How Many Bicycles Are Stolen Every Yr? 


Bike theft is likely one of the most regularly occurring crimes throughout the globe. Police stories, insurance coverage firm information and statistics from bicycle safety firms present many tons of of hundreds of incidents yearly. And it’s a must to take into account thefts which aren’t reported to the authorities in any respect.

While it’s clear that bike theft is a standard and sad expertise for tens of millions of individuals the world over, there isn’t any true, outlined reporting technique. Police information don’t account for unreported incidents and insurers may really solely learn about claims reported to them.

A public locking-shed supplies helpful tips about locking and bike registration (Picture credit score: Kevin Glenton)

There are some surveys which though small in quantity are wide-ranging. The information solely of the crimes reported may be present in police information, most of which within the UK is revealed month-to-month.

Bike criminals the world over know that bikes are by their nature moveable and lightweight. It’s simple to be inconspicuous when breaking locks and there are extra bikes than ever to select from. A surge bike use in a two 12 months interval from early 2020 noticed a big improve in theft incidents.

Bike Theft Statistics 

  • 26% of bikes stolen in England and Wales from annual survey didn’t have a lock as a result of the particular person surveyed thought it was a secure space without having to make use of the lock. (ONS Crime Survey)
  • 7% of motorbike theft victims within the USA and Canada in a 2019 analysis paper didn’t return to biking after the incident. (529 Storage)
  • 63% of victims of motorbike theft in England and Wales from an annual survey to March 2020 reported that they had been ‘very’ or ‘pretty’ happy with the police. (ONS Crime in England and Wales)
  • 14% of incidents of motorbike theft in England and Wales from annual survey to March 2020 occurred within the grounds of a public place (eg. store, grocery store, procuring centre or precinct, faculty, faculty or college, pub, bar or working mens membership, place of leisure, nightclub, sports activities centre, soccer floor). (ONS Crime Survey)
  • 20% of commuters in Nice Britain cite an absence of storage amenities on the workplace as being a barrier to biking to work. (Direct Line Group)
  • Bike theft reported to a number one UK insurance coverage firm elevated by 66% through the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020. (Admiral Insurance coverage)
  • Fewer than 1% of bikes recovered by police in the US of America and Canada are registered, that means fewer than 5% are returned to house owners, in line with a motorcycle registration firm. (529 Storage)
  • One-quarter of stolen bikes within the USA and Canada in 2019 had been mentioned for use to commit secondary crimes. (529 Storage)
  • 49% of bikes stolen in England and Wales from an annual survey to March 2020 had been locked with a series, cable or shackle. (ONS Crime Survey)
  • There was one bike theft in 2020/21 for each 234 individuals who personal an grownup cycle in an index of 17 key conurbations within the UK from a survey performed June to August 2021. (Sustrans)
An everyday sight throughout cities – one other lock may imply coming again to a whole bike (Picture credit score: Kevin Glenton)

How Many Bikes Are Stolen Every Yr?

  • There have been greater than 2 million bikes stolen in North America in 2019 in line with analysis from a motorcycle registration firm. (529 Storage)
  • 77,465 bicycle thefts had been reported in England and Wales, from an annual survey to April 2022. (Statista)  
  • 700,000 bicycles had been stolen within the Netherlands over the interval of a biennial survey to 2021. (Statistics Netherlands)
  • 15% of all bicycles stolen in 2021 within the Netherlands had been e-bikes. (SAFE)
  • Bicycle theft price €404m within the Netherlands in 2021. (Statistics Netherlands)
  • 19,000 bicycles had been stolen in Scotland in a 12 months, in line with a survey performed between April 2019 and March 2020. (Scottish Crime and Justice Survey)
  • 32,111 bike thefts had been registered by Belgian Federal Police per 12 months on common from 2012-2021. (Statista)
  • The Federal Bureau of Investigation within the USA reveals 125,136 stories of theft of bicycles in 2019. (FBI)

Statistics for Bicycle Theft

  • 72% of bicycles stolen in England and Wales from an annual survey to March 2020 had been taken between a Monday and a Friday. (ONS Crime Survey 12 months)
  • 23% of bikes stolen in England and Wales from an annual survey to March 2020 had been taken from 12 midday to 6pm. (ONS Crime Survey)
  • 77% of Britons in 2022 thought that the police wouldn’t trouble to try to correctly examine bicycle theft of their space. (YouGov)
  • 6% of bikes stolen in England and Wales from an annual survey to March 2020 had been executed at a price of £1,000 or extra to these surveyed. (ONS Crime Survey)
  • 19,000 estimated bike thefts had been carried out in Scotland from a survey performed between April 2019 and March 2020. (Scottish Crime and Justice Survey)
  • $20,908,167 – the whole restoration worth of 11,875 bikes recovered by Bike Index – a motorcycle registration firm. (Bike Index)
  • 5,264 incidents of motorbike theft had been recorded in England and Wales in November 2022, a 23% discount from the prior month as whole theft in England and Wales recorded fell by 6%. (UKCrimeStats)
  • 4% of cyclists from a survey of 1,500 who rode a motorcycle a minimum of as soon as per week within the UK, Netherlands and Germany, in February 2021, use an alarm vibration sensor as a precaution. (AlterLock)

How Typically Do Bikes Get Stolen?

  • A bicycle in North America was stolen each 30 seconds in 2019, in line with a analysis paper from a number one bike registration firm. (529 Storage)
  • 1 bike was stolen each 7 minutes in Europe in 2018. (Europa)
  • One bike was stolen each six minutes in a 3 12 months interval to 2018, in line with one of many largest mass-market insurance coverage firms in the UK. (Direct Line Group)
  • Roughly 215 bikes had been stolen per day within the UK between April and August 2020, says a report from a stats firm. (UKCrimeStats)

Bike Theft Statistics by Metropolis

  • 20,286 reported cycle thefts in 2020/21 from an index of 17 key cities within the UK from a survey performed June to August 2021. (Sustrans)
  • 1,300 bike thefts per 100,000 of inhabitants in Cambridge, UK – a motorcycle theft hotspot – in 2021 in line with main UK bike insurer. (Bikmo)
A public cycle hub deep inside a metropolis centre automotive park (Picture credit score: Kevin Glenton)
This hub opens through a keycode entry, has showers and a altering facility (Picture credit score: Kevin Glenton)
  • 148/156 bicycle thefts reported to Cambridgeshire Constabulary in November 2022 and not beneath investigation are accomplished with no suspect recognized. (Police)
  • The variety of bicycle thefts reported within the state of Victoria, Australia elevated by 81.2% from 2011-2020. (Bicycle Community)
  • Vancouver Police steered a 30% discount in bike thefts in a 5 12 months interval to 2019 after teaming up with a motorcycle registration scheme. (529 Storage)

Bicycle Theft in Bike-Pleasant Cities [STATS]

Bike theft per 100,000 of inhabitants in 2022 from top-10 most bike-friendly cities on the earth.
Supply: Luko World Bicycle Cities Index (Picture credit score : Kevin Glenton)

Bike Theft Capital of the World

A visual locking hub in a visual public plaza supplies a number of locking factors (Picture credit score: Kevin Glenton)

How Probably is a Bike to Get Stolen?

  • Solely 9% of motorbike theft instances within the state of Victoria, Australia, are solved. (Bike Community)
  • 0.7% of Scottish adults skilled bicycle theft from survey performed between April 2019 and March 2020. (Scottish Crime and Justice Survey)
  • 1.6% of Northern Irish adults who had been bicycle house owners between April 2019 and March 2020 had been the sufferer of a minimum of one bicycle theft. (Northern Eire Neighborhood Survey)
This locking pod in a public area reduces the prospect of theft however the top-tube bag is a straightforward goal! (Picture credit score: Kevin Glenton)

Speaking Factors

Bike theft is a really regularly occurring crime all world wide. And the reported figures can be a lot, a lot decrease than the precise variety of bikes stolen. It appears that evidently worldwide figures are under-estimated by the tons of of hundreds.

Subsequently there isn’t any definitive variety of bikes stolen per 12 months and no true ‘bike theft capital of the world’. What is obvious from the statistics is that your usually tend to have a motorcycle stolen when you reside in an space the place biking is a well-liked and inspired side of day by day life. Bike theft crime is just not solely linked to the crime of theft total.

Theft of bikes within the metropolis of Cambridge in England is greater than double per 100,000 of inhabitants than Medellin in Colombia, or Mexico Metropolis. However most individuals wouldn’t hyperlink these cities when it comes to total crime.

There appears an affordable argument from the Luko World Bicycle Cities Index that the speed of motorbike theft per 100 individuals in bicycle-friendly cities isn’t any higher than much less bicycle-friendly cities.

Bike theft places members of the general public off biking. It is a significantly unlucky statistic. It’s onerous for some to seek out the motivation to take up driving a motorcycle. Climate and security play a job in limiting the urge for food so including worries about safety to that is an unhelpful addition.

Those that journey by bike – commuting and in any other case – ought to brush up on some important safety suggestions to make sure that the possibilities of their journey being stolen are diminished. The proof from the worldwide pandemic factors in the direction of the surge in driving was matched by a spike in theft.

Police data states that bike theft crime is especially opportunist. There are tons of of bikes to select from in most cities and in comparison with say, automobiles, or open home windows to flats, the chance and complication concerned in stealing bikes is minimal.

Cynical as it could sound, by making your individual bike harder to steal than the one subsequent to it, you scale back the prospect of the thief taking yours. Discover an space with CCTV, or locking ports the place you’ll be able to lock body and wheels to the bike. And don’t assume an unlocked bike can be secure when you’re within the store and may see it.

It’s encouraging to see cities like Manchester within the UK working bike hubs the place you usually tend to see your bike after work or research than when you left it on the road. Commuters and irregular customers of bikes ought to be given extra details about these and basic recommendations on decreasing the prospect of theft. It appears that evidently many commuters who would are available on their bikes are delay by the shortage of sufficient storage being supplied by their office.

Bike registration is on the rise the world over and appears comparatively easy. Police do get better bikes, so by offering them with a serial quantity you’ll improve your possibilities of seeing your journey as soon as once more. It’s clear that many people who’ve insurance coverage accept the declare payout and settle for that we’re not more likely to see the bike once more.

Kevin Glenton
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