Kinetic-UK
Retro Guru
Hello and welcome to my guide.
If you have had your bike stolen this guide will help you looking out for it to appear on ebay.
This guide is on how to recover your bike from ebay.
Most people wouldn't think that thieves would sell a stolen bike on
ebay and it will come to you as a surprise as you read this.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
THE BASICS
I've found 5 bikes which were stolen from friends of mine on ebay.
(this goes for lots of parts too)
These bikes were ALL recovered.
The following pages show tips on how to look out for and recover your bicycle.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
TIMING
Stolen bikes generally take a couple of months to surface on ebay when they aren't so hot or have been passed around a bit.
Keep checking weekly at the least, listings usually last a week.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
LISTING
LOOK FOR BAD LISTINGS -
Don't expect them to list the bike with the make and model, they are often just titled "Mountain Bike"
They often use stock images and use blurb from the net as they know fairly little about the bike.
Usually you can find them by setting the "sort by" Distance:
Nearest first.
ie It was stolen in Bristol, then it will be sold from Bristol or within a few miles.
Most are local pick up because the "sellers" won't write an address and send it or can't afford the postage because they don't want to spend the money .
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
IDENTIFY THE BIKE
See tips on bidding winning the auction BEFORE you make contact
When identifying your bike it helps if your bike has customised features and you can ask the "seller" questions about the bike that you know answers to.
BUT don't be too obvious (eg. does the seat have a little tear on the left hand side from when I fell down the steps)
Get friends involved to ask questions on your behalf too.
REMEMBER: THESE THIEVES LIE CHEAT ALL THE TIME, THEY WILL BE NERVOUS WILL BAIL OUT IF YOU PUSH TOO HARD *ACT CASUAL*
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
POLICE INVOLVEMENT
After all of these steps Contact the Police.
The Police have a special unit set up to investigate regional ebay crime.
Ask for Police help in recovery contact them as soon as you positively identify your bike and follow their instructions.
If you have had your bike stolen this guide will help you looking out for it to appear on ebay.
This guide is on how to recover your bike from ebay.
Most people wouldn't think that thieves would sell a stolen bike on
ebay and it will come to you as a surprise as you read this.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
THE BASICS
I've found 5 bikes which were stolen from friends of mine on ebay.
(this goes for lots of parts too)
These bikes were ALL recovered.
The following pages show tips on how to look out for and recover your bicycle.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
TIMING
Stolen bikes generally take a couple of months to surface on ebay when they aren't so hot or have been passed around a bit.
Keep checking weekly at the least, listings usually last a week.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
LISTING
LOOK FOR BAD LISTINGS -
Don't expect them to list the bike with the make and model, they are often just titled "Mountain Bike"
They often use stock images and use blurb from the net as they know fairly little about the bike.
Usually you can find them by setting the "sort by" Distance:
Nearest first.
ie It was stolen in Bristol, then it will be sold from Bristol or within a few miles.
Most are local pick up because the "sellers" won't write an address and send it or can't afford the postage because they don't want to spend the money .
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
IDENTIFY THE BIKE
See tips on bidding winning the auction BEFORE you make contact
When identifying your bike it helps if your bike has customised features and you can ask the "seller" questions about the bike that you know answers to.
BUT don't be too obvious (eg. does the seat have a little tear on the left hand side from when I fell down the steps)
Get friends involved to ask questions on your behalf too.
REMEMBER: THESE THIEVES LIE CHEAT ALL THE TIME, THEY WILL BE NERVOUS WILL BAIL OUT IF YOU PUSH TOO HARD *ACT CASUAL*
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
POLICE INVOLVEMENT
After all of these steps Contact the Police.
The Police have a special unit set up to investigate regional ebay crime.
Ask for Police help in recovery contact them as soon as you positively identify your bike and follow their instructions.
