Green Shop

Introduced as part of the Government’s Green Transport Plan, the Ride to Work scheme enables employees to avail of bicycles and safety equipment loaned to them by their employers. This is a tax-free benefit, designed to encourage less pollution and healthier staff. Anyone is eligible to take part, including businesses in the private, public and voluntary sector, as long as the employee is part of a PAYE scheme.

The idea is your employer purchases the cycle and any necessary equipment such as lights, horn, panniers, etc from one of the many participating cycle dealers for a VAT free amount. The bicycle is then given to you on loan for a stated period, usually a year or eighteen months.

During this loan period, you pay for the bicycle in regular instalments, which are automatically deducted from your salary. However, these payments are tax-free and known as ‘Salary Sacrifice.’ This is where you agree to a temporary reduction in your salary to cover the cost of the repayments. At the end of the loan period, you may purchase the bike and any accessories from your employer for a ‘fair market value.’ Generally, this equates to around 5% of the original cost of the cycle.

At least 50% of the bike’s use must be for work journeys but you are free to use it for personal and leisure purposes the rest of the time. There are huge savings to be made on the cost of most bikes so it’s a great incentive to get fit as well as doing your bit for the environment at the same time, particularly if you loathe that daily commute!

For more information visit the UK Governments Ride to Work Scheme