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08-27-10, 10:23 AM
I decided to post this article in this particular forum as we all here are very to extremely depended on our bikes for basic transportation. And having it stolen is far more hurtful even damaging than someone who just "play around" with cycling.
"....The PR company behind the stunt, Red Consultancy, said: "This experiment was not intended to be scientific," and was undertaken to highlight the growing number of bike thefts, particularly during August when casual summer cyclists are most at risk. It said that last year there was an estimated 540,000 bikes stolen in the UK, up 22% on the year before and added that, in London, the Metropolitan police has recently introduced a 30-strong taskforce to crack down on bike crime.
But rather than encouraging the sale of insurance, the test suggests that cyclists should invest in a good lock first, and be sensible about what they attach it to.
In a control study undertaken ahead of the project, all the bikes in each of the locations had D-locks which were attached to a fixed immovable object. None was stolen. In the later study, only the bikes which were left unlocked, or locked insecurely (such as to a short parking meter) were stolen.
An Aviva spokesman says: "Obviously bike insurance will cover you for any theft or damage, but much better not to go through the hassle of dealing with the loss of your transport in the first place. And remember insurers do expect your cycle to be properly secured – and that means locked to a fixed immoveable object – unlike the poor security measures used in our experiment."
And what happened to the stolen bikes? The PR people said they didn't catch any of the thieves red-handed, nor have they recovered any of the bikes. The ones that weren't stolen have since been donated to charity...."
-http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/aug/25/aviva-bike-insurance-pr-stunt (http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/aug/25/aviva-bike-insurance-pr-stunt)
While this is not a scientific study, just a publicity stunt, it helps to keep bicycle theft in some perspective. For me, it means that while theft might not happen each and every time you keep locking up the bike, the chances are it will be taken eventually-easy targets first, then the harder ones. Bikes are still no big deal for most people-unless they begin to get some need satisfaction or saving money out of the bike. When these factors come together, only then it will create a genuine true healthy dependence on this mode of transport & people will begin to take it more seriously-and stop becoming victims. Then the legal and social protections that the car enjoys now will extend finally to the bicycle.
"....The PR company behind the stunt, Red Consultancy, said: "This experiment was not intended to be scientific," and was undertaken to highlight the growing number of bike thefts, particularly during August when casual summer cyclists are most at risk. It said that last year there was an estimated 540,000 bikes stolen in the UK, up 22% on the year before and added that, in London, the Metropolitan police has recently introduced a 30-strong taskforce to crack down on bike crime.
But rather than encouraging the sale of insurance, the test suggests that cyclists should invest in a good lock first, and be sensible about what they attach it to.
In a control study undertaken ahead of the project, all the bikes in each of the locations had D-locks which were attached to a fixed immovable object. None was stolen. In the later study, only the bikes which were left unlocked, or locked insecurely (such as to a short parking meter) were stolen.
An Aviva spokesman says: "Obviously bike insurance will cover you for any theft or damage, but much better not to go through the hassle of dealing with the loss of your transport in the first place. And remember insurers do expect your cycle to be properly secured – and that means locked to a fixed immoveable object – unlike the poor security measures used in our experiment."
And what happened to the stolen bikes? The PR people said they didn't catch any of the thieves red-handed, nor have they recovered any of the bikes. The ones that weren't stolen have since been donated to charity...."
-http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/aug/25/aviva-bike-insurance-pr-stunt (http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/aug/25/aviva-bike-insurance-pr-stunt)
While this is not a scientific study, just a publicity stunt, it helps to keep bicycle theft in some perspective. For me, it means that while theft might not happen each and every time you keep locking up the bike, the chances are it will be taken eventually-easy targets first, then the harder ones. Bikes are still no big deal for most people-unless they begin to get some need satisfaction or saving money out of the bike. When these factors come together, only then it will create a genuine true healthy dependence on this mode of transport & people will begin to take it more seriously-and stop becoming victims. Then the legal and social protections that the car enjoys now will extend finally to the bicycle.