Bike stolen from rack

I spend a lot of time scaremongering on here about thefts, but I've just had a bike stolen from my rack. Locked with TWO locks, and worth no more than £150, but still a PITA as it won't be worth claiming on insurance due to NCBs etc in the future.
I had two bikes, but they left the better one thankfully.
I have the Atera rack, which is supposed to be pretty good - The loops that wrap round the bike tube are actually reinforced with steel, but they cut it nonetheless. Plus cut a cable lock which joined it all together and looped through the wheels.

Just parked up on a residential road outside a park in Frome as a one off in broad daylight.

All I can say is that if you have bikes on your rack, you need to lock them with D locks as well to give yourself a chance. Bike rack security is crap for anyone serious or tooled up. Be warned.

So 4 months into ownership and a crime victim already. Add it to the stats.......

Bad luck , there is a lot of bike crime going on, Maby because some bikes are so valuable these days.
Till I got my Cali, I had never had a veichle worth more than my bike.
I had a friend who had his bike attached to railings. And they cut the railings.
And have heard of them cutting through carbon stays to steal bikes , as the group sets are so valuable.
And
I chatted 2 weeks ago to a triathlete in Bristol, who said thieves followed him home, as they saw his expensive bike on his van.
They then broke into his garage and stole it.

Even th bike racks are worth a few bob, and eaisy to unbolt.

Doesn't help you much .

I lace a steel wire around the bikes and the rack, and padlock it to the towing point, but professional bolt cutters would get through it I know.

Bicycle locks might deter the opportunist thief but most bicycle locks can be easily compromised by anyone who is 'going equipped' to steal - high quality bolt cutters (quiet) and battery powered angle grinders (noisy for 10 seconds).
Anything with a cable and most D locks are easy meat. It's worth the thief's while to invest in quality cutting gear because there's a good market for whole bikes and break down bits.
I was at a demo recently by a long-standing bike business that showed quite clearly that locking bikes with portable locks and leaving them is very risky. Guarantees that come with so-called highly rated locks that claim to replace bike loss that results from them being breached are in fact worthless when the small print is examined.

My wife and I use folding Bromptons that easily fit into the back of the Cali (and the boot of her BMW coupe for that matter) so we've never bought bike racks. But we're old and Bromptons won't be many's cup of tea !!

CYCLOPATH said:

Bad luck , there is a lot of bike crime going on, Maby because some bikes are so valuable these days.
Till I got my Cali, I had never had a veichle worth more than my bike.
I had a friend who had his bike attached to railings. And they cut the railings.
And have heard of them cutting through carbon stays to steal bikes , as the group sets are so valuable.
And
I chatted 2 weeks ago to a triathlete in Bristol, who said thieves followed him home, as they saw his expensive bike on his van.
They then broke into his garage and stole it.

Even th bike racks are worth a few bob, and eaisy to unbolt.

Doesn't help you much .

I lace a steel wire around the bikes and the rack, and padlock it to the towing point, but professional bolt cutters would get through it I know.

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Sorry but can only add to the tale of woe regarding bikes. Had two bikes stolen in Bristol from bike racks under my flat.(Looped ones concreted in) I've got good D Locks so the first time they removed the bike rack itself. 2nd time they cut through the frame on my steel tourer. Suffice it to say my carbon bike and city bike now live in the spare bedroom. Going to be an issue when I want to take my carbon bike on holiday. Suspect it will be in the Cali with the wife on the bike rack

It does depend where you are
Our bikes were fine around rural France
But I would nt go to Paris, London, or....Bristol with them on the back
Worth chucking them inside when you park up

If you are serious about bike security - these are highly rated by motorcyclists http://www.almax-security-chains.co.uk/Almax-Immobiliser-Series-IV-Uber-Chain-Only__p-128.aspx

Thanks for your similar stories of woe.
It's almost comical.

I could understand it if my bike was in the valuable category. The replacement will come from the Daily Mail offers page.
That'll learn 'em

Sorry hear about that.

What happens at Bristol? Is it that dagerous? I'm almost convinced to move there next months and I don't know yet where my Cali will sleep at

Bristol is a lovely city to live and work in, but in common with a lot of other cities where there are lots of bikes, there are a fair amount of high value bike thefts. Many of the bikes are poorly secured and owners will lock a £2000 bike up with a cheap lock. http://road.cc/content/news/159274-police-bristol-arrest-five-following-year-long-bike-theft-probe
I leave my Cali on the street and I've seen a few others parked around. You just take sensible precautions and don't leave expensive gadgets on show. Commuters will leave lap tops, leather coats, hand bags, etc on the front seats and are amazed when their car is broken into.
It's a great city for easily heading South to Devon & Cornwall, West to Wales and North to the Lakes & Scotland and East(ish) to Oxford and the South Coast when the mood to see more of the UK takes you.

Thanks SimonB, I think I'll be happy there. Here in Norwixh, where I live now, there are also lot of bicicles robbery cases, even if yours one is a shabby one. There are lots of studens and I think there are lor of chance to sell them for cheap.

Interesting to see, i have an Atera rack too and have a long cable through the eye beside the exhaust on the chassis then dlock the bikes together as well as a massive security chain if I have to leave them. I also park it very visibly when I am away from it. Any extended period the bikes go in the van. But as you say, if they are seriously tooled up they are quick and smart

Its why my bike, my van, my spare, and now my roof rack are all smart water marked. Also why I am very risk averse with regards to leaving things on show etc.

No consolation but improves the chances of someone being prosecuted if the item ever get recovered.

I can't understand how someone in this day and age leaves a bike on a rack and then is surprised when it goes missing

I don't believe they are surprised. Some of us just sometimes need to move our bikes using a rack. Occasionally it might even be necessary to take our eyes of it for a moment or two. Thread is I believe to discuss options to reduce vulnerability. On a secondary note anyone buying a bike second hand should question its lawful ownership. If bike users did not buy suspect bikes then thieves would stop stealing them in the numbers that they do.


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snowy55 said:

I can't understand how someone in this day and age leaves a bike on a rack and then is surprised when it goes missing

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Some of us have no choice but to leave them on the rack locked . You can't take it with you everywhere .

I have to leave my bikes attached when travelling as the boot is full of other stuff. When the bikes are on I have a motorcycle chain and padlock, this is looped through the top bar of the rack then the top tubes of the bikes. As a secondary deterrent a couple of U locks are put on. Awkward to put on and get to, as it's so high, hopefully enough to put thiefs off.

But you take the locks off when you're actually driving, right?

snowy55 said:

I can't understand how someone in this day and age leaves a bike on a rack and then is surprised when it goes missing

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On one hand i agree , seems a common thing now a days,
but other mans stuff you don't touch...!

fred said:

But you take the locks off when you're actually driving, right?

Click to expand...

No I leave them on all the time.

It just goes to show you what happens with all of your stories.
What on earth are you supposed to do with a bike - only keep it inside the van, and not get off at the other end of your ride?
Like the 3 Calis that have been stolen recently.
The only ones that are safe, are those that go over the top with locks. Makes you look stupid and paranoid.
I was browsing a really tasty padlock in a store today (rated 9), and a guy came up to me and said, "don't get that one as my Dad had one of those on his shed, and a locksmith took 30 seconds to undo it when he lost the keys. It's very easy to pick most locks with a little practice." He was definitely a crook...
My rack has some lovely locks on it, but they were useless. My additional cable was also cut.
Of course you have to leave the bikes on it most of the time.



So, we need multiple annoyances to thieves, so they have too many layers to break through in the available time they have before being spotted. Those that can't be bothered to do this, will almost certainly get caught out one day. Insurance is a waste of time as you'll still suffer financial loss against your NCD for at least 5 years to come.
The only answer is to prevent it in the first place at all costs, or let fate decide for you.
Or don't even bother trying to enjoy yourself..

As a positive note, you can now get trackers for bikes, and alarms too.
Maybe removing a wheel to the inside would stop a ride away theft.
You can get a lock that fits a disk brake for a couple of quid.
Or putting the bikes into a box mounted on the rack.
And Smartwater might help if they get caught.
You can also mount your dash cam to look out of the back window, I suppose, when parked.


All part of the enjoyment we suffer.