I’m guessing that because you’re reading this, you’re considering buying a bike to ride to work or at least wanting to understand a bit more about it. You can read on if you want, but the simple message is DO IT, you can get almost any bike on it, most accessories too and at an average saving of 32%, you’d be silly not to, plus the myth of ‘we’ll check that you’ve ridden your bike to work everyday on it’ is absolute trash.
How to get started;
First off, speak with your HR department and check the following:
what scheme is available (there’s a few and they have different options, like where you can buy bikes from; eg Canyon only recently became available on certain schemes)
How long is the scheme able to run for (some will offer up to 4 years, others may limit it to 1, but it’s up to your employer)
See if they have a policy specifically for the scheme (you’re basically renting the bike via your employer until you make the final payment, so they could ask for it back at any time, just check the policy for this and if there’s anything funky in there)
Consider your income; are you close to the next tax band or even the High Income Child Benefit Charge for example? Calculating your cycle scheme against this with useful tools built into the schemes websites can be great ways of saving extra in ways you wouldn’t expect.
Next up;
What is it that you’re wanting to buy?
do a bit of research into the bike (bikeradar.com/advice/buyers-guides/best-road-bike-under-1000 or similar is a good place to start, or road.cc if you know the bike you’d like and so many other platforms are great places to start), see if you can go for a test ride on one from the shop you’re going to (there’ll be a guide to this soon, but basically ask yourself these questions; what’s the main type of riding you’ll be doing and does the bike do what you want it to do best, can you stretch to the next spec up as you’ll definitely notice the difference)
Do you want to add some accessories to it as well? If you haven’t got a helmet, you want some new pedals or lights for example, you can add these to your scheme too, plus tools for maintenance, bike pumps and pretty much everything you could use with your bike barring GoPros and Turbo Trainers.
Online or in person? Some bikes aren’t always available in person, like Canyon, but when buying in person from your local bike shop you’ll also be able to get it fit to you on delivery. You can do this after buying online, but it’ll probably be an extra cost (I bought mine online and I’ve been happy enough part building it and playing around with the fit myself, but that might not be your bag)
Visit a local bike shop, they’re more likely to chuck in some extras alongside the accessories you’re looking to buy for your new steed, but more importantly you’ll build a great relationship with them for future services and after sale care.
Ordering your equipment;
you’ll do this via a voucher so make sure that you’ve added up everything correctly (also remember to add postage and packaging if it’s needed, I forgot this so had to start the whole process again!)
The process will be very similar for face-to-face or online purchasing;
contact your HR with the request,
complete the attached form and documentation,
wait for your voucher,
submit your order using the voucher
When you’ve got your equipment
consider insurance. If you unfortunately crash your bike or it gets stolen, you’ll still have to finish the scheme. Using an insurance company, like Laka (£40 credit for our members by the way so sign up!) will allow you to mitigate against both of these and keep you riding
Enjoy it, use it, show it off to others to get them involved too, ride it at one of our meet ups and let us know if this guide helped!
Do you have any other tips? Just add them below!
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