I have worked at my company for over 20 years and I deal now exclusively with employee's flexible benefits, i.e. we give employees an amount of money (%) on top of their salary and they can spend it as they wish and I co-ordinate their choice(s).
One of the new benefits that we are offering our employees is that they can buy a bike up to the value of £500 and the company pays the VAT on the bike and it works as a salary sacrifice in that the cost of the bike (excluding VAT) is deducted from your monthly gross pay (i.e. the employee also saves on tax and N.I.).
This is a verified scheme offered by the Inland Revenue.
... well, the company realises that not everyone can buy a bike and use it to ride to work (for example, where I work in London the company does not have facilities to store the bikes) and to that effect the idea is that all employees can buy a bike, whether they ride it to work or not.
... well my son (aged 11) has never been able to ride a bike (is very sporty but has never achieved the balance/co-ordination) but this year when he spent 2 weeks at his dads he learnt to ride a bike (borrowed off a friend).
I told him I would treat him to a bike (not Christmas/birthday present) and now my company offers this scheme.#
Ideally, I should be buying myself a bike to ride to work (whether that be to ride to the office or only to the local train station).
Do you think I am being unreasonable in saving the VAT, my own tax and N.I. in buying a bike that my son can ride.
The reason I am buying him a bike in the 'bike to work' scheme is that he has just started high school and, instead of me driving him every morning (about 5 minutes drive, 25 minutes walk), he will use the bike to get to school so in effect I am doing what the Government offers in that I will not be using my car and it helps my carbon off-setting.
My only concern is how can I explain to my HR department (in which I work) why I would be using a GT Air 2009 (BMX) bike to ride to the station?
Do you think I am cheating the 'system'?