Tag Archives: Crime

Light, tough motorcycle lock launched

March 16, 2021 mcnews Leave a comment

UK bike lock manufacturer Litelok have developed their lightest and most flexible motorcycle lock yet called the Litelok Core Moto.

It has been accredited as Motorcycle Gold by the independent certification group Sold Secure and the makers claim it is one of the lightest security locks on the market.

Litelok still weighs 2.5kg which is a lot to lug around in your bike’s panners or top box.

At the core is Boaflexicore Plus, a patented material invented by rider and Litelok founder, Professor Neil Barron, an award-winning industrial designer and ex-Rolls Royce aeronautical engineer.

“I’ve owned a number of motorcycles and truly understand what it means to lose such treasured possessions but also how inconvenient lugging around heavy chains can be,” says Neil who has had three bikes stolen.

“We developed Litelok Core Moto to be our most secure lock whilst still being really practical and easy to use.”

It has multiple layers of protection from the inner core out.

The 125cm lock is also very flexible and features a simple integrated click-to-lock system with a key only required to unlock.

Locks are pairable so you can join two together for added length. They offer them in twin packs so they can be used with the same unique key.

Litelok Core Moto is available for preorder in either a 125cm or 150cm length and comes with either an orange, black or red washable, outer neoprene skin to help protect your bike’s paintwork.

Limited early bird pricing begins at £110 ($A196, $US155, €130), with savings of up to 30% on recommended retail pricing.

Funding for the locks has launched on crowdfunding site Kickstarter with the campaign reaching its goal in just a few hours.

Litelok successfully funded their first lock using Kickstarter in 2015 and had another successful campaign for Litelok Silver in 2018.

Based in South Wales, UK, and made up of motorcycle and bicycle riders, the company works with material scientists from Swansea University.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Stolen bikes take longer to recover

June 11, 2020 mcnews Leave a comment

Stolen motorcycles and scooters are now taking longer to recover, according to the latest National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council report.

It shows that in the 12 months to March 2020, motor vehicle theft rose 11% while motorcycle and scooter theft was up a whopping 19% to 9938.

Motorcycle thefts by state

State or Territory	2018-04 to 2019-03		2019-04 to 2020-03		% change
State or Territory	Thefts	% of thefts	Thefts	% of thefts	% change
ACT	105	1.2	122	1.2	16.2%
NSW	2,023	22.6	2,155	21.7	6.5%
NT	85	1.0	94	0.9	10.6%
QLD	1,792	20.0	2,128	21.4	18.8%
SA	623	7.0	865	8.7	38.8%
TAS	163	1.8	219	2.2	34.4%
VIC	2,057	23.0	2,177	21.9	5.8%
WA	2,090	23.4	2,178	21.9	4.2%
AUS	8,938	100.0	9,938	100.0	11.2%

Time to recover

Worse still for the owners, stolen motorcycle recovered within seven days dropped by 10%.

The time to recover stolen motorcycles increased most in Victoria and was more pronounced in metropolitan areas.

Most stolen vehicles took longer to recover the more expensive and younger they were.

However, stolen motorcycles did not show any considerable differences in the time to recover across vehicle age.

The Council believes some of the reasons for the longer recovery period for motorcycles include:

An increase in the use of cloned number plates to avoid detection and the elimination of registration labels. This makes it more difficult for police to detect stolen vehicles and gives thieves more time to use the stolen vehicle.
Changes in police priorities including a greater focus on drugs, terrorism and domestic violence.
Offenders’ perception of police pursuit policies. Offenders may believe that by riding dangerously they can convince police to pull out of a pursuit thus enabling them to keep the stolen vehicle for a longer period of time.
An indication that offenders are getting older and less likely to be detected by police based purely on their age.
A community shift to a “mind your own business” approach to crime. People may be less likely to ‘get involved’ if they see an abandoned vehicle resulting in a delay in it being report to authorities. There is also a possibility that this change in social attitude is more evident in metropolitan areas.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Leap in motorcycle thefts for 2019

March 11, 2020 mcnews Leave a comment

Motorcycle theft rose more than any other category of vehicle last year with the biggest leap in South Australia and Tasmania and South East Queensland being a hotspot for thieves.

Figures released today by the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council show motorcycle theft across the nation up 10.5% to 9672.

That’s a 19.7% leap from the 8078 stolen five years ago.

Theft leap

The leap in motorcycle theft rates has prompted the Council to invite rider groups to partner with them to raise security awareness.

For more details of how your bike group can be involved click here.

Council Projects and Communications Coordinator Caitlin Hrambanis says there could be several reasons for the explosion on motorcycle theft rates:

The ease with which they are stolen;
A high demand for parts; and
The lack of security measures by riders.

Where they were stolen

The biggest increase over the past 12 months was in South Australia where thefts almost doubled from 555 to 822.

It was followed by Tasmania with a 40.4% increase to 198.

State/Terr	2018		2019		% change
State/Terr	Thefts	% of thefts	Thefts	% of thefts	% change
ACT	107		126		17.8%
NSW	1,969		2,132		8.3%
NT	82		97		18.3%
QLD	1,690		2,017		19.3%
SA	555		822		48.1%
TAS	141		198		40.4%
VIC	2,097		2,115		0.9%
WA	2,108		2,165		2.7%
AUS	8,749	100.0	9,672	100.0	10.5%

But the real hotspots for motorcycle theft in Australia are in South East Queensland, Perth, Melbourne and Sydney.

This table of motorcycle thefts according to local government areas shows that four of the top 10 are in the South East Queensland area.

Cockburn and Stirling are in Perth, and Darebin and Melbourne are, of course in Melbourne.

State or Territory	LGA	2018	2019	% change
QLD	Brisbane (City)	432	526	21.8%
QLD	Gold Coast (City)	244	285	16.8%
VIC	Melbourne (City)	246	250	1.6%
QLD	Logan (City)	157	202	28.7%
QLD	Moreton Bay (Regional Council)	129	184	42.6%
WA	Cockburn (City)	76	171	125.0%
NSW	Sydney (City)	151	151	0.0%
VIC	Darebin (City)	106	141	33.0%
WA	Stirling (City)	147	140	-4.8%
NSW	Newcastle (City)	130	130	0.0%

What is being stolen

There is little change in what is being stolen.

It’s mostly light bikes, dirt bikes and scooters which are the easiest to steal.

Also popular were the most prolific brands, such as the four Japanese brands.

Make	2015	2019
Honda	1,678	2,104
Yamaha	1,424	1,665
Kawasaki	804	925
Suzuki	821	868
KTM	523	634
SYM	171	350
Kymco	112	245
Harley-Davidson	213	215
Piaggio	159	202
Triumph	143	197
Hyosung	168	162
Husqvarna	99	158
Longjia	139	150
Ducati	85	107
Aprilia	69	99
BMW	56	90
TGB	108	87
Vespa	75	78
Bolwell	56	72
Adly	101	60

Cubic capacity	2015	2019
50cc or less	966	851
51 – 100cc	186	91
101 – 150cc	871	1,101
151 – 200cc	147	154
201 – 250cc	1,106	949
251 – 500cc	1,028	1,332
501 – 750cc	901	930
751 – 1000cc	446	431
1001cc or more	332	295
Electric	1	4
Unknown	2,270	3,534

How to secure your bike

Click here to find out what measures you can take to prevent your bike from ending up in these statistics.

When riding home, make sure you are not being followed.
Stay alert for suspicious vans or trucks driving around late at night. These are used to transport stolen motorcycles.
Lock the steering if it has a steering lock.
Put a cover over your bike. It might slow down thieves and prevent theft of accessories. But make sure it isn’t a flashy lone with the brand name of the bike on it. That only entices thieves.
When riding in a group, park your bikes together.
Consider marking your bike in a unique way that could aid in recovery and therefore dissuade thieves.
At hotels or public parking spaces, try to park in view of parking lot security cameras and lights.
Install a motorcycle alarm and/or a hidden kill switch.
Buy a GPS tracking system that can track and relay your bike’s speed, location and direction.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Number plate theft and cloning on the rise

December 3, 2019 mcnews Leave a comment

Number plate theft and cloning of plates is on the rise, resulting in riders receiving speeding and parking fines and unpaid toll notices.

The National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council says number plate theft can also be used to commit crimes such as petrol theft, robberies, house break-ins and drug trafficking.

Police are also reporting an increased detection of cloned plates with offenders using vehicle sales websites to find a vehicle matching their bike or a stolen vehicle.

Offenders are even cloning the number plates on laminated paper.

Cloning plate scam not new

Police and transport departments in several states say the cloning plate scam is not new, but are unable to supply statistics for speeding fines waived or offenders who can be charged with both criminal and traffic offences.

Police say motorists wrongly fined would need to provide photographic evidence to prove the vehicle in the speeding offence photo was not theirs.

It is recommended that private sellers blur their number plates when they advertise their vehicle online.

In Victoria, Victoria Police, VicRoads, Department of Justice and Regulation, Fines Victoria, the Crime Statistics Agency and the NMVTRC are investigating the misuse and theft of number plates.

The NMVTRC says about a third of all stolen plates are taken from vehicles parked on the street and 10% were from vehicles parked in a car park.

About 85% are stolen from metropolitan areas.

Unpaid tolls

The scammers have also been using tollways with the video recognition fee going to the registered owners of the plate.

Last year we reported on Kingaroy rider Paulette Devlin who copped a $10.78 fee for an unpaid $2.28 motorway toll when her Kawasaki Ninja 250 was parked in her garage more than 200km away.

plate scam — Tollway photo of Paulette’s plate on another bike

She bought the Ninja in July 2017 through Gumtree.

We contacted Queensland tollway company Linkt who confirmed they had waived Paulette’s toll.

Linkt is owned by Transurban which also owns CityLink in Melbourne and six tollways in Sydney.

(Click here to find why tunnels are the top traps for speeding fines.)

In fact, they also waived a second unpaid toll after they found the same number plate had been used on a different bike.

They confirmed that “some people who complain regarding this are being investigated”.

Linkt would not reveal how many are being investigated.

Motorcycle riders are particularly vulnerable to this plate scam where tollways use video pate recognition for motorcycles instead of a transponder.

Riders should check their next toll statement to ensure that all toll fees are legitimate.

If you find an incorrect charge, email the Transurban customer resolution team at: [email protected]

Do not simply fail to pay the fee as the charges will rise even more.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Motorcycle thefts are double car thefts

September 25, 2019 mcnews Leave a comment

Motorcycle thefts in Australia are increasing at more than double the rate of car theft, according to the latest figures for the 2018/2019 financial year.

The National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council reports that 9261 motorcycles were stolen in the past financial year, which is 9% more than the previous year.

Over the same period, car theft increased 4% to 43,839, while theft of all vehicles was up 5% to 55,293.

Motorcycles represent 16.7% of all vehicle theft, yet are only about 5% of total registrations. However, some of the thefts are of unregistered dirt bikes.

Most of the increase in motorcycle theft seems to be in short-term theft, usually joy rides.

Short-term theft of all vehicles increased 845 (2%) while it was up 8% for motorcycles.

Profit-motivated thefts by organised criminal groups rose 1775 (13%) for all vehicles with motorcycles (up 10%).

Motorcycle thefts by state

Motorcycle thefts increased in all jurisdictions, except the ACT and Victoria.

State or Territory	2017/18		2018/19		% change
State or Territory	Thefts	% of thefts	Thefts	% of thefts	% change
ACT	127		104		-18.1%
NSW	1,873		2,157		15.2%
NT	95		100		5.3%
QLD	1,562		1,880		20.4%
SA	540		710		31.5%
TAS	117		169		44.4%
VIC	2,068		2,024		-2.1%
WA	2,095		2,117		1.1%
AUS	8,477	100.0	9,261	100.0	9.2%

Queensland thefts have risen a massive 45% over the past five years since the Campbell Newman Government pulled its funding from the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council.

It took until July this year for the Queensland Government to reinstate its $206,000 annual funding.

RACQ Head of Technical and Safety Policy Steve Spalding said the Club had lobbied to re-join the NMVTRC.

The Triumph Bonneville rider says Queensland had missed out on receiving vital funding for locally-delivered crime prevention programs.

“We’re now looking forward to seeing our state reap these long-awaited benefits,” he says.

The council, Queensland Government and Queensland Police have confirmed collaborative working arrangements to tackle vehicle theft crime.

They include proactive police action to educate riders about locking up their bikes.

Queensland Police and the RACQ launched their “Stop Stolen Motorcycles” awareness campaign last year.

In June, they asked riders to complete an online Motorbike Theft Survey to raise awareness of the use of security devices.

Motorcycle theft Senior Constable Tony Tatkovich and Steve Spalding RACQ — Senior Constable Tony Tatkovich and Steve Spalding RACQ with a motorcycle disc lock

Common motorcycle thefts

As usual, the most common manufacturers featured high on the list of most stolen brands.

However, KTM and Husqvarna also featured because of their many dirt bikes which are lighter and easier to steal than heavy road bikes.

Similarly, scooter brands such as SYM, Kymco and Piaggio featured because scooters are also easy to steal.

Make	2017/18	2018/19
Honda	1734	2005
Yamaha	1541	1581
Kawasaki	719	855
Suzuki	766	816
KTM	569	645
SYM	198	285
Kymco	140	223
Harley Davidson	229	219
Piaggio	193	202
Triumph	180	181
Hyosung	151	172
Husqvarna	134	145
Longjia	139	142
Aprilia	101	96
Ducati	95	93
TGB	97	89
Vespa	92	78
BMW	67	77
Adly	57	65
Bolwell	60	65

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Biggest vehicle theft rise is in motorcycles

June 27, 2019 mcnews Leave a comment

Motor vehicle theft in Australia increased by 3% in the past year, largely due to a 9% rise in motorcycle theft.

Motorcycle theft rose by 720 vehicles to a total of 8928, with a recovery rate of 48% in the 12 months to March 2019, according to the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council.

Joy ride theft was up 7%, but profit-motivated theft, usually by organised gangs, was up 10%.

This is a worrying trend because motorcycle thefts in 2018 were up 7.3%.

Motorcycle theft is also up 1.5% in the past four years compared with the previous four. But then motorcycle ownership is also up.

Thefts rise in most states

Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hrambanis says the biggest rise in motorcycle theft continues to be in NSW and Queensland.

State or Territory	2017-04 to 2018-03		2018-04 to 2019-03		% change
State or Territory	Thefts	% of thefts	Thefts	% of thefts	% change
ACT	138		105		-23.9%
NSW	1,758		2,022		15.0%
NT	113		84		-25.7%
QLD	1,474		1,794		21.7%
SA	542		623		14.9%
TAS	120		162		35.0%
VIC	2,031		2,051		1.0%
WA	2,032		2,087		2.7%
AUS	8,208	100.0	8,928	100.0	8.8%

Queensland’s rise could be explained by the fact that it left the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council seven years ago under the Newman Government.

It will rejoin the body from July 1 to find ways of preventing vehicle theft.

The RACQ has applauded the move.

“The Police Minister’s commitment to rejoin this theft prevention group is the right move,” says safety officer and Bonneville rider Steve Spalding.

“Since 2012 our leaders have backed out of financially supporting the [council] and subsequently missed out on receiving funding for locally delivered crime prevention programs, so we’re now looking forward to seeing our state reap these long-awaited benefits.”

The council is currently investigating the efficacy of tougher penalties for vehicle theft.

The worst hotspots for motorcycle theft continue to be South East Queensland, Melbourne, Sydney/Newcastle and Perth.

State or Territory	LGA	2014-04 to 2015-03	2018-04 to 2019-03	% change
QLD	Brisbane (City)	299	448	49.8%
QLD	Gold Coast (City)	157	269	71.3%
VIC	Melbourne (City)	137	254	85.4%
QLD	Logan (City)	113	182	61.1%
NSW	Sydney (City)	118	163	38.1%
NSW	Newcastle (City)	45	158	251.1%
QLD	Moreton Bay (Regional Council)	124	155	25.0%
WA	Swan (City)	109	147	34.9%
WA	Stirling (City)	141	146	3.5%
WA	Broome (Shire)	96	126	31.2%

Easy to steal

Motorcycles and scooters are the easiest vehicles to steal because they are lighter than other vehicles and difficult to lock and anchor.

And the lighter the bike or scooter, the more likely it is to be stolen.

Cubic capacity	2014-04 to 2015-03	2018-04 to 2019-03
50 cc or less	1,048	890
51 – 100 cc	178	97
101 – 150 cc	835	957
151 – 200 cc	137	168
201 – 250 cc	1,110	942
251 – 500 cc	978	1,187
501 – 750 cc	782	833
751 – 1000 cc	394	437
1001 cc or more	288	290
Electric	1	1
Unknown	2,255	3,126

This is also reflected in the prevalence of scooter brands in the most marques.

Obviously, the most common motorcycles on the road also feature in the theft stats.

Make	2014-04 to 2015-03	2018-04 to 2019-03
Honda	1,571	1,882
Yamaha	1,475	1,540
Kawasaki	734	819
Suzuki	769	772
KTM	482	604
SYM	188	252
Harley-Davidson	171	225
Kymco	111	222
Piaggio	142	203
Triumph	129	187
Hyosung	149	166
Longjia	158	148
Husqvarna	109	136
Aprilia	72	99
Ducati	67	85
TGB	111	81
Vespa	66	78
BMW	47	71
Bolwell	78	66
Vmoto	115	66

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Motorbike thefts up in 2018

March 14, 2019 mcnews Leave a comment

Motorcycles thefts are up 7.3% across Australia in 2018 with many older bikes heading straight to the junk yard for the scrap metal value, says the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council.

Thefts increased by 597 to a total of 8746 with a recovery rate of just 47%.

Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hrambanis says the biggest rises in motorcycle theft were in NSW and Queensland.

The council is currently investigating the efficacy of tougher penalties for vehicle theft.

Theft by state

State or Territory	2017		2018		% change
State or Territory	Thefts	% of thefts	Thefts	% of thefts	% change
ACT	126		107		-15.1%
NSW	1679		1968		17.2%
NT	126		82		-34.9%
QLD	1510		1696		12.3%
SA	521		555		6.5%
TAS	122		141		15.6%
VIC	2013		2092		3.9%
WA	2052		2105		2.6%
AUS	8149	100.0	8746	100.0	7.3%

Opportunistic theft

“In most cases vehicle theft is almost always opportunistic, with the vehicle being stolen for short-term use and later recovered (78% in Queensland),” she says.

Unlike most modern cars which have self-alarming engine immobilisers, many motorcycles need owners to lock them with a chain, disc lock or an alarm switch.

She says they can easily be stolen without requiring any keys.

“Motorcycles have their own set of challenges due to their ease of portability, the high demand for parts and poor identification,” she says.

“Two in three motorcycles are also stolen from the home, making home security, protecting keys and considerations of where the bike is stored also important.

“In Queensland, around a quarter of all bikes stolen are off-road bikes, which often makes recovery difficult as they are not subject to a registration system.”

Brands stolen

The most brands stolen were also the most popular brands on the market.

They were followed by many dirt bike and scooter brands which are easier to steal than heavy road bikes.

Make	2014	2018
Honda	1601	1786
Yamaha	1496	1529
Kawasaki	691	782
Suzuki	752	751
KTM	465	619
Harley Davidson	150	235
SYM	194	229
Piaggio	115	203
Kymco	120	200
Triumph	111	194
Hyosung	152	152
Longjia	196	147
Husqvarna	107	128
Aprilia	83	115
Ducati	69	91
Vespa	81	91
TGB	131	83
BMW	41	71
Polaris	53	63
Bolwell	99	61

Theft hotspots

South East Queensland is the worst hotspot for motorcycle theft.

Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Logan and Moreton Bay were all in the top 10 local authority regions for bike theft.

State or Territory	LGA	2014	2018	% change
QLD	Brisbane (City)	292	435	49.0%
VIC	Melbourne (City)	134	246	83.6%
QLD	Gold Coast (City)	169	244	44.4%
QLD	Logan (City)	118	159	34.7%
WA	Swan (City)	119	154	29.4%
NSW	Sydney (City)	115	151	31.3%
WA	Stirling (City)	153	147	-3.9%
VIC	Port Phillip (City)	62	136	119.4%
QLD	Moreton Bay (Regional Council)	149	132	-11.4%
NSW	Newcastle (City)	44	130	195.5%

Click here to find out what can be done to keep your bike safe from thieves.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

MotorCycle News

Tag Archives: Crime

Light, tough motorcycle lock launched

Stolen bikes take longer to recover

Motorcycle thefts by state

Time to recover

Leap in motorcycle thefts for 2019

Theft leap

Where they were stolen

What is being stolen

How to secure your bike

Number plate theft and cloning on the rise

Cloning plate scam not new

Unpaid tolls

Motorcycle thefts are double car thefts

Motorcycle thefts by state

Common motorcycle thefts

Biggest vehicle theft rise is in motorcycles

Thefts rise in most states

Easy to steal

Motorbike thefts up in 2018

Theft by state

Opportunistic theft

Brands stolen

Theft hotspots

Click here to find out what can be done to keep your bike safe from thieves.

Bringing you the Best Motorcycle News from Around the Web!

Motorcycle thefts by state

Time to recover

Stories You May Also Like

Theft leap

Where they were stolen

What is being stolen

How to secure your bike

Stories You May Also Like

Cloning plate scam not new

Unpaid tolls

Stories You May Also Like

Motorcycle thefts by state

Common motorcycle thefts

Stories You May Also Like

Thefts rise in most states

Easy to steal

Stories You May Also Like

Theft by state

Opportunistic theft

Brands stolen

Theft hotspots

Stories You May Also Like

Bringing you the Best Motorcycle News from Around the Web!