With the weather changing for the better it’s natural to see more people out on their bikes.
I’m a keen cyclist myself, I spend more money servicing my bike annually than I do on my car. My bike is also worth double what my car is.
I like to drive. I adore cycling.
During every lockdown we’ve had my bike has kept me sane. There is only so much Netflix you can watch. And I’m not the type to workout in my front room with Joe Wicks on the laptop. Lockdown saw a boom in bike ownership with the government encouraging people to get on their bike to get to work instead of taking public transport in a bid to flatten the curve.
With less cars on the road it was absolute bliss for us cyclists. However, as the weather got better and better more bikes started going missing. August and September of last year saw a 10 year high in the amount of bikes being stolen and that was just the bike thefts that were reported.
Up to September 2020, 223 bikes went missing every day. With roughly 49% of these bikes being stolen when they were locked up.
When the weather gets colder bike theft shoots down as naturally there isn’t the demand for bikes in the winter. However, as the weather has picked up recently we have already had to provide a manned security solution via our patrol business to one of our clients who had one of their bikes stolen from a locked communal bike shed in a new residential development local to us. The bike was worth over £3000.
As much as it is a financial loss, at times I don’t think people realize how attached we can be personally to our bikes. Some of the best days of my life have been spent on my bike. For it to be stolen from me would be to rob me of a physical link to some of the best days of my life.
A bike just isn’t for social use, some people use them for work or to get to work. It was truly horrifying to read how key workers and NHS staff have had their bikes stolen. One particularly concerning case was a midwife who had her bike stolen whilst attending a homebirth, robbing not only her of her bike but of women in need of her services.
I found a great website which provides statements of people who have had their bikes stolen and how it has affected them:
https://www.stolenride.co.uk/impactstatements/
Unfortunately, with more bikes on the roads more than ever, there will only be more and more bike thefts.
We can only be vigilant, lock out bikes in safe places and use the best locks possible.
I’m even debating hanging my bike on my living room wall. I’m not that hip yet though..
Keep safe.
A MATTER GROUP.
