Guide to recovering a stolen bike
Mossj
Posts: 3
So if you’re reading this chances are you’re looking for a way to recover your stolen bike, unfortunately there is no sure fire way but you can drastically help your chances by following these three key steps.
Spread the word
Report it to the police.
Using the 101 service which will put you through to your local police area (use 999 if the theft is in progress or just happened). Write down your crime number as this will be useful for an insurance claim and when spreading the word about your bike theft.
Let your insurers know.
Remember insurance is a business if they have a reason to not pay out they won’t, most insurers insist that you report the theft to them within 24 hours with a crime a number. If you have a Kryptonite lock you may also be able to claim under their Anti-Theft protection guarantee.
Spread the word locally.
Make up some flyers to hand out to local businesses you should try to visit every bike shop and pawn shop in your local area, although if this isn’t possible try to email them instead. Also try to get word out to car boot and market organisers although these are often harder to get in contact with.
Your flyers should include make/model, a picture of the bike, approximate times it was stolen and a crime number (at the very least). If you can include the frame number and information about any aftermarket parts you fitted.
If you have an interesting story (charity rides, high value, etc), it is well worth seeing if your local paper will take the story as this will drastically limit where the thief can sell the bike and help you get word out to a large audience.
Spread the word online.
There are three large bike registers in the UK these are Stolen Bikes, BikeRegister and BikeShepherd. Police also use the property register Immobilise, although members of the public have to pay to check this.
There are also bike forums (including BikeRadar’s) that have dedicated stolen bike sections. In addition you can contact local social media groups and cycling clubs.
Take a walk around
Go for a walk in the local area.
Take a walk to other bike racks in the local area, many thieves will steal a bike only to lock it up shortly after, from their point of view this reduces the chances of them being caught with it in their possession.
Visit your local pawn shops, markets and car boots.
Even if you handed them a flyer, it’s still worth checking yourself especially in the first week or so. If you’re in London, Brick Lane Market on a Sunday is an absolute must following a bike theft.
Spot any CCTV in the area? Ask them to check it for you.
Whilst it’s unlikely any business will let you watch their CCTV, if you politely ask them to check their CCTV between X and Y for a bike of Z colour (hand them a flyer with this info on) then they will hopefully do this for you (although they may not inform you directly if anything came of it).
Stay Vigilant
Setup alerts for online classifieds.
The big two for online bike sales in the UK are eBay and Gumtree. There are two specialist websites that help you combine the adverts from each into an easy to read gallery, which are Find That Bike (UK wide) and BikeShd (London Only), the former also allows you to setup email alerts for your searches.
If your bike was an off road bike it may also be worth checking the Pink Bike forum regularly.
Keep an eye out in your local area.
Bike thieves will often sell the bike on quickly, and it may pass through several hands before someone starts using it again. When they do it’s not unusual for the bike to pop up in the area it was stolen.
Don’t give up hope!
Whilst some bikes are recovered very quickly more often than not it can take a few months for a bike to appear. Taking a proactive approach will dramatically increase the chances of seeing your bike again.
Spread the word
Report it to the police.
Using the 101 service which will put you through to your local police area (use 999 if the theft is in progress or just happened). Write down your crime number as this will be useful for an insurance claim and when spreading the word about your bike theft.
Let your insurers know.
Remember insurance is a business if they have a reason to not pay out they won’t, most insurers insist that you report the theft to them within 24 hours with a crime a number. If you have a Kryptonite lock you may also be able to claim under their Anti-Theft protection guarantee.
Spread the word locally.
Make up some flyers to hand out to local businesses you should try to visit every bike shop and pawn shop in your local area, although if this isn’t possible try to email them instead. Also try to get word out to car boot and market organisers although these are often harder to get in contact with.
Your flyers should include make/model, a picture of the bike, approximate times it was stolen and a crime number (at the very least). If you can include the frame number and information about any aftermarket parts you fitted.
If you have an interesting story (charity rides, high value, etc), it is well worth seeing if your local paper will take the story as this will drastically limit where the thief can sell the bike and help you get word out to a large audience.
Spread the word online.
There are three large bike registers in the UK these are Stolen Bikes, BikeRegister and BikeShepherd. Police also use the property register Immobilise, although members of the public have to pay to check this.
There are also bike forums (including BikeRadar’s) that have dedicated stolen bike sections. In addition you can contact local social media groups and cycling clubs.
Take a walk around
Go for a walk in the local area.
Take a walk to other bike racks in the local area, many thieves will steal a bike only to lock it up shortly after, from their point of view this reduces the chances of them being caught with it in their possession.
Visit your local pawn shops, markets and car boots.
Even if you handed them a flyer, it’s still worth checking yourself especially in the first week or so. If you’re in London, Brick Lane Market on a Sunday is an absolute must following a bike theft.
Spot any CCTV in the area? Ask them to check it for you.
Whilst it’s unlikely any business will let you watch their CCTV, if you politely ask them to check their CCTV between X and Y for a bike of Z colour (hand them a flyer with this info on) then they will hopefully do this for you (although they may not inform you directly if anything came of it).
Stay Vigilant
Setup alerts for online classifieds.
The big two for online bike sales in the UK are eBay and Gumtree. There are two specialist websites that help you combine the adverts from each into an easy to read gallery, which are Find That Bike (UK wide) and BikeShd (London Only), the former also allows you to setup email alerts for your searches.
If your bike was an off road bike it may also be worth checking the Pink Bike forum regularly.
Keep an eye out in your local area.
Bike thieves will often sell the bike on quickly, and it may pass through several hands before someone starts using it again. When they do it’s not unusual for the bike to pop up in the area it was stolen.
Don’t give up hope!
Whilst some bikes are recovered very quickly more often than not it can take a few months for a bike to appear. Taking a proactive approach will dramatically increase the chances of seeing your bike again.
If you need any advice in recovering a stolen bike or think a bike advert you have spotted is a bit suspect, I’m always happy to help, you can PM me directly on this forum or contact me on twitter / facebook. Alternatively email me using john@stolen-bikes.co.uk
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