Following on from yesterday’s blog about the wave of bicycle thefts around Harlow recently, I came across an interesting statistic while researching the topic.

Reported bicycle theft, much to my surprise, has decreased massively over the last couple of decades. In the UK, bicycles in households are three times less likely to be stolen than in 1995. This is according to the Office for National Statistics.

Needless to say, security systems for residential properties have improved leaps and bounds even over the last five years let alone the last twenty-something. This improvements do not necessarily reflect the crime statistics however since crime rates are much higher.

Is it the case that burglars don’t bother going for the bikes anymore? but rather all the valuable electronic equipment? Maybe, to some extent… although burglars will usually take whatever they can get.

My theory is that yes – there is an element of this. Moreover, people are less concerned about their two-wheeled friends these days and therefore less concerned with reporting the crime. For the police, when it comes to investigating crime; it’s hard to imagine that bicycle theft is anywhere near the top of the list. People know this and perhaps this is why we are seeing the decrease in the amount of reported thefts.