Originally Posted by
duke_of_hazard
I dont understand why bicycles are stolen so much more frequently than other things available in a city like cars and store merchandise? From what I have read online, bike thiefs have all sorts of elaborate tools to cut through any lock system. So why dont they use this knowledge to steal cars or break store windows and steal merchandise?
Who actually buys these stolen bikes? My guess is they get pennies on the dollar for the bikes they steal. Anyone buying a $300+ bike is pretty savvy and can smell a stolen bike a mile away. So the people buying them must be totally ignorant and pay less than $50 for them, which is the same price as a brand new bike in Walmart.
So what am I missing about the 'freakonomics' of bike theft?
First off there is a lot of paranoia about bike theft. The thief stalking bikes with power tools is pretty rare. Most thefts are from improperly locked bikes, unlocked bikes, or bikes with cheap locks (cable or cheap Ulock).
That aside, just about everyone knows how to ride a bike, so the market is huge. Bikes are also hard to identify at a glance, and easy to transport and hide, if need be.