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Lease a bike | Two wheels. Endless possibilities. (www.lease-a-bike.com)

submitted 6 months ago by [email protected] to c/bicycling

12 comments fedilink hide all child comments

What do you all think of this company's idea? You can lease a bike from them, to get started riding without the "big" expense of buying a bike up front.

I guess the big question is just, will this get more people riding then would otherwise happen? If so, seems OK, but generally, I'm resistant to this idea that literally everything needs to be done via subscriptions.

Is this available in your area and if so, is it working well or no?

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 6 months ago (2 children)

No pricing information on the site at least not without signing up for an account. The whole site looks like one of those 5 minute wordpress hackjobs so that combined with lack of relevant info front and center... yeah, this is probably a scam at best, and a way to harvest personal info at worst.

Also "big upfront expense of buying a bike upfront"... mate... you can score a perfectly fine, working bicycle for a tenner. So pushing a "lease" on multi-thousand dollar bikes is just yet another way to nickel-and-dime people with a "service" that there's zero need for.

[–] calamitycastle 2 points 6 months ago

Where are these £10 bikes at bro ʘ‿ʘ

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 months ago

Fair points. I have no idea how well they're funded, or whether the business model will make them last beyond hype. But they have enough to fund a racing team so this appears to be more than just a fly-by-night scam operation.

OTOH, I totally agree about "just buy a used bike or whatever you can afford". I wish there was more of a VC-attractive model which would recycle bikes to make them more affordable for more riders. We're such a wasteful society, in the largest senses.

[–] rosamundi 7 points 6 months ago (1 children)

The UK does a "bike to work" scheme, you get an interest free loan from your employer that is repaid directly from your salary before your tax is deducted, so it reduces your tax bill every month. The loan money can be spent at any bike shop on any bike that meets the criteria. It's extremely popular and works well.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 6 months ago

This is a great scheme all around. For the employee, the employer, the environment and the government, everyone benefits here.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 6 months ago

Picked up a used, steel vintage MTB for $150 Canadian late last year. Already put over 2400km on it through the winter. It's also taken me on a 180km+ adventure ride, so it does a good job for less than the cost of two tanks of gas.

Bikes don't have to be expensive or a hassle.

I can see a leasing service being useful to some, but it really depends on how the lease is structured (cost) and what kind of bike/service/guarantee you get with it.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Watching the Giro d'Italia. Keep seeing this brand name on jerseys. Had to check 'em out. I'm not affiliated with them at all, tbc.

IMO, this seems just like a greedy VC idea for how to make people pay wayyyy too much for a commodity item. But I am open to other thoughts. Maybe I'm missing something positive about this?

[–] calamitycastle 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Swapfiets are still going and have been for years

[–] calamitycastle 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)

No idea if it's profitable of course

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 months ago

Yah, that looks cool. (I've not heard of them before) €20 per month for a non-e-bike seems a really good deal.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Bikes actually require a level of care though? If you just leave them outside they are going to start rusting etc.

Going to have to be expensive to cover that and theft

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 months ago

For sure. On the lease-a-bike site, they say they want to work with brick and mortar bike shops who already do repairs. I take it then they factor that into the lease for the consumer (us). The web site is still generally really light on facts though, so hard to be sure, without signing up.