​Cycling is healthy, environmentally friendly and cost-effective. Against this backdrop, HELLA is offering employees in Germany a new bicycle leasing deal from CW 17.

Donnerstag 21.04.2022

Spring beckons with warmer temperatures, while petrol prices rise and rise. So, some are thinking about buying a new bike. HELLA would like to support its employees with immediate effect and has coordinated a bicycle leasing offer for locations in Germany together with the works council. "HELLA already offers its employees a comprehensive package of social benefits. We are pleased to now be able to expand this with another attractive offer," says Dr Lea Corzilius, who is responsible for personnel among other things in the HELLA Management Board. "With the leasing option, we want to make a contribution to the health of our employees as well as to sustainable mobility. At the same time, we are responding to a wish expressed by our employees in last year's global employee survey." The principle is as simple as it is attractive: A new bicycle, which can be selected by employees at specialist dealers throughout Germany, regardless of manufacturer or brand, is leased for three years and financed through deferred compensation.

Obtain leasing offer and finance via deferred compensation

HELLA works together with the provider Deutsche Dienstrad for this purpose. And this is how the leasing offer works: The employees get an offer for a bicycle from a participating local or online dealer via the Dienstrad platform, which they can use for commuting to work, but also for private purposes. Access to the platform is possible from cw 17. All bicycle models available on the market can be chosen in principle; however, the bicycle should cost at least 749 euros and a maximum of 5,600 euros. Based on the offer, the employees then submit an application to HELLA for the transfer of use. Once approval has been given, Deutsche Dienstrad places the order with the dealer or manufacturer and the employees receive their bicycle. The lease is for 36 months; early termination of the contract is not possible.

And this is how the leasing works: On the portal of the provider Deutsche Dienstrad, the employee can calculate the costs and savings. The monthly leasing instalment and the final buy-back fee are shown, with which the bicycle becomes the employee's property after the 36 months. Once the employee has received his or her bicycle, the gross salary is reduced by the agreed monthly leasing instalment for 36 months. HELLA contributes to the costs with a subsidy of 15 euros (gross) per month. The monthly rate includes the cost of an annual inspection. In addition, the package covers fully comprehensive insurance against vandalism and theft, among other things. Anyone who leases a bicycle undertakes in return to secure the bicycle with a high-quality lock and to lock it to a fixed object.

Weigh up the advantages and disadvantages individually

The advantages of leasing a bicycle are obvious: Employees can save up to 40 per cent of the acquisition costs. However, each employee must calculate for themselves whether the offer pays off individually. This is because financing within the framework of deferred compensation equally means that employees pay less into the pension and social security funds for the period of the leasing payment. Due to the lower social security contributions, the entitlements to e.g. sickness benefits, unemployment benefits, parental benefits or even short-time working benefits are also reduced. In addition, the private use of the bicycle results in a non-cash benefit that the employee must pay tax on individually.

Information events are offered

All information about the bike leasing offer can be found on the intranet. Those who would like more detailed information about the procedure or have individual questions can also take part in a digital information event offered by Deutsche Dienstrad. The following dates are available:

Wednesday, 27.04.22 10:00 am to 11:00 am
Friday, 29.04.22 11:00 am to 12:00 pm
Monday, 02.05.22 16:00 pm till 17:00 pm
Thursday, 12.05.22 12:00 pm to 13:00 pm
Wednesday, 18.05.22 16:30 pm to 17:30 pm
Wednesday, 25.05.22 09:00 am to 10:00 am

Access to the web sessions can be found on the Radleasing intranet site and on the additional letter to the April salary letter.