Police in West Bridgford have reminded people of the importance of properly recording the details of high-value items – after officers successfully helped to reunite a cyclist with his stolen bike.
Officers were recently able to return the bike to its owner because he had kept a record of its unique frame number.
The bike, reported stolen from a garden shed at the beginning of March, was returned to its owner on 9 April after the owner found the stolen bike being listed for sale online.
Officers investigated the listing and took possession of the bike after checking its frame number. No further action was taken against the seller.
Sergeant Sarah Merrall of Nottinghamshire Police explained: “Obviously the owner was over the moon when we were able to return his bike and it was a good result for us, but it likely would not have happened if he hadn’t taken time to fully record its details.
“We work hard to recover all stolen property, but our job is made a lot easier if people have taken just a few minutes to record some basic details. Most high-value items – from TV’s to Computers – will have some kind of unique serial number on them. If you are ever unfortunate enough to have these items stolen, keeping a record of these numbers will help to increase the chances of us being able to reunite them with their rightful owners.”
The owner, who asked not be named, added: “The bike is worth around £600 so, to be honest, I didn’t think I’d see it again. As luck would have it the frame number had been printed on the receipt, which I was able to find after it was stolen. I would definitely recommend that all bike owners take a note and photo of their frame number.
Taking a few clear photos of the bike, to highlight any accessories or bespoke parts is helpful too. I also registered the stolen bike on https://stolen-bikes.co.uk/ – this helped to find and track it on auction and selling websites.”
A total of 1,932 bikes were stolen across the county last year (2019/20), a decline from 2,121 the year before. In order to keep this number as low as possible Nottinghamshire Police advises all bicycle owners to “Follow the three R’s”
Always keep a record of the bike’s frame number, make and any other marks that can identify your bike if it is stolen and later recovered by police. It will usually be found near the handlebars, below the seat post, by or underneath the pedals or towards the back wheel
Ensure you register your bike’s details at www.bikeregister.com
If your bike is stolen, contact the police immediately. If your bike is registered on a property database, provide police with the unique code. Also inform your insurance company.
Get more advice on preventing many crimes on our crime prevention guides page.
