worried, why doesn’t he just ask them?