675 Gone In 15 Seconds

Sorry to hear and echo all what’s been said about the need for very painful treatment for the thieving ********.. but don’t blame yourself as they would have any bike they want no matter what locks are on them as they just pick them up and stick in the back of a van..

 

The video above is really good to help raise awareness, but it needs to be followed by a well thought out (and agreed to) plan of action. I'll preface the following comments with the fact that I know I don't think or act like someone whose grown up in the UK. We've had completely different life experiences and our 'societies' (government function/social programs/citizen priorities) really are different. We also have our own 'cancers' in the US like school shootings, murder rates in urbanized areas, and corporate greed.

Most major problems have very complex origins and the solutions are equally complex. These situations don't suddenly appear, and the solutions won't happen overnight. However, anything that is done to stop just one thief is a victory. When you stop one and show that there is a real consequence to their action, you make the next one think and hesitate before they steal something. What really shocks me about the video is that, in some cases, the thieves are using lethal force (machetes, etc.) and that isn't viewed on its own as attempted murder or aggravated assault which should be crimes that the police aggressively pursue. Do they really view those actions only as part of the attempt to steal your bike, and therefore not as the very significant crimes that they are?

I have to believe that your politicians want to be re-elected as much as ours in the US. If that's the case, they don't want people working against them and giving political action committee (PAC) money to their opponents that promise to work on your issues. The starting point for situations like this is to bring all of the stakeholders together and facilitate discussions that lead to action plans that can realistically be implemented. Even if you only 'hold' the level of thefts at their current levels into the future, your efforts would be a success.

From both the national and local levels, the politicians and police should be meeting with the insurance companies, motorcycle manufacturers, motorcycle accessory companies, security companies, motorcycle advocacy organizations, and clearly bike owners as the affected parties. The problem needs to be quantified, trends need to be identified, the overall cost to society for these crimes needs to be developed, realistic steps to combat these crimes need to be developed, and the parties have to agree to prioritize and implement them. The only way it will happen, is when the affected parties 1) start the process and fund these types of meetings, and 2) let the politicians know they are well organized and won't support their elections or re-elections if they don't prioritize your issues.

It wouldn't take much personal effort for the 130,000 bike owners mentioned in the video to stage one or two protests in London each year to get some attention. On a positive note, the brewing companies would love it

I'm one of those people that really hates seeing any decent person get abused, and I'm often motivated to try and do something positive. Life is difficult enough without this type of problem. At the risk of being banned from the forum, I'm going to climb down from my soap box and try to resist writing anything else on this issue. Sorry for being so long-winded.

 

Really sorry to hear about this mate. I can only imagine how angry you must be. It sure sounds rife out there and from what I have seen definitely on the increase, the thieving bastards do not care who they steal from or about anyone's safety when committing these crimes. I sincerely hope authorities start doing more to overcome this, in time to come it will certainly spread to other areas and even countries, its simply put to easy for them !

 

Sorry for your loss.
I use Biketrac on all of mine. Not cheap and £99 a year service charge, but if I forget to switch the ignition on and wheel it out of the garage, I get a phone call telling me it's been moved before I get my helmet on. And if they can't get hold of me, they ring the wife.
If it is stolen, you can track it and Biketrac will go out and locate it too.

 

Sorry for your loss.
I use Biketrac on all of mine. Not cheap and £99 a year service charge, but if I forget to switch the ignition on and wheel it out of the garage, I get a phone call telling me it's been moved before I get my helmet on. And if they can't get hold of me, they ring the wife.
If it is stolen, you can track it and Biketrac will go out and locate it too.

 

Feel for you mate. The bastards need some electrical treatment as Liam Neeson dished out in Taken

All the best

 

Wow its all happening, You seem to have it all under control.

 

Terrible to hear of all this but credit to you for hanging in there and coming out the other side with a position your happy with mark, top marks to Staffordshire Triumph for all there help and assistance getting the new ride all sorted and ready to ride, lesson learnt I hope and thats all we can do learn from our experiences and continue on until the next.
Good luck Mark ride safe sir.