Thefts: If You haven't Noticed

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ericalm
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Thefts: If You haven't Noticed

Post by ericalm »

We've had a lot of posts about thefts and locking up scooters lately. Seems like thefts are up all over, but the usual hotspots are very active, especially Richmond and elsewhere in VA and the Boston metro area.

Thefts are up 150% around Richmond: http://rvanews.com/news/moped-and-scoot ... year/60087

There's a lot of good advice on the forum about locking up your scooter and what kinds of locks to get.

The important thing is to lock it up, period. Secure your scooter. Be smart about where and how you park it, especially overnight. Consider an alternative to street parking if possible.

Most thefts happen at night. Some are crimes of opportunity, but most are people looking for scooters/stealables. They will lift or roll them to a truck. This can happen very quickly.

If you have "full" insurance, double-check your theft coverage. A lot of people get screwed because they think they're covered for something and by the time they find out they're not, it's too late.

And if you live in one of the theft hotspots, keep an eye out for suspicious scooters (jacked ignitions) or suspicious sales postings, scooters in yard sales, etc. Report them to the police. Help out your fellow (less fortunate) scooterists. Stolen scooters have been recovered this way!
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Post by Edwub »

Is it a time of year thing, a normal cycle?

Seems like as Winter leaves and Spring is taking over, thefts shot up: in anticipation of Summer riding months??
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Post by ericalm »

Probably seasonal, but this year is already shaping up to be a bad one for thefts.
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Disc alarm lock around town during the day?

Post by julesagogo »

I have a new-to-me Black Jack (in RVA) and I park it in a garage at night, but I'm worried about stopping anywhere for more than two minutes and in a spot where I can keep an eye on it. The uber-heavy Kryptonite chain locks appear to be overkill for daytime shopping stops or lunch, which is how I think I'll use it (besides at work which has restricted entry and lots of law enforcement around). I'll double check my theft coverage - good idea.

At any rate, I feel that I should provide more protection during stops - does a disc alarm lock (or remote ) by itself sound about right? Looking at reviews on Amazon here...

Also, the scooter doesn't have "150" on it anywhere but it does have a license plate and inspection stickers...I wonder what kind of experience people here have had parking on the sidewalk, and any tips for that. One was to velcro the license plate on and remove it when parking on the sidewalk.
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Post by stASH »

I also am a new Buddy owner in RVA and when I asked the same questions at Scoot, they said that parking on the sidewalk hasn't really been an problem since most law enforcement are aware of scooter theft issues and the lack of sufficient ways to lock up your scoot while it's parked on the street. They also still recommended the heavy chain for locking up the scooter, even for short periods during the day if you're locking it up in the city.

Did you pick up that Blackjack from Craigslist? There was one posted recently with 1600 miles. I was tempted...
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Post by DCUNITED4LIFE »

Hey folks from Richmond! I'll be perfectly honest, I've never once locked my scooter up. Any I am idiot? Ok well, don't answer but maybe, maybe not. Thing is one of our club members did have her scoot locked up by the Virginia Museum of Fine arts and still had it stolen. I leave mine totally unlocked in my backyard (in southside, insert jokes here) and have never had an issue. Also, my GF lives in Church Hill and I spend nights there occasionally too, totally unlocked. Yes, I do think about it often but I think my scoot has more security features than a Buddy does. For 30 min to an hour between 9am-9pm I wouldn't be too concerned unless your parking in a housing project or something. I have witnessed (in broad daylight) a moped get stolen from around Carytown when I lived there by some white girl driving and two dues in a truck. They just sawed the porch it was locked to in half and threw it in the back. Anyhow, probably best to lock up but in 2 years I have had no problems, I don't know if your new to Richmond or not but I felt like someone who has lived here 13 years should post something from their own experience on here. Theft is gonna happen, if they want it they will take it, just don't make it easy for them. Park somewhere out of sight, lock up, and don't draw attention to the scoot and I think you'll be fine.
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Post by Syd »

What security features does the Blur have that the Buddy doesn't? Or are you talking about a scooter other than the one shown in your profile?
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Post by julesagogo »

Yep, the one from CL - it's awesome and looks awesome, which is both good and bad (from a theft prevention standpoint). I believe Chelsea said the same thing when I went in but don't believe I clarified that I garage it at night. I moved here in 1998 and live in the Fan; I'm a scooter newb, though, and would like to take appropriate precautions without looking like PeeWee in his Big Adventure. :wink:

It's difficult to park in Carytown/Bottom/Church Hill/Downtown/VCU out of sight when running errands, and if you do, I think you may run a bigger chance of someone taking it with no public witnesses or people to yell at them.
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Post by Edwub »

Syd wrote:What security features does the Blur have that the Buddy doesn't? Or are you talking about a scooter other than the one shown in your profile?
It does have one, that I'm aware of.
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Picture covers it fine. There's a security cover you can flip over the ignition hole, and the key has an additional built in slider with a funny ridge and a bump or two that'll snap it back out.

Honestly, I rarely use it. Forgot I had it, but I had used it occasionally mostly when I was going to be away for longer than a few days (and then, mostly to prevent dust from getting in the ignition). I think part of the reason I rarely use it is because the actual slider on the key feels sort of flimsy.
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Post by Syd »

Ha, I'd absolutely walk to the next scoot, after seeing that bit of security tech. :lol:
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Post by DCUNITED4LIFE »

Syd, in addition to the ignition cover I am pretty sure that there is some electronic security measures in place in the ignition which prevent startup of the scoot without the key in the ignition. I'll have to find a citation on that for you. My opinion is that you don't have to have a ironclad security system, you just have to be less appealing to steal then the next guy.
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Post by DCUNITED4LIFE »

julesagogo wrote:Yep, the one from CL - it's awesome and looks awesome, which is both good and bad (from a theft prevention standpoint). I believe Chelsea said the same thing when I went in but don't believe I clarified that I garage it at night. I moved here in 1998 and live in the Fan; I'm a scooter newb, though, and would like to take appropriate precautions without looking like PeeWee in his Big Adventure. :wink:

It's difficult to park in Carytown/Bottom/Church Hill/Downtown/VCU out of sight when running errands, and if you do, I think you may run a bigger chance of someone taking it with no public witnesses or people to yell at them.
Yea those are pretty rad scooters for sure. Garage at night is the main thing I think. I moved here in 1998 too, but got out of the fan years ago. I'd be more worried about a drunk frat boy hoping on for a ride and damaging it than it getting stolen. When running errands I find it better to be in the most conspicuous place as possible as you stated, but for overnight I feel finding somewhere out of sight is probably best. A lot of times these are crimes of opportunity. The moped I saw get stolen years ago happened at 4pm and the three people with a truckload of stolen goods were just driving down streets looking for things to steal. If it's out of sight then that isn't an issue, but I wouldn't compromise other security steps simply to be hidden. Again, make the opportunity for theft hard to come by and I think that's your best bet.
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Post by julesagogo »

I lock the steering column but I think I would feel safer with a little extra protection. I also love gadgets but the remote lock/alarms are a bit pricey. I doubt any alarm is going to stop opportunists and those are the ones I'm worried about.

I can also carry so maybe a simple visual would convince them to put it back if I arrived in time... :wink: Which just gave me an idea - magnetizing the license plate and slapping on one of these with something like "Protected by remote alarm, Smith and Wesson" when I park.
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Post by Keys »

DCUNITED4LIFE wrote:My opinion is that you don't have to have a ironclad security system, you just have to be less appealing to steal then the next guy.
Same mentality as the guy who says, "I don't have to be faster than the bear...just faster than the other guy..."
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Post by amy »

This report was posted on Atlanta's Fox website . . . hopefully they'll consider doing a report on Atlanta thefts one day too lol

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ydDEGQlp7eg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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Post by magnato1 »

amy wrote:This report was posted on Atlanta's Fox website . . . hopefully they'll consider doing a report on Atlanta thefts one day too lol

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ydDEGQlp7eg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
This pisses me off! :livid:

Anybody use this? http://www.onguardlock.com/?page_id=329 Does it work well? Easy to use? Versatile?
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Post by BuddyLicious »

I am a member of a bicycle forum and in one thread we were talking about electric bike theft deterrents.One member posted this:

" Mine is data tagged, if it is stolen I phone a number and over 2000 police cars passively search, if the bike goes past a car, they are alerted. It also as DNA water all over ever part, if stolen I register it and if recovered a uv light proves it is mine and helps secure a conviction. It also has a full time gps tracker with sim card to beam its location on to googe maps. I alo have it in a secure, reinforced lock up and it s bolted to the wall with the highest security lock, it also as 24 hr hd CCTV recording it and the another CCTV pointed at the lockup. I also have an alarmed disc lock on it. Over the top yes but I would hate to hae it nicked, I live in a nice quiet area but make it hard and 99% of thefts will not happen.....I also have a decent mountain bike unlocked next to it, hopefully any prospective thief nicks that and feels happy with their lot"

Maybe these deterrents can give some ideas for our Scoots.

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amy
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Post by amy »

Great info.

Does the cyclist list makes/models on the items that he uses? Service recommends? If so can you post them here?
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Post by lucasan »

That cyclist who posted had to be kidding. DNA water? really?
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Post by BuddyLicious »

amy wrote:Great info.

Does the cyclist list makes/models on the items that he uses? Service recommends? If so can you post them here?
Hi Amy,

He didnt list specifics but I will try to get those for you.

Take Care Tim.
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Post by TomCat »

This report was posted on Atlanta's Fox website
They certainly didn't seem to be in any hurry, even took the cover!
In Texas you'd be able to legally shoot the SOB's :evil:
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Post by amy »

lucasan wrote:That cyclist who posted had to be kidding. DNA water? really?
Yes, really.

I believe it's "data" or markings that are unique to the bike (similar to a watermark on graphic or photo) that make it identifiable.

Look up DataDots for bikes.
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Post by BuddyLicious »

amy wrote:Great info.

Does the cyclist list makes/models on the items that he uses? Service recommends? If so can you post them here?
The cyclist was gracious enough to share this info.Keep in mind he is from Australia so products and services can be different.

Hi Archer,

No problems, the GPS tracker is a SPYBIKE, I may be able to put together a group buy on these, they are roughly £125 off the top of my head and normally come with a Tesco sim card with some credit on it. I can text "where are you" at any time and the bike plots on google maps where it is and where it has been. There are 2 types, 1 hidden on bike and one built in to a light.

The Disc lock has a 120db alarm built in - just type disc lock in to ebay.

The smart water is selecta DNA, this is painted on and then you send off the reg form to the database and then just let them know if stolen and they share with the Police.

The DNA water comes in a pot with a brush, there was enough to paint 70 ish items therefore each major component plus all the electrical stuff in my house...do be careful as it needs to be in hidden places as you can see a little glue residue but it shows up under UV light and it comes with a little torch, the police are informed if stolen and they regularly search stolen items with UV...this helps convictions and recovery of items.

Then there is the Data Tag, this is about the size of a grain of rice and comes with a super hard glue, the tag is a passive RFID tag and you hide it anywhere on the bike, if you report it stolen then over 2500 police cars will automatically scan for the signal, if the bike goes past a police car then the car sends a message to the driver to pull over the stolen bike. It comes with tamper evident warning stickers.

The lock I use to bolt it to the wall is a Fahgeddaboutit and it is the highest rated U lock on the market, I normally use one of the cables to extend this around the bike.

Obviously we also have an ignition key!
CCTV is a wireless system and transmits to a 1 gig constantly recording hard drive, I can view it on my TV or my IPAD / phone
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Post by siobhan »

The best piece of advice is to have full coverage on your bike. I had two stolen, the Buddy and my DRZ, from my padlocked garage. My neighbor left me a note on my porch saying the Buddy was dumped in his yard, so at least I got one back, relatively unmolested.

The DRZ is simply gone. And while I'm still a bit in shock (and very, very pissed off because it was a work of aftermarket art), my insurance company cut me a check for fair market value and covered all accessories except my gloves (which are only covered if damaged in a crash). They were very fair.

CONFIRM YOUR INSURANCE COVERAGE if you live in an area of high-theft or cannot afford to replace your bike out-of-pocket if it's stolen. If you have a lot of aftermarket stuff, make sure you have accessory coverage and keep all receipts. Buying online can work to your advantage as you'll have old emails or can get receipts from the vendors.

In the heavy crime areas, this is not just opportunity; there are organized groups stealing scooters/motorcycles. Insurance is your greatest protection.

EDIT: take pictures of your bike and any upgrades and accessories. Keep them organized so you have proof for the insurance company.
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Post by chelsea »

To revisit a statement further up in this thread:

The fuel injected Buddy 170 and Blur 220 actually do have a couple of other theft deterrents built into them. All of these deterrents are because of the fuel injection system.

First, fuel injected scooters do not have a kickstarter. This is a fairly obvious thing, even to newb thieves.

Second (and the reason that the bike does not have a kickstarter), the battery needs to be involved in the scooter in order for the bike to run, because the fuel injection computer needs to have that battery to get its power. It's like trying to turn a desktop computer on while it's unplugged, basically.

Third, those bikes both have a resistor in the ignition switch. If your thief has enough ingenuity to know that the battery has to be there, he probably won't know that the without that particular size resistor the electrical system knows not to fire.

Anecdotal evidence: A customer in the Virginia Beach area had a Blur 220 stolen last summer. It was recovered after a month or so, beat up from being put in a truck several times...but it was never ever started and run, so the damage was minimal.
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