Hi everyone,
Here is something that everyone on the forum can do…..and it's free (yippee)!!

Register your bike on http://www.immobilise.com which is a property registration website that is supported by most UK police forces.

When you visit the site you will be asked to enter your email address and confirm. You will then be asked how you heard of the website. If you are registering as a result of what I am posting, then please highlight 'Bristol Police'.

You will then be asked to add an inventory item and will be able to select a form for bikes. Complete the details including the frame number as an identifier. The more detail you add, the better. You can also add an image of your bike.

After you have registered your bike, keep an eye on your email account for an email confirming your login name and password (this may take as long as a few weeks). Don't forget to check your junk mail folder as the message may land in there.

Once you have your account details, you can log in to your account and add details of mobile phones, laptops and just about anything electrical which has a serial number.

If your bike (or other item) is lost or stolen, and comes into police possession, then it should be checked on a separate secure law enforcement database which is linked to immobilise. If it is on there, then your lost posseion can be returned to you.

Furthermore, if the check is done on the street whilst in the clutches of a criminal, they can be arrested and hopefully charged with theft (hurrah)!

The effectiveness of this system relies upon people registering their belongings on immobilise – so the more of you that take advantage of this, the better.

There is nothing more frustrating than stopping some one on a bike that you know is stolen (copper's instinct), and having to let them and the bike go, because you can't prove that it's not their bike.

"Aha PC Frank" I hear you cry "What if I register my bike, and the so-and-so who steals it grinds off the frame number"?

Many bike theives are so brazen that they don't bother to conceal the identity of the bike. Also, if you explore the immobilise website, you will find a product which helps to negate this.

Stay safe and vigilant,

PC Frank

to be frank, that's a good idea. i am going to make sure i'm up to speed with all this over the weekend. it's PC gone good. 🙂

i've just remembered this and put my bikes on it. looks worth doing in readiness should the worst happen. bump for others info. 🙂

Cheers, fella!

There is nothing more frustrating than stopping some one on a bike that you know is stolen (copper's instinct), and having to let them and the bike go, because you can't prove that it's not their bike.

It's also quite satisfying when the police phone our shop having stopped someone who they 'know' is on a stolen bike only for us to tell them that they are the rightful owner and we'd appreciate it if they stopped harassing our customers 🙂

I can't get the image of a police officer saying 'yippee' out of my head 😆

it is a good idea, this. i hope you've all done it.

Hi Frank, Do you happen to know if Smartwater recognition is used by every police force?

thanks for that PC Frank.

It's also quite satisfying when the police phone our shop having stopped someone who they 'know' is on a stolen bike only for us to tell them that they are the rightful owner and we'd appreciate it if they stopped harassing our customers

Yes, because police harrassment of innocent cyclists is a really big problem, and bike theft is almost unheard of in this country. 🙄

Is that what he said? Really? Is it? Eh? You know what you've done there? You've set up a false opposition.

so i register all my expensive stuff with pix and descriptions and give you my address. Then wait for it to go missing lol 🙂

greeting I have been very fortunate in winning the nigerian lottery but I do not have bank account. If you can take time to complete the online form with you name address and bank account detail and details of any expensive consumer items bikes, laptops plasma television i will transfer the fund to your account

you guys aren't being serious, i take it? you realise that it's obviously not a searchable database for the public? anyway, this is a good excuse for a bump.

simondbarnes
What a load of rubbish! Better to check than just ignore the possibility somethings stolen.
What are you hoping to achieve by slagging the police who are trying to reduce bike theft.
Happy trolling…

i am flatboy 🙂

and aswell as immobilse get all your individual components marked up with Selecta DNA. this way if the bike gets split up – there is a chance that you might get some of it back.

I have got dots on all parts except the chain/skeweres abd grips!

its expensive – About £50 for a domestic kit – but you Local Community Safety Partnership team are able to buy them in very cheap £12 a pack and can either sell them on to you at that cost -or just give them to you!

my local team issues them FOC if you have been burgled or if you neighbours have been burgled or if you have valuable bikes that might be burgled!

http://www.swindon-csp.org.uk/

All Counties and Boroughs have a safety partnership's – they just arn't all as superb as Swindons.

You can also get immobilise bike stickers with an id that you can register.

PC Frank:

your divisions CSP contact details for Brisle

http://www.safersouthglos.org.uk/Crime/

They can also help by issuing UV post code marking pens to all bike shops in the area!

also the Bobby van should carry a stock of selecta DNA to issue!!!

Did anyone see that TV show – poss 'south today' were they 'marked up' a bike, had it nicked and handed to police who did not even check it and promptly sold it at auction.?

Could have been 'Inside out' on BBC
EDIT http://www.bbc.co.uk/insideout/content/articles/2009/02/02/south_s15_w4_stolenbikes_video_feature.shtml

posting to remind me to get on to the link later…

bigyinn

Sorry for making light of this serious website. In future I will take everything I read on the internet at face value even is it doesn't have a .police.uk URL.

Obviously if the person has a nickmname of PC Frank then that definitely guarantees that he/she is a UK police officer and not a scammer.

I'm off to register these Fabergé eggs I have on the mantelpiece at

teleuswherehouhideyourpricelessvaluables.ru.com

I had a random idea in the shower last night. How about some little device you could inside one of the tubes of bike that was basically a little mobile phone (but only capable of texting). When you leave your bike you text "on" to the device on your bike, this enables the device. So, when someone nicks the bike the device detects that its moved (by noticing its using a different phone mast) it then sends a text distress signal, sure it could also give an approximate location. When you wnat to deactivate the device you text "off" to it. Good idea, already done idea or a load of tosh?

Abductee, calm down fella. If you read my post I was refering to simondbarnes, not you.

for the paranoid amost us..

https://www.cambs-police.co.uk/advice/immobilise/
http://www.met.police.uk/mobilephone/immobilise.htm
http://www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/crimereduction/crime_prevention/home_security/immobilise_property_registration_scheme/
http://www.west-midlands.police.uk/saferstudents/immobilise.asp
http://www.northants.police.uk/default.aspx?id=264

http://whois.domaintools.com/immobilise.com address as per the contact details on the site.

another bump so (almost) everyone can get this done, no reason not to…

Just to reassure you, there are three people who can access the details of your account (and it's content).

You – no problems there.

The Police – via a secure website for law enforcement only.

The website adminstrators – for purposes of updating and repairing the site.

As of today there are 27,701791 members on the site!

If anyone needs confirmation of my credentials they can email me at frank.simonds@avonandsomerset.pnn.police.uk.

My postal address is:

PC 1422 Frank Simonds
Crime Prevention Design Advisor
Bristol Community Safety Team
Avon and Somerset Constabulary
Newfoundland Road Police Station
83 Newfoundland Road
Bristol
BS2 9LU.