Help us recover stolen motorbikes in London
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STOLEN MOTORCYCLE RECOVERY LONDON
Who are we?
We’re a group of volunteers who have all been affected by motorcycle theft and motorcycle-enabled crime in London. We’ve decided to start this Charity(*) to help others who have been affected by motorcyle theft. Since we have started approx. 2 months ago, we have recovered 43 (and counting) motorcycles.
Is the problem that bad?
In 2018, over 800 motorcycles were stolen per month (up to October 2018, the latest figures available), meaning that over 10,000 motorcycles were stolen in London alone. From January 2015 to October 2018, over 45,000 motorcycles were reported stolen in London. Over 31,000 of these thefts resulted in no further action.
Aren’t most thefts covered by insurance?
Unfortunately, many couriers’ insurance does not cover theft, meaning that the loss of their motorcycle can lead to a loss of several thousand pounds and a loss of employment. For those riders who don’t rely on their motorcycle to generate income, theft insurance can be extremely expensive in London given the spate of thefts and many bikers cannot afford to have their motorcycle stolen, as finding insurance later on may well prove impossible.
Our approach to solving the problem
We focus on two main areas – recoveries and intelligence.
We use a network of spotters in London who are willing to help us. If they spot a suspicious looking motorcycle, this gets reported to us for further investigation. Often, the motorcycles are on false number plates and we therefore verify VIN numbers and any other ways of checking whether the motorcycle is stolen or not.
Once we have established whether or not the motorycle is stolen, we liaise with Police – if the vehicle is needed for forensics, we will secure the vehicle until the police can recover it. If it isn’t needed, we will contact the owner and arrange a free recovery to their home address. This mitigates the financial burden of being a victim of crime, as a recovery carried out by the Police for non-evidencial purposes will often cost the owner over £200. In most cases, it will take less than an hour between the intial report to the return of the motorcycle.
Our second area of focus is intelligence – we work with units within the Metropolitan Police so that we can help them by providing intelligence that we collect – both around potential offenders reported to us locally, but also allowing them to use our database of social media accounts used by offenders (many of the motorcycles stolen in London end up social media, a way for the thieves to “show off” their crimes – we have a team who collect those pictures and work to identify those responsible – this has already led to a number of arrests throughout the UK).
Our overall aim is to free up police resources so they can focus on catching criminals – if they have to secure a motorcycle, this can often “cost” them several hours, as well as ensuring that meaningful prosecutions are brought against those who are stealing motorcycles.
What help do you need?
We are looking for volunteers as well as financial or technical support.
Volunteers
We are looking for volunteers who are willing to help us do what we do – there are no minimal hours required but we do expect a certain level of dedication whether the volunteers is willing to volunteer “in the field” or from home. A full license is required and please note, due to our work with the police we do require a stringent background check.
If volunteering in the field, we will aim to provide adequate PPE including a stab proof vest.
Financial Support
We are looking for financial support given the costs involved in running our operations. We need funding for vehicles, insurance as well as PPE for our volunteers, so as to ensure their safety as much as possible.
As a registered Charity, we are able to provide guarantees regarding the use of any funds donated. We can also guarantee that none of our volunteers will ever participate in vigilante-style actions which would result in negative publicity for any of our supporters – we ask our volunteers to not get involved in any confrontations and if those occur, to use our close relationship with the Metropolitan Police and ask for assistance from them.
(*) Charity registration completed with the Charity Commission – once this is confirmed, a Charity Number will be made public.
Who are we?
We’re a group of volunteers who have all been affected by motorcycle theft and motorcycle-enabled crime in London. We’ve decided to start this Charity(*) to help others who have been affected by motorcyle theft. Since we have started approx. 2 months ago, we have recovered 43 (and counting) motorcycles.
Is the problem that bad?
In 2018, over 800 motorcycles were stolen per month (up to October 2018, the latest figures available), meaning that over 10,000 motorcycles were stolen in London alone. From January 2015 to October 2018, over 45,000 motorcycles were reported stolen in London. Over 31,000 of these thefts resulted in no further action.
Aren’t most thefts covered by insurance?
Unfortunately, many couriers’ insurance does not cover theft, meaning that the loss of their motorcycle can lead to a loss of several thousand pounds and a loss of employment. For those riders who don’t rely on their motorcycle to generate income, theft insurance can be extremely expensive in London given the spate of thefts and many bikers cannot afford to have their motorcycle stolen, as finding insurance later on may well prove impossible.
Our approach to solving the problem
We focus on two main areas – recoveries and intelligence.
We use a network of spotters in London who are willing to help us. If they spot a suspicious looking motorcycle, this gets reported to us for further investigation. Often, the motorcycles are on false number plates and we therefore verify VIN numbers and any other ways of checking whether the motorcycle is stolen or not.
Once we have established whether or not the motorycle is stolen, we liaise with Police – if the vehicle is needed for forensics, we will secure the vehicle until the police can recover it. If it isn’t needed, we will contact the owner and arrange a free recovery to their home address. This mitigates the financial burden of being a victim of crime, as a recovery carried out by the Police for non-evidencial purposes will often cost the owner over £200. In most cases, it will take less than an hour between the intial report to the return of the motorcycle.
Our second area of focus is intelligence – we work with units within the Metropolitan Police so that we can help them by providing intelligence that we collect – both around potential offenders reported to us locally, but also allowing them to use our database of social media accounts used by offenders (many of the motorcycles stolen in London end up social media, a way for the thieves to “show off” their crimes – we have a team who collect those pictures and work to identify those responsible – this has already led to a number of arrests throughout the UK).
Our overall aim is to free up police resources so they can focus on catching criminals – if they have to secure a motorcycle, this can often “cost” them several hours, as well as ensuring that meaningful prosecutions are brought against those who are stealing motorcycles.
What help do you need?
We are looking for volunteers as well as financial or technical support.
Volunteers
We are looking for volunteers who are willing to help us do what we do – there are no minimal hours required but we do expect a certain level of dedication whether the volunteers is willing to volunteer “in the field” or from home. A full license is required and please note, due to our work with the police we do require a stringent background check.
If volunteering in the field, we will aim to provide adequate PPE including a stab proof vest.
Financial Support
We are looking for financial support given the costs involved in running our operations. We need funding for vehicles, insurance as well as PPE for our volunteers, so as to ensure their safety as much as possible.
As a registered Charity, we are able to provide guarantees regarding the use of any funds donated. We can also guarantee that none of our volunteers will ever participate in vigilante-style actions which would result in negative publicity for any of our supporters – we ask our volunteers to not get involved in any confrontations and if those occur, to use our close relationship with the Metropolitan Police and ask for assistance from them.
(*) Charity registration completed with the Charity Commission – once this is confirmed, a Charity Number will be made public.
Organizer
Stolen Motorcycle Recovery London
Organizer
