An Alternative and a Half

By Hadassah H

Commuters looking for a way to avoid the sweat-filled, jostling of journeying into work on the Underground, particularly in the hot summer months, are joining the hoards of people rushing out to buy bicycles and scooters. However, many are unaware of the fact that they could be making an even bigger saving than they first thought, as a number of employers now offer their workers the opportunity of paying half price for a bike if they are planning on using it to get to work.

July and August are the most popular months for buying bikes and with new Labour incentives to get the British people out of their cars and onto their feet in a bid to encourage a more healthy lifestyle, it has never been a better time to purchase a bike or to ensure that you choose the appropriate bike insurance cover. Before his reign as Prime Minister, Gordon Brown introduced the tax incentive scheme which works with businesses to reward employees wanting to cycle to work, in 1997 as part of the Green Travel Plan (GTP), which is only now receiving the publicity needed to make it an effective and viable idea.

Participating companies offer employees the choice of any bike they want, in addition to safety and security features, and issue their workers with a voucher that they can then use in the bike shop. Albeit the value of the voucher for the bike is deducted from the employee's salary, however this is carried out over a period of time which is agreed upon between the firm and employee. Moreover, as an additional benefit, the overall sum that is used for the purchase of the bike is tax free, and this also includes the National Insurance fee. Employers are not left out of the benefits, as they can reclaim the VAT on their employee's purchase.

Although the purpose of this scheme is to enable people to cycle to work, thus implying that if used for any other purpose the worker could face questions or a fine, in reality no one will be monitoring the usage but there is the assumption that the cyclist will endeavour to support the scheme by using the bike for travel to and from the workplace. Moreover, in light of the fact that the majority of workers will require some part of their commute to be taken on public transport there has been a significant increase in the sale of foldable cycles. The average price for these bicycles is around £450 to £500 but they can be easily stowed in order to carry on buses and trains and can be stored close by during working hours.

What is important to remember is that even though workers will only be charged half price for their bike they must still insure it at its regular retail value in order to obtain the best cover against theft. The additional price of insuring your bike, if its not included in your home contents cover, can be anywhere between £12 and £30 depending on who your insurance provider is, and specialist cycle insurers, such as Cycleguard can charge anywhere up to £50. Premiums will also vary dependent of age and the home address of the owner.

Hadassah is an author of several articles pertaining to Bike Insurance. He is known for his expertise on the subject and on other Business and Finance related articles.