Swapfiets UK Reviews 

Brilliant Service, Swapfiets concept is amazing. If you look for great bike quality and price you have to try Swapfiets.

This company is reliable, convenient and good value for money. I’m reading a few reviews here about “dangerous” bikes but honestly I don’t agree at all. The thing is, the bikes are “Dutch style” bikes and you have to back pedal to break fully and there is one break for the front wheel. Also the pedals don’t move freely, again, a Dutch style thing. I’m not a bike expert AT ALL, I don’t even know how to pump a bike tyre, but if I could get the hang of it, I’m sure anyone who rides could.
Also, they come to you or you can go to them to service the bike, I went in store recently for the first time and the team (Andy, Jose and another lovely person who was cleaning a bike) were all so kind and welcoming. Great vibes.
Don’t bother wasting your money on expensive Lime bikes, have the freedom to have your own bike!
I started with the cheapest option which had no gears, I was warned and although it was okay, for just roughly £1 more a month you can have the one with gears. I’d say go for it and subscribe- you’ll get used to Dutch bike thing!

My bike unfortunately got stolen and Andy (at Hercules Road Branch) and his manager was so super helpful in helping me file a police report and getting a replacement! They were attentive, funny, kind and didn’t rush me! Couldn’t recommend the branch more

I would strongly advise avoiding Swapfiets. The bike I was supplied was unsafe and almost caused an accident. I had to change bikes three times in a single day, wasting hours of my time, and the problems were never properly addressed.

Instead of investigating their own road-unworthy bikes, the company focused on chasing me for an unlawful £60 charge and even went as far as threatening me with a debt collector. Their priorities are clearly profit over customer safety.

The bikes themselves are poorly designed, particularly the dangerous back-pedal braking system, which makes them unsafe in real road conditions. Overall, this is an unscrupulous company with terrible customer service and little regard for rider safety.

Save yourself the stress – look elsewhere. There are far better, safer, and more reliable companies out there.
Thanks for your reply today 27 August 2025, you have totally blanked me up until now but because i have written something in the public you now want me to reach out to you! its far to late, you have no interest in your custormers and are just profit led! you had many chances to do the right thing and address my safety corners however you choose not to.

Easy to hire but frustrating to ride. I opted for a standard non-electric bike and found it to be sluggish to pedal and difficult to use the brakes effectively due to there only being one lever for the front brake with rear brakes operated by backpedaling. This system is unhelpful if you need to make an emergency stop.

It would be great if standard single speed bikes were available to hire too.

Great company and great bikes! Great service too, Andy at the London Waterloo store was super helpful and explained everything so clearly and with a smile, making the whole experience of getting a new bike very pleasant :)

I think this company can be helpful to people who are on the fence about cycling in London. By renting a bike, you can experience cycling in London without the commitment of buying your own bike. Staff were friendly and helpful.

However, I have to warn cyclists that are on the smaller side (about 160cm). The bikes are HEFTY and tall. I'm about 158cm, and the smallest bike with the seat all the way down is barely okay for me. I find this kind of weird - I am definitely on the shorter side, but I'm not unusually short compared to all UK women. Getting the bike up the stairs to my flat is also a huge issue for me. If you're a shorter woman, it may be best to just buy your own bike.

i used to recommend swapfiets religiously having used them for years in Berlin. I’ve recently moved to london and the quality is significantly lower. the bike i received is scratched up and the handlebars were leaving black marks on my hands and now one of the handlebar covers is falling off. Also think it’s the only company that puts up the price after you complete a 12 month fixed term. I understand it’s in the small print but will never get why customer loyalty is not rewarded. Although staff are always very kind and helpful both in store and on the phone.

Lots of additional costs. Politics completely against customer. Stay away

I was facing trouble with my bike on 3rd when I tried to rode it on 4th and 5th. When I request to repair it, I got the appointment on a same day. When I went there they just switched the bike with a new and prefect one but I prefered the same bike so I just ask them if they can repair the same bike for me. And luckily the guy understood my comfort with the current bike and he repaired it in a few minutes which for more amazing. So I would say the staff is top notch for providing service and understanding customers needs.

Really bad customer experience. Wouldn’t accept referral code after signing up online, they were unapologetic when running late on the appointment time. Lots of additional costs. Unfortunately just had a really bad experience with one of the ladies there - hopefully other attendants are more helpful.

I rented the Power 7 e-bike on Saturday 28 June 3:30pm on a subscription basis as I needed an e-bike for commuting. I was told that I had a 14 day cooling off period. I road it home from central London, taking me an hour. The bike is extremely heavy. Much heavier than a Lime or Forest bike and the electric power was woefully inadeqaute. I realised that this was not a suitable commuter bike, but could not get back to the store on the same day. They are closed Sunday, so I took time off work to return the bike first thing Monday morning when they open at 10:30am. The bike was so heavy and slow I took it on the train to return it.
Staff were utterly indifferent to my unhappy experience and then informed me that I will get a mere £20.55 refund of £54.90 I paid for the month rental. The cancellation is a wopping £34.35. Customer services were not interested at all when I explained that this steep cancellation was not explained to me. They referred me to having ticked the "terms and conditions" box. I received no contract documents and there was no verbal explanations of the key terms at point of collection. You have to pay via the app and that is woefully inadeqaute in explaining the terms.

Poor product, aggressive and indifferent staff. Good luck if you want to be a customer.

Response to below reply:
I returned the bike as soon as possible. I did not “cancel after a certain number of days in use” as you indicate. I returned it on the next available business day. I rented on Saturday mid afternoon and returned on the Monday first thing (you are closed on Sundays. I got no viable use out of my rental and your company had no regard for that.

Very friendly staff super easy sign up process

Bike brilliant biked to Richmond park yesterday London roads are different from Lincoln. So I go back roads if I can. Have been more bike accidents then cars n motorbikes. Cuz cars expected you to go 50 miles n hour whilest looking down side roads. N traffic lights are quick here aswell. But other than that no issues with the bike

Honestly, the customer service was just bad. Not sure if it’s a training issue or if the person was just that unhelpful. I’d already looked through the website and called to get some clarity but she had zero intention of actually helping. She kept telling me to go check the website instead of just explaining things properly. What’s the point of calling if I’m gonna be sent in circles?

Marcello was very accommodating and great to deal with, friendly, professional service.

MMh the bike could use a service. no baskets. need tocome back in when Im up near centre. Also, my code didn't work and the bellend didn't do retrospectively.

Very good service with Andy

Amazing service, very kind and efficient from Chrid

Chris was an amazing and immediate help and Jose is the best anyways. Always friendly, helpful and just so nice!