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The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

bikeindex.org

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Re: The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

#21

Post by dublinben »

maaaats wrote: post #4

In my country, registering your bike gives you a huge discount on the insurance. Is it common other places, and will a bike registered through this site be eligible for a similar type of discount? I'd wish more listing sites would have mandatory fields for a bikes serial number, and that people would actually bother to check the registry when buying a bike. Unfortunately, a cheap bike makes many people blind to it pr…

It's not very common for bicycle riders in the US to explicitly carry insurance. Your homeowner's or automobile insurance would typically cover the value of the bike and any damage you might cause in an accident.

Re: The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

#22

Post by dublinben »

jacquesm wrote: post #9
JoeAltmaier wrote: post #8

I see why I might register my bike - in case its lost or stolen. But why would anyone look up a bike in there? Either its not in there - time wasted. Or it is - there goes your sale. Net value: zero or negative.

Well, for a potential buyer of a bike the value is much larger than zero. After all, who would like to buy a stolen bike? Registering your bike and possibly mentioning that fact on your bike using a sticker might even help as a deterrent.

>who would like to buy a stolen bike?

Someone looking for a good deal on a used bike? You can likely assume that most of the bikes sold in certain venues are stolen, but that doesn't deter the customers.

Re: The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

#23

Post by dublinben »

Aqwis wrote: post #14
JoeAltmaier wrote: post #8

I see why I might register my bike - in case its lost or stolen. But why would anyone look up a bike in there? Either its not in there - time wasted. Or it is - there goes your sale. Net value: zero or negative.

In many countries, you can be punished for buying a stolen bike (or any other item). Is this not the case in the US, or do people consider the probability of punishment so low that they don't care?

The chances of getting in trouble for buying a stolen bike are probably lower than the chances of a stolen bike ever being recovered. They're simply not high priority crimes, so there is little to no enforcement.

Re: The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

#26

Post by [deleted] »

berkes wrote: post #18
pat2man wrote: post #3

Great looking site but what makes this "The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever"? There seem to be dozens of bike registries. It would be nice to see some sort of data sharing between them.

> "The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever" I guess an average Dutch cities municipal "registry" has more bikes than this entire Database at this moment. Though certainly not as "effective" in the sense of being userfriendly. But seeing as that in the Netherlands the police estimates just under one million stolen bikes annually, there is a great opportunity for bikeindex.org in the Netherlands.

[deleted]

Re: The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

#27

Post by fyrabanks »

revelation wrote: post #15
eplanit wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn't think many people would consult a registry in order to assure themselves that the bike they're buying isn't stolen; rather, they'd use it to find a bike they already owned and that had subsequently been stolen, as a means to try and find it. I suppose a Pawn shop or similar would use it for a purpose as you suggest, though.

Why would a thief register his stolen bike online after the fact? I think you've got this mixed up, these registries only work when people consult them before buying.

I don't think he ever implied that a thief in particular would register the stolen bike. The first scenario is a buyer checking beforehand to see if it was stolen. The second scenario is the owner of a stolen bike checking to see if someone else has re-registered the bike, like someone who purchased the stolen bike thinking it was a legitimate sale (a bit misguided, as the system doesn't quite work that way).

Re: The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

#28

Post by orthecreedence »

jmspring wrote: post #19
schrodinger wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, even an immoral buyer would be dissuaded from buying a stolen bike if they knew it would be harder to sell it later...

Here in Santa Cruz where meth and heroin are big issues, bikes are a sort of "currency". Most bikes when stolen are mostly parted out and the scrap metal sold or parts sold -- this is at the low to mid-range. For hire end bikes, they are often collected and shipped out of the city (and often times state/country). While I do a lot to advocate for registering bikes here in town (a group of volunteers I am part of has r…

Yeah in Santa Cruz a stolen bike lasts about 15 minutes before it's parted out to a stolen frame, stolen wheel set, stolen handlebars, etc. Probably similar in other places.

So while you might get your frame back, you can kiss everything else goodbye. It's better to be smart about where you leave your bike and how you lock it.

Re: The largest and most effective bicycle registry ever

#29

Post by heatish »

bguthrie wrote: post #25

My bike was just stolen yesterday. I never wrote down the serial number, and now I'm part of the problem. Next time I'll be doing that, and registering with this service. Thanks for fighting the good fight.

If you bought it from a store they should have it on file connected to your personal info. My bike was just stolen on Friday as well and that is what I did to register it on this site.
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