Cycle to Work Savings
See how much you could save on a bike and accessories through salary sacrifice.
Net Cost to You
£0
Gross Cost
£0
Total Savings
£0
Monthly Cost (12m)
£0
How Does the Cycle to Work Scheme Save Money?
The Cycle to Work scheme is a government-backed initiative that allows you to obtain a new bike and safety equipment tax-free. You pay for the bike through Salary Sacrifice.
What is Salary Sacrifice?
Instead of paying for the bike from your net (take-home) pay, the cost is deducted from your gross salary before tax and National Insurance (NI) are calculated.
Because your gross salary is lower, you pay less Income Tax and less National Insurance. This "avoided tax" is where your savings come from.
Firefighter Specific Considerations
Pension Impact: It is important to check if your brigade treats salary sacrifice as reducing your "pensionable pay". In the Firefighters' Pension Scheme (2015), benefits are based on your career average earnings. Ask payroll whether the arrangement changes pensionable pay or uses a protected reference figure. Check this with your employer before agreeing to the sacrifice.
Ownership Fee
Strictly speaking, you are "hiring" the bike from your employer during the payment period (usually 12 months). At the end of the term, to keep the bike, you may need to pay a small ownership fee (often based on HMRC's Fair Market Value table) or extend the hire period. The final treatment depends on the scheme agreement offered by your employer.