Cyclescheme

Oscar234

check out this cool new UK scheme for cycling and forward it to your local pol - what a great idea.

http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk

Mucco

Oscar234 wrote:

check out this cool new UK scheme for cycling and forward it to your local pol - what a great idea.

http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk

It's been around for quite a while, though many employers are reluctant to take it up as there's little direct benefit to them, and they're scared of the paperwork involved. I think it's a great idea, but it hasn't been widely publicised in the UK, so the take-up is low.

M

Ghost Rider

Maybe, but the paperwork would be nothing compared to the hassle and cost of providing employee parking, as many companies currently do.

I wonder if it's really because employers are scared of the possibility of compo claims arising from situations in which employees have cycling accidents on the way to/from work.

While you might argue that employers shouldn't be held responsible for such accidents, I suspect few are willing to risk a court case. We are a nation of litigators, after all, and as a society we do seem to have a collective inability to believe that accidents are sometimes just that: accidental.

(Of course, having a government which is largely unmoved by the real problems of cyclists doesn't help. If you're a regular user of Dublin's "cycle tracks" you could be forgiven for imagining the pudgey hands of Mary Harney and Dick Roche attempting to shove you into the path of oncoming trucks. In these circumstances it's no wonder our compo culture is so richly developed.)

Mucco wrote:

It's been around for quite a while, though many employers are reluctant to take it up as there's little direct benefit to them, and they're scared of the paperwork involved. I think it's a great idea, but it hasn't been widely publicised in the UK, so the take-up is low.

M

Mucco

Ghost Rider wrote:

I wonder if it's really because employers are scared of the possibility of compo claims arising from situations in which employees have cycling accidents on the way to/from work.

Personally, I think it's because of a lack of imagination. As you point out, car spaces can cost a fortune, and this scheme actually saves the employer money (employers' NI). But cars are 'normal' and cycling is not.

Regarding the compo - does that apply for company cars?

leeroybrown

Some employers probably don't like the idea of 'smelly sweaty cyclists' working for them and don't want to provide the necessary showers, etc.

Ghost Rider

I suspect a societal attitude to cycling plays a part alright. There is definitely a certain Irish mentality that considers cycling's place on the social totem pole to be somewhere between carrying Dunnes bags and eating your own babies. It's the flip-side of the car-as-status-symbol mentality.

All the same, never rule out the power of the punt/euro. If companies were really in line to make big savings by encouraging cycling, I reckon they'd do it. Contemporary Irish capitalists, for all their faults, are at least dynamic enough to spot a money-saving opportunity when they see one. However in this case they may feel the risks outweigh the gains. That's why I suspect it's the fear of litigation that pervades. But it's just speculation, I grant you.

As for whether or not a person injured in a company car accident can sue their company, I don't think so. They can certainly make a claim on the company's insurance policy. That wouldn't be a litigation, though. These things don't go near the courts for the most part.

Mucco wrote:

Personally, I think it's because of a lack of imagination. As you point out, car spaces can cost a fortune, and this scheme actually saves the employer money (employers' NI). But cars are 'normal' and cycling is not.

Regarding the compo - does that apply for company cars?

Mucco

Ghost Rider wrote:

Mucco wrote:

Regarding the compo - does that apply for company cars?

I don't think so. They can certainly make a claim on the company's insurance policy. That wouldn't be a litigation, though. These things don't go near the courts for the most part.

Then why would it apply to bikes?

janullrich

My company does not provide showers but that will not stop me. I have my face flannen and soap. I have told them already that they would have to sack me before I stop cycling. Long live cyclists!:)

Civilian_Target

My uncle avails of this scheme, says its one of the best cycling initiatives there is - he gets 38% off the price of his bike, so he buys one every 2 years!