10,000 Bikes Marked And Stolen 

Bikes Recovered Quicker Using BikeRegister

A Senior police officer is urging cyclists to get their bikes security-marked and placed on the BikeRegister database after a count showed that over 500 lost and stolen cycles recovered by police in the Richmond area still await identification.

Detective Chief Inspector Martin Ward of Richmond Police has been encouraging residents to get their bikes security marked during a recent campaign called ’12 Days to Get Cycle Safe’. As part of the campaign, Safer Neighbourhoods Teams held bike security-marking surgeries across the borough.

Last week the 10,000th bike was security-marked under the Richmond Council and police initiative Operation Lockout.

Recovered bikes are initially kept in a repository at Twickenham Police Station, but if they aren’t claimed after three months they are moved into storage off the borough.

Some of the bikes waiting to be claimed by owners have been valued at over £1,000 each and have been recovered over several years. Police believe that bikes found at the homes of burglars may have been stolen with the intention of being sold online.

DCI Ward said: “The borough’s police officers have done a cracking job of recovering all these bikes but returning them to their rightful owners is proving almost impossible because the great majority of them haven’t been security-marked.

“Security-marking entails an etched code being put on the bike’s frame and the contact details of the owner being registered on a national police secure database, Bikeregister.com. It can also act as a deterrent for thieves.”

BikeRegister is the UK’s leading online registration initiative aiming to reduce bicycle theft and assist in owner recovery. Once registered, a bike can be ’flagged’ as stolen on the database if it goes missing. The database, which police forces across the UK have access to, is owned and maintained by security company Selectamark.

DCI Ward continued: “It’s difficult to trace bikes back to their owners if they aren’t registered and haven’t been reported as lost or stolen. Some of these bikes are in very good condition and are high-value, making them ideal for thieves to sell online to unsuspecting buyers.”

He also had advice for cyclists who don’t lock their bikes properly.

“It’s alarming how many people leave their bikes unlocked in their front or back gardens, down an alley way, hidden behind a bush or in a poorly-secured shed, thinking that it will be okay. Even in one of London’s safest boroughs, it takes an opportunist thief seconds to snatch a bike.

“As we continue tackling bike theft, I encourage residents to attend one of the local bike security-marking opportunities set up by their SNT. The whole process takes five minutes,” said DCI Ward.

For further press information and images contact: Angela Singleton, Press Officer for Selectamark. Mobile: +44 (0)7905 623 819. Email: [email protected]

For further information and images contact: Angela Singleton, Press Officer for Selectamark.

Mobile: +44 (0)7905 623819
Email: angela.singleton@selectamark.co.uk
Twitter: @bikeregister