There's a bike outside my office, a step-through girls Peugeot; no front wheel, brakes hanging off, no lock - is it fair game?

What do you lot think?

Would be good for the missus after a spray and with my old front wheel.

how long has it been there ?

Saw it today for the first time, don't normally go that way though. It's just sitting in the middle of the pavement.

what colour are you gonna spray your missus ;)

A light tan.

it's only fair game if it's been in a stream to remove all trace evidence. oh and it needs to have vast amounts of rust on it even if it's aluminium otherwise you might contract chavscumitus from any remaining burberry bacteria left by the moron who stole the bits in the first place(easily spotted to the naked eye by the pattern of mold it produces) you really need to be careful in this situation. may i suggest a disguise of some sort prior to going near it. :)

Is there a way to report it to the police? If they can't find the owner (unlikely they're even looking for a 20 year old ladies Peugeot) then you can have it after a certain number of months?

if you can get it free and take it to your local bob shop then yes. i think it's three months if no-one has collected then you can have it. although that may have doubled if they decide it may be a terrorist bike. some places will turn this round in a month but you have to keep it for 1 year just incase the owner comes in and asks about it.

No problem getting it free - it's not locked. So, I just take it to a bike shop to report it? Do they phone the police, then?

What if the bike is clearly abandoned (rear wheel gone, stays twisted, chain orange with rust), but it's firmly locked to a railing on a pavement? What are the ethics of removing the nice vintage lugged top bolt stem from it? (rest of the bike is shite).

sorry i have used the wrong slang term for you southerners my bad. local police station mate not bike shop.

called bob shop as in bobby for a police man and shop as in station my fault.

Finders keepers or a treat from the street I say ;)

erm i have no ethics on stolen and destroyed stuff. having stripped a frame found in a stream for parts a few weeks back. it had no wheels and had been there for some time. the frame was rubbish (well a saracen so as good as) but some of the parts were ok. it got a viking send of to by being placed back in the stream as a very striped frame.

wouldn't it be better to take it to the dump rather than leave it in a stream?

no. i was on a bike i couldn't carry it. i placed it in a location for the park warden to find it and remove rather than it being beaten by the chav's and causing more damage to the local area with bits of it. oh and it was picked up by a warden a few days later after me having a word with one on my way past later in the week. turns out they get alot of bits of random metal dumped and they now save it then weigh it in to help pay for the park.

There is a process for taking ownership of an abandoned vehicle. A friend of mine noticed that a motorbike on his street hadn't moved for months. No-one seemed to know who's it was, so he reported it to the police, filled out some forms, and after a further period of time it became his, free & legal. Did it up. Rode it for a couple of years then sold it for decent wedge.

Don't know if similar applies to bicycles, but i'd guess asking the cops would be a good first step.

The police have a rule of not doing any work regarding bicycle thefts.

If you hand it in it will stay in a warehouse for a couple years then be sold at a local auction house, bumblebeeauctions website or in rare cases donated to a local community project.

because in the police's eyes a bike is not a vehicle it will go via the lost or stolen property channel so it's 3 months in the slammer for the bike then away you go. unless the bike is a very nice peice of metal most owners won't care and won't bother to go to the police and ask about it.

take it. give it a new life.




take it , give it a new life.

Here's an email I got from the cops about abandoned bikes:

Dear Dan,

Whilst I appreciate your sentiments regarding unattended bikes in bike racks I am afraid that the Metropolitan Police Service is unable to give you permission to remove any of these.

For your information to be accused of stealing the property must have an owner. This is not only in law but also logically because if it does not have an owner then it is highly doubtful that anyone would inform us that the bike has gone and thus make an allegation of theft.

As regards to a removal policy I can only assume that the Local Authority are responsible for the removal of bikes in a similar way they are to cars so if you give them a ring they may be able to assist.

Hope this helps

Alan Draper
Inspector - Westminster North OCU

When he says it needs to have an owner in order to be stolen, he's basically saying that no-one will give a toss if you take an abandoned bike. Think of it this way: if you cleared a dumped fridge off the street, it would be regarded as a public service

Funny that this thread came up - some may remember that a few months ago I 'reclaimed' an old small Raleigh from the back of my office, well, another bike appeared a few weeks ago, and shows no sign of being claimed. Like the last one, it's not even locked up - it has cable locks around the seatpost but it's not locked to the bike rack.

It's a Peugeot, looks like a mountain bike/hybrid. Not Reynolds tubing from the looks of things, but I am tempted to do a balaclava job on it if it's still there next week.

Anyone interested?

i love baklava

how big is it?

Does anyone remember this?



Mentioned in this thread.

I went past mornington crescent a week or so ago, and it's still fucking there!!

Minus both wheels now though.

It's been there for time. I've seen it there too.

It's been there for time? Is this some kind of youth speak? :)

;]

Is it unlocked? The lock goes through one of the wheels though, is it magic?

A person is guilty of theft if they:

1. Dishonestly
2. appropriate
3. property
4. belonging to another
5. with the intention of permanently depriving them of it.

All 5 of those things have to present for it to be a theft. For example, a new law had to be made for joyriding as the intention is to just take it away and leave it somewhere else. So that's now called Taking and Conveyance or Taking and Driving Away, unless it gets burnt out or sold.

If the bike is locked up and has been there for a while, it's the council's issue. If it's just left in the street then it can be classed as lost property. Take it to the local nick and fill out the forms, if its not claimed in 28 days then you have a further 14 days to claim it for yourself.

However, there are somethings that the police will not give you if not claimed.

Jemmies (small crowbars used for thievery)
Ammunition
Cheques
Firearms
Explosives
Documents
Keys
Hypodermic Needles
Offensive Weapons
Tablets and other drugs
Pawning slips
Instruments of Gaming (dice/playing cards etc)
Radioactive Materials
Mobile Phones

theres a very abandoned bmx on bethnal green road, near the tube station. its had a pretty cool metamorphosis over the last months.

1. started as a fairly grubby bmx chained to the rails
2. got lots of parts nicked, bent, smashed up
3. got a new paintjob (in situ), including the back wheel.
4. been splash n rained on a lot and could prob do with another touch-up

I think its time it moved onto the next level. maybe it should have some parts *added* to it now.

I have seen that mornington crescent bike, its been there for nearly 3 months!

You do have to ask yourself the question why is it left. has something bad happened to the owner so they can't come and pick it up? or do they simply not see the value you see? maybe they moved out, got a new one... i say give it a while (4-6 mths) then take it. at least you are giving the bike the life it deserves :)

dude, that thing has been there since last august! It's only a frame now, and as chris mentioned, may not even be locked up as the lock goes through the front wheel.

tonigt I had liberated some bits from a bike in Kings X, with a note from the council communicating the removal of the bike for been abandonated, all this during the American ride

Found some live ammunition while riding up a mountain locally but the poor WPC at the Police Station couldn't decide whether to file it under "Lost Property" or "Firearams"(!). The officer she 'phoned for advice clearly told her exactly what I was thinking . . .