Key questions answered on £50 bike repair vouchers


Support us and go ad-free

Cyclists will soon be able to apply for vouchers towards the cost of repairing a bike.

Here are 10 key questions about the government’s Fix Your Bike scheme.

What is it?

As part of measures to encourage cycling during the coronavirus pandemic, the government is offering people in England £50 vouchers to be used towards repair costs.

How do I get a voucher?

People can apply for a voucher on a first-come first-served basis on the Fix Your Bike website from 11.45pm on Tuesday.

Weren’t they supposed to be available sooner?

The £25m scheme is part of a £2bn investment in active travel announced in February.

The vouchers were initially due to be available in June, but the Department for Transport said they would only be made available once maintenance shops could handle the expected spike in demand.

Once I’ve got hold of a voucher, how do I use it?

Find a repair shop participating in the scheme and book your bike in for a check-up.

What do the vouchers cover?

They can be used towards the cost of making a bike safe for use on public roads.

Upgrading roadworthy parts or buying removable accessories such as lights or helmets is not included.

What will £50 get me?

The voucher will normally cover the cost of a standard service and replacement of a basic component such as an inner tube or cable.

Boris Johnson
The PM has launched the strategy to get more people cycling (Rui Vieira/PA)

What happens if my bike needs several or more expensive new parts?

Cyclists will need to cover costs in excess of £50.

Is there a limit on how many vouchers one person can get?

Vouchers are capped at two per household and they must be used on different bikes.

How popular will they be?

The government says it is releasing vouchers in batches to help manage capacity at cycle shops which have seen “overwhelming demand” for their services during the Covid-19 crisis.

One participating retailer, Halfords, says it has thousands of slots for people to have their bikes inspected.

Is the total number of vouchers capped?

Up to half a million vouchers will be released, but the initial batch is limited to 50,000.

Support us and go ad-free

We need your help to keep speaking the truth

Every story that you have come to us with; each injustice you have asked us to investigate; every campaign we have fought; each of your unheard voices we amplified; we do this for you. We are making a difference on your behalf.

Our fight is your fight. You’ve supported our collective struggle every time you gave us a like; and every time you shared our work across social media. Now we need you to support us with a monthly donation.

We have published nearly 2,000 articles and over 50 films in 2021. And we want to do this and more in 2022 but we don’t have enough money to go on at this pace. So, if you value our work and want us to continue then please join us and be part of The Canary family.

In return, you get:

* Advert free reading experience
* Quarterly group video call with the Editor-in-Chief
* Behind the scenes monthly e-newsletter
* 20% discount in our shop

Almost all of our spending goes to the people who make The Canary’s content. So your contribution directly supports our writers and enables us to continue to do what we do: speaking truth, powered by you. We have weathered many attempts to shut us down and silence our vital opposition to an increasingly fascist government and right-wing mainstream media.

With your help we can continue:

* Holding political and state power to account
* Advocating for the people the system marginalises
* Being a media outlet that upholds the highest standards
* Campaigning on the issues others won’t
* Putting your lives central to everything we do

We are a drop of truth in an ocean of deceit. But we can’t do this without your support. So please, can you help us continue the fight?

The Canary Support us
  • Show Comments

    1. Oh. So now, not only with getting away with paying no road tax, they also get a free MOT and repairs.
      As for “making bikes safer for road use”, that’s all well and good but the safest bike in the world is still an accident waiting to happen if it’s ridden by a muppet or a two-wheel road hog.

      Report comment

    2. This should encourage people to take up cycling again if they’re not confident to do bike repairs themselves.

      Outside the box, what about a scheme (as in Scandinavia) whereby cyclists are paid a few pennies per mile to cycle to work instead of using their cars? Could avoid the London congestion zone too if the car was parked a few miles away.

      Report comment

    Leave a Reply

    Join the conversation

    Please read our comment moderation policy here.

Related articles