Have you ever had your bike nicked, or know someone who has?

**Ms Piggy** · 10th January 2004, 11:50

Yup if they want it they'll just take it, where my flatmate had here bike parked was a well lit area & like I said it was chained up.
We laso had a neighbour down the road who had their bike stolen from their garage and in fact my other flatmate had a little scooter that some sh*t heads threw down the bank!

**wari** · 10th January 2004, 12:14

Originally Posted by Celtic_Sea_lily

..my other flatmate had a little scooter that some sh*t heads threw down the bank!

Talkin about shit heads ... I noticed 3 cars that had had their rear windscreen or 1/4 light windows smashed in on Glengarry Road this morning on my way to work ... one had both windows broken in ... that makes me mad

**boris** · 10th January 2004, 18:39

had push bike stolen the last one i got back because the cop give me a ticket for no cycle helmet and took down the number in case i had stolen it.Found a guy ,who used to live around the corner from me ,on in in rotorua.The cop told me he went to jail for it.

Boris

**Timber020** · 11th January 2004, 17:30

I had the same road bike stolen twice, got it back both times. been taken for a thrash, luckily there is little hurt they could do to it.

Dad had his farmbike stolen, guy was found drunk as a skunk after breaking into the local golf club and unfit to ride it any further.

Quads and dirtbikes get nicked ALOT. A mate of mine lost 2 quads and his motocross bike from a locked shed around the back of the house. they went past the house, drugged the dogs, cut through the side of the skyline garage to get in and unbolt the main doors and pushed them some 200m to get them clear of the house. Highly organised team.

Another lost an XR200 and KX250 at different times. We were at a party 6 months later and found the KX250 and "Liberated" it by force. Put it back in his shed as a suprise, that morning the insurance rep turned up with a check for the loss of the bike. The bike was stuffed anyhow, and luckily had 125 stickers on it so the rep still left him with the money. Phew!
Third lost an XR250 and a quad, locked shed, dogs, right next to house. The team doing the thefts were caught a year later, boy they had really done some serious numbers.
I would say dirt and farm bikes make up alot of these statistics, as I think they contribute to our acc levys. Hell I know 2 people who have been killed on quads.

**Racer X** · 14th January 2004, 16:01

No motorbikes, but 2 days ago our washing machine and my mountain bike were stolen while we were camping.
The funny thing is the police turned up about 2 minutes after my mum reported it - apparently they were doing traffic duty nearby.
I'm gonna do some vigalante work now

**Motoracer** · 14th January 2004, 16:23

I reckon the best trick to protect your garage is getting an alarm. I am saving up for a flash one my self. All I have to do then is put a baseball bat under my bed and have a relaxed/reassured sleep. As soon as the alram goes off I will run out and bash the shit out off the mongrels. If you are willing to spend more, I would also highly recommend security cameras to really catch them, if they managed to make a run for it that is.

**marty** · 14th January 2004, 16:52

chains padlocks etc will only slow them down. get an alarm. a good one, that sets itself after 30 seconds on the stand. make sure the siren has it's own battery, and that it has a bump switch - stops idiots from sitting on it in the street.

hitcher - do you have a number for dave at kiwirider insurance? i've currently got the aprilia thru ami at about $400/annum, but their 1000cc/$15k bike premiums are insane. i've found somewhere for $750 premium/$750 excess, but cheaper again would be good.

**matthewt** · 14th January 2004, 19:43

Had my first bike (suzi gt185) nicked from the supermarket I worked (after school job). Found some of the panels at a wreckers months later. Dorks tried to hacksaw the frame apart to get the engine out would you believe. The above wrecker tried to BS that the parts weren't stolen, even after I explained that the panels had been spray painted by me and you could see the crap job I job repainting the "gt185" badges.

I thought the MV had been stolen just after Xmas but that's another story.

**ching_ching** · 26th January 2004, 05:26

Originally Posted by Coldkiwi

i've had mine tampered with and it would've been nicked if it hadn't had a disc lock on (steering lock and ignition are STILL not fixed!.. its screwdriver operated now

Hi ColdKiwi,

Gee rats. Mind you we both know how the Alstare gets the stares because of the unusual graphics.
I personally don't know anyone who's had a sickle taken but at work in the jails, the inmates tell me that generally harley's and trumpies are the targets... or basically anything that's not Japanese made. I say any bike is a potential target... opportunistic or specifically targeted.

ching_ching

**vifferman** · 2nd April 2004, 13:58

years ago (1992??) I had my Honda XB500RS Mutant stolen by joy-riders one night. I had to go out to work after dinner (worked 2 blocks away from home) and didn't know how long I'd be, so I left the garage door open, not expecting to be long. Returned *hours* later to find bike gone. Rang the cops etc., then went to bed.

The Mutant had custom exhausts (Cycleworks? IIRC), which were loud and distinctive. I was lying there in bed, and I was sure I could hear them. Got up - yup, sure could. So I drove around for a bit, stopping the car and listening occasionally, but no luck. I was pissed off.

Next morning, cops rang me to say bike is found - in a new subdivision less than 3 blocks away! So I went and picked it up. Little damage, apart from a few minor scrapes and scratches from it being used as a dirt-bike (well, it did have an XR500 engine!) and a broken ignition lock (the old "jam the screwdriver in and apply brute force" trick). Luckily, a girl at work had a flatmate who was selling some CB250RS bits, so I got replacement bits for very little.

Insurance company whacked a $1500 excess on my last bike (VFR750), solely because it had a higher theft risk, being a 750. Yeah? Even though it almost always lived in an alarmed and monitored garage at home, and a security garage at work?

**claire** · 2nd April 2004, 16:48

A friend of mine has had their Harley stolen, primarily because it was a Harley and some low life decided they wanted it more than he did.

I used to not worry about my 600 being stolen figured if someone took the time and effort to break into our shed they wouldn't take the 600 with the R1 parked next to it!!!

The sad thing is it doesn't matter what you do to secure your bike if someone wants it bad enough they'll find a way of taking it. We insure our bikes well so if anything happens to them we will be able to replace them, the trick is in finding an insurer interested in insuring bikes - most aren't I've found so we have most of our insurances with a broker who takes care of finding the best deal.

Claire

**White trash** · 2nd April 2004, 17:04

I read somewhere that of all the bikes sold in the UK this year, 30% will get stolen

Not sure if it's true or not but a bloody scary statistic if it is true :confused2

**F5 Dave** · 2nd April 2004, 17:33

My PE175 was stolen out of a garage back in the mid 80s & a couple of years back on old Grogus DT200 I had lent to a friend was stolen. A mate of mine saw it being ridden around, called the cops & they caught the kids but not before the kid tried to ride off mid conversation with constable donut who believed kids story & my mate tackled him.

The other bike stolen at the same time was retrieved after a couple of days negotiation with the thief. Cops really are quite uninterested & incompetent, they are always just going on leave when you tell them where the bike is & it gets moved so you have to find it again etc etc.

Also my old flatmate had a van stolen from outside my house. They found it 5 yrs later in the Manuwatu Gorge. Scary thing was it was emblazoned with sign writing of a motorcycle accessory warehouse. Maybe they got confused & thought it was a bike.

**bgd** · 2nd April 2004, 20:15

For years in the UK sports bikes were the target ( and I'm sure they still are) but it seems that scooters are now very popular. Often helmets are stored under the seat so if you take a scooter you get the whole package.

When I insured my bike there was no discount for an alarm or immobiliser so I didn't bother. Premiums are lower if you are over 30, live in a 'safe' post code and are married. Of course having no history of claims also helps.

Friend living in central London bought a blade and then tried to insure it. First quote was £11,000. He eventually managed to get insured for £1,500 but had to rent a garage (£1,300pa) 15mins walk from his flat. It was easier for him to take the tube than ride the bike. I think next time he might sort insurance before he buys.

**Lou Girardin** · 3rd April 2004, 07:11

Originally Posted by bgd

For years in the UK sports bikes were the target ( and I'm sure they still are) but it seems that scooters are now very popular. Often helmets are stored under the seat so if you take a scooter you get the whole package.

When I insured my bike there was no discount for an alarm or immobiliser so I didn't bother. Premiums are lower if you are over 30, live in a 'safe' post code and are married. Of course having no history of claims also helps.

Friend living in central London bought a blade and then tried to insure it. First quote was £11,000. He eventually managed to get insured for £1,500 but had to rent a garage (£1,300pa) 15mins walk from his flat. It was easier for him to take the tube than ride the bike. I think next time he might sort insurance before he buys.

And unlike NZ, insurance is compulsory.
Lou