Although data shows that the overall trend for bicycle theft is decreasing, the stats still suggest that a bike is stolen every six minutes in the UK. So, what can you do to protect your bike?
1) Buy a good lock and always use it
The single best way to deter potential bike theft is a good quality lock. So, do your research, take a look online at sites like bikeparts.co.uk and buy a good quality lock. It really is worth your investment, as a cheap lock will do nothing to stop a determined thief.
2) Mark your bike
Another really important step is to register your bike and add a unique identification number to it. This means that if someone does steal it, should you be able to track it down you can prove to police that it is your bike. Use Bike Register to get a unique code for your bike.
Once you have a registration code for your bike, you can also add a warning label to your bike, letting people know that it has been registered. This should help put off people from stealing your bike, as they know it will be tough to resell.
3) Take care where you leave your bike
You might have all the right gear, but if you don’t secure your bike properly this gear will not do its job. As a general rule, you want to lock your bike in a busy place where plenty of people can see it. Thieves will be deterred from trying to steal it if they are in sight of other people (well, that’s the theory..).
Also, don’t lock your bike to something flimsy or mobile. You can have the most unbreakable lock, but if you attach your bike to a weak fence thieves can simply break that and take the bike away with the lock still attached.
4) Keep your bike secure overnight
Bikes stolen form gardens and garden sheds is a big problem. Even garages are not always safe. The best plan is to keep your bike inside your home, or have a bespoke store built that will keep thieves out.
5) Consider a GPS tracker
For the ultimate protection, consider a GPS tracker. These can be installed on the bike so as to be completely invisible, Then, if your bike is stolen, you can use an app to track it down. Do check the range of the GPS tracker though because some products are limited.
Finally, if you do track down your bike, make sure that you inform the police. Do not set off to try to get your bike back alone, as this could be dangerous.
