My Bike Was Stolen Today.

[Tornado]

While I was at bowling practice, my brand new (2 weeks old) Raleigh Grand Sport 2006 model was stolen from school. All I have left is the chain. Is there anything I can do about it or am I going to have to take it.

 

[a6m5]

Sorry to hear this.

The biggest item ever stolen from me was a $400 mountain bike, when I was in high school. I did "take it", quit riding altogether. I'm still somewhat bitter about that, after all these years.

 

[Max Powers]

While I was at bowling practice, my brand new (2 weeks old) Raleigh Grand Sport 2006 model was stolen from school. All I have left is the chain. Is there anything I can do about it or am I going to have to take it.

You could start by filing a police report.

 

[Wolfe]

That sucks. Unless you registered it with the city, I don't think there's much you can do.

 

[lethalAE86typeR]

Where you from?

 

[Keef]

Don't bother with the police. You know they don't take action on petty things like that in this country, at least in my area. From my experience you just have to figure it out on your own, and be sneaky if you see someone with your bike. Steal it back.

 

[Solid Lifters]

Don't bother with the police. You know they don't take action on petty things like that in this country, at least in my area. From my experience you just have to figure it out on your own, and be sneaky if you see someone with your bike. Steal it back.

No, this is a very ignorant attitude about the police and this should not be followed.

File a police report for property theft. Give the exact model, serial number (yes, legally, all bikes have one) and a good description of anything unique about your bike (after market items, color, seat hight, type of wheels and tires, ect.)

Make a filer and pass them out to every cop you see. They'll know to look out for it and will know it's a stolen bike when they spot somebody else riding it. They'll pull them over and ask to see the serial number on the bike.

But, one thing he said is correct, the police will most likely will never find it and that sucks.

 

[DustDriver]

You should report it.
I sometimes go to a public bike sale from the police where they sell the found bikes that aren't reported stolen by someone.
There was a good looking mountain bike and some young dude said it belonged to him and it was stolen a couple of weeks earlier.
His friends also confirmed that it was his bike, but he didn't report the theft and he couldn't prove it was his bike.
So the police sold it anyway.

 

[Touring Mars]

Damn, sorry to hear that... 👎

I'm with the last two posters here - at the very least, it sets a process in motion by which you atleast have some chance of seeing your property again.

My friend Dave once had his bike stolen in Dublin, Ireland. He was upset even though the bike was quite old - he used it every day and couldn't understand why someone would be so nasty as to steal his old bike for the hell of it. Amazingly, a couple of days later, he was walking to work and a pikey rode past him on his bike! He ran after him and grabbed the guy, at which point the pikey bloke jumped off the bike and ran for it... bizarre, esp. given that Dublin is quite a big place.

Still, as Solid says, it ain't likely you'll see it again, and that does suck big time...

 

[Mark T]

Did you have any insurance on the bike? My household insurance covers my bike if it were ever to be stolen.

Police rarely do anything when it comes to stolen goods.

 

[ExigeEvan]

But wouldn't the bike have to be stolen off your property for you to claim?

How did they manage to steal it? Cut the chain?

A mate of mine had his bike stolen. A £400 mountain bike he saved up for a few months to get. One day though, he left it in some bushes while him and a friend took a quick shortcut to call for another friend that wasn't passable by bike. When he came back it was gone.

3 months later he saw the bike, only recognisable by the brake lines which he'd had like a luminous green. When he confronted the guy who had it the guy ran off ditching the bike. Except the bike was practically unuseable as all the brakes were shot, the suspension screwed up and the paintwork was all sanded back.

 

[exigeracer]

Depending on your coverage, you don't have to be on your property to claim stolen property through your home insurance. A friend of mine had his jacket and backpack stolen at a community event, filed the claim, got a huge paycheck for it and had brand new stuff (yes, I know premiums probably increased).

Another good friend of mine had his goggles teefed at a ski hill. He was so bummed out about it, because this is the kind of guy who takes a long time to save up for things, and he really doesn't take things like that for granted. He was so close to tears when the goggles got lifted, but we're regulars at the hills, so it would've been easy to spot them again (they were a new brand, no one ever has them). Sure enough, we went riding the next day and this little gangstafaced kid is walking around toting the goggles. It was fun for me and my brother (both over 6 feet) stalking this kid, making him nervous, finally confronting him, yelling at the kid's face for roughly 2 minutes, threaten to call the cops on him, then stealing the goggles back right off his face.

Unfortunately, we still see the kid every now and then with a new pair of goggles, but we still do everything we can to embarass and insult him.

 

[Slick Rick]

While I was at bowling practice, my brand new (2 weeks old) Raleigh Grand Sport 2006 model was stolen from school. All I have left is the chain. Is there anything I can do about it or am I going to have to take it.

Dont worry man its not the end of the world, Ive had 3 bikes stolen. And i dont think there is much you can do about it unfortunately unless its still around your area and you had it 'marked' by the police.

 

[El Gigante]

I feel really sorry for you man, sad to hear.

When I used to cycle to school I always used to use the same space in the bike shed...so I locked the bike lock to the rail so I wouldn't have to carry it to school with me. The next day the bike lock was gone. Why would anyone steal a bike lock? Wouldn't they need to break it in the process anyway? Weird.

 

[lotusfan]

Is there a such thing as a GEICO bicycle insurance?

 

[Mrs. Famine]

I hate theiving pikey scum who steal things.

Not sure where you're from but there is a scheme in the UK where the police will stamp your bike with your postcode and then add some ultraviolet markings so if it's recovered, then it's obvious who it belongs to.
Unfortunately this doesn't help if the frame is sanded and repainted!

I can only say i'm sorry to hear this and I hope it gets sorted quickly.

 

[Slick Rick]

I hate theiving pikey scum who steal things.

Not sure where you're from but there is a scheme in the UK where the police will stamp your bike with your postcode and then add some ultraviolet markings so if it's recovered, then it's obvious who it belongs to.
Unfortunately this doesn't help if the frame is sanded and repainted!

Yeah! thats what I meant, UV markings.

 

[Pupik]

No, this is a very ignorant attitude about the police and this should not be followed.

In the past 15 years, I still haven't heard back from the three break-ins on our cars and my missing bike. In all cases, they took fingerprints, reports, et cetera...no calls back, ever. But when they call me for donations, I tell them to just check my gigantic file marked "unlawful speed violations", and hang up the phone. Seriously, I'll wave and smile to them when they pass my by work and home, and I appreciate the job they do. But their customer service skills need a little improvement.

Realistically, they aren't going to stop other cyclists and check to see if their bike is registered to them, so even the perpetrator is riding your bike to the police station every day to wash windows and vacuum floors, they'll never get busted. You'd have to prove that you know who took what, and when (and probably have evidence, too) to get your bike back.

 

[Sureboss]

In the UK it'd be the norm for it to be covered under the house insurance, it might need to be part of the contents list for the house insurance though.

Do all you can, file a police report, tell the school head and get your parents to check their house insurance (presuming you have it).

Also how new is it?

If you brought it with a credit card you can be insured for it within a year iirc.