Bicycle registration at Garda station?

Dord

Just noticed a poster on a local shop window that the Bridewell Garda station in Dublin 7 has a new scheme on whereby you can register your bike with them. I guess in the event of a theft where they recover it they can return it. Anyone done this?

Icyseanfitz

oh god :mad: i can see this becoming a new way to make money for the government

steamengine

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

oh god :mad: i can see this becoming a new way to make money for the government

Probably the last free frontier of transport, hopefully the bureaucrats don't get a hold of this one. Is VAT on a bike not enough for them ?

Stark

This is something that's long overdue. Combined with the recent Flickr stream of stolen bikes, it looks like they might be finally starting to take the stolen bike issue somewhat seriously.

Doctor Bob

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

oh god :mad: i can see this becoming a new way to make money for the government

Which is the last thing this country needs, eh? Stupid government with its stupid plans to make a few quid. Let's call them out!

(Also, I don't agree with you. The general admin costs of such schemes always outweigh any earnings.* However, there may be a financial benefit in doing this, in that it saves costs elsewhere; specifically, HR costs associated with processing stolen bike reports, running the bike auction, etc. So maybe, though it won't make money for 'the government', it might actually reduce unnecessary expenditure. But I suppose that's not a country you want to live in.)

*Edit: I didn't mean to suggest that there would be a cost for this, and as others have said below, no charge has been mentioned anywhere yet. I was responding to the posts that automatically assumed there would be a cost.

Peetrik

Why exactly are we expected to pay extra for the bike serial number to be typed into a computer?

Surely the Guard behind the desk is on the clock and would be there anyway?

Captain Havoc

I think this is a good idea and welcome it. The OP hasn't mentioned a charge so why are you guys knocking it so quickly? I think you should know the full facts before you mention assumptions. Even if it was a few euros, who here wouldn't pay it, knowing they have some sort of evidence with the guardaí that the bike is theirs and also that the guardaí could in the event of the recovery your stolen pride and joy actually be able to contact you?

Good idea, but should be national and should already be in place like in the UK.

Dord

FFS... calm down, calm down!



I don't believe there's a charge for the service. I'll call into the station tomorrow if I get a chance and try find out more info. Just thought I'd check here if anyone else had and also let people know about this.

Icyseanfitz

this would generally be a great idea (if free) but you have to remember one important fact....we are living in ireland so its going to go horribly wrong

brayblue24

Dord wrote: »

FFS... calm down, calm down!

+1

Have no doubt this will be free-what other services are you charged for (as distinct from charged with) in a Garda Station? I would hazard it's a local initiative most probably started by the Community Policing unit.

As Captain Havoc says at least they have your details if your nearest and dearest is stolen so what's to lose? I hope it's successful because if it is it will most likely be rolled out elsewhere.

If anybody is cagey about this I could even answer another doubt that some might have-any information you might give will not be used for any other reason.

Hope this helps (No, I'm not stationed in the Bridewell and this is the first I've heard of this too).

fishfoodie

Captain Havoc wrote: »

I think this is a good idea and welcome it. The OP hasn't mentioned a charge so why are you guys knocking it so quickly? I think you should know the full facts before you mention assumptions. Even if it was a few euros, who here wouldn't pay it, knowing they have some sort of evidence with the guardaí that the bike is theirs and also that the guardaí could in the event of the recovery your stolen pride and joy actually be able to contact you?

Aren't we already paying taxes for exactly this ?

What next; a callout charge before the Fire Brigade respond to a 999 call ?

Imagine how motorists would respond if they were asked for an extra charge before the Garda would respond to a car theft !

I'm all for a registration scheme for bikes; as a way of making them more easily traceable if they were stolen; but the idea of an extra charge for it is unacceptable

Captain Havoc

fishfoodie wrote: »

Aren't we already paying taxes for exactly this ?

What next; a callout charge before the Fire Brigade respond to a 999 call ?

Imagine how motorists would respond if they were asked for an extra charge before the Garda would respond to a car theft !

I'm all for a registration scheme for bikes; as a way of making them more easily traceable if they were stolen; but the idea of an extra charge for it is unacceptable

I think the point is that you don't go to the garda station and say "my bike was stolen, it is a blue bicycle" but you can go and say "my bike was stolen, the frame number is 12345, I registered it here six months ago" and the gardaí can verify that the bike has been in your possesion for six months. Motorists do pay to have a vehicle registered, so I don't see what point you are trying to make there. My understanding of the OP is you go to this garda station when you buy a new bike, you fill out some details, I would assume this would be the model, frame number and distinquishing features and if it gets stolen, the gardaí have all the details on file and can verify it. I doubt the gardaí would be able to much if you reported a red Specialized Allez stolen and that's all the details you gave them.

heffomike54

I think this is a great idea if it is done properly. There should not be a charge for this scheme but it can see some costs involved as the current Garda computer system can only allow information to inputted in regard to property that is stolen, lost or damaged, so I imagine this system may take the form of a paper record at first. The Garda taking the information is on the clock anyway but as I said it may need a new system, so new costs there.

This system may help clear the amount of recovered bikes the Gardai have to store while the owner remains unaware the bike has been found, which will reduce costs. Speaking as someone, with little or no knowledge of bikes, I guess the register would make it so much quicker and easier to reunite owners with their bikes. This will be interesting to see how it works

Jawgap

I think this sounds like a good idea and something I wouldn't mind paying a nominal fee (€5?) for, especially if they roll out nationwide or at least in the larger towns and cities and if insurance companies knocked a bit of the premium for insuring the bike if you registered it.

Dog chipping and property traceback services all charge a lot more than the Guards would likely charge.

Plus the wider the take up the more likely the Guards would run the serial numbers of recovered bikes. It'd be nice to get a call to say the bike you thought had gone forever had been recovered.

HivemindXX

Seems like a great idea to me. At the moment the guards get hold of a stolen bike and most of the time they just store is wherever they keep them between auctions because people don't bother reporting them stolen. It would be great for US and for THEM if they could look up a computer and ring the registered owner to come around and collect it.

There's no mention anywhere that this is compulsory or that there's a cost. Some people really need to untwist their knickers and read a bit more carefully before they jump to conclusions. Even if there was a cost of a few euro such a service would be well worth it, and if you don't like that then you don't have to participate.

NamelessPhil

It's a FREE service.

I called into the Bridewell today to check it out. It's a very simple A4 page for you to fill in your contact details, the make, colour, model and serial no. of the bike and a section for other distinguishing features. You can attach a photo too. The bottom of the form has a section for a Garda file no., registration date and who registered it.

When I went in to the public office, the Garda on call took down a large folder with the forms in it. From reading over his shoulder not many people have taken up the offer yet, but I told him I'd publicise it, he said that it would make identifying owners easier and he was all for it.

It may also be helpful who have their bikes insured on their house insurance to be able to inform their underwriter that the bicycle is registered with the Gardai. Maybe it will lead to lower premiums.

barrabus

Ring 01- 6668200 for info on it.

Run_to_da_hills

Any professional thief will remove / change the frame number or strip down the bike and sell off key components. The scheme is usless unless it incorporates some form of data tagging.

ali4europe

Today i decided to check out this scheme for myself and register my bike with the Bridewell. It only took 2 minutes and it was FREE. The Guard asked me for afew details like the serial number and a good description. The form was easy to fill out and he did it for me. I didnt have a photo with me but if you want you can bring one and they will stick it to the sheet. the guard was saying that the scheme was only up and running afew weeks and they are hoping that it will take off. He said they have a load of bikes unclaimed and this will hopefully help them to get them back to there owners. i suppose the more bikes they have registered the better chance they have of it becoming a National thing. (we dont get much FREE things anymore so its all good)

JoeDublin24

<snip>

trad

I don't like anonymus websites with no information on the people who run it or at least a contact phone number or an email address.

djfattony2000

Here are all the bikes I own and here is my address anonymous website.

No thanks.

penexpers

Yeah. Complete joke of a site.

Beasty

Spammers get banned around here

El.duderino

Is there any way to get an online version of the form? So you can just go straight in with forms and photos all filled out. Thanks

Six of One

Is the scheme in the Bridewell just based for that area or Dublin wide? Can I register my bike there if it's not my local Garda station?

And what do people think of these 'cycle packs'?

http://www.cyclesure.ie/index.php/about_us/register_your_bike/

The System
The cycle marking and registration system is founded on three simple yet highly effective procedures: marking, registration and verification.
Marking: Cycles are permanently and visibly marked with a unique code and the 24/7 freephone number of the ISR, 1800 936 496.
Registration: The marking and registration system is offered along with your insurance policy. If selected, your cycle will be registered automatically on the ISR by CycleSure.
Verification: Once marked and registered, an item can be verified by the ISR 24/7. The verification service is available to the police, insurers and even the general public. Only the police are able to obtain personal information. Another method of checking a marked and registered cycle is to enter the unique code on the site: www.ISRcodecheck.com.

Kintarō Hattori

Good question, does anyone know if this has been rolled out to other Garda stations?

Six of One

Phoned the Bridewell and they said strictly speaking it's just for their area. They said to try my local Garda station, so I phoned them and unfortunately they don't have a similar registration system.

kenmc

Six of One wrote: »

Phoned the Bridewell and they said strictly speaking it's just for their area. They said to try my local Garda station, so I phoned them and unfortunately they don't have a similar registration system.

sounds like the system is useless then unless its both registered and recovered at the bridewell station, cos the other ones are not all going to ring the bw to see if its on their books. typical Irish solution

SAINTRON

kenmc wrote: »

sounds like the system is useless then unless its both registered and recovered at the bridewell station, cos the other ones are not all going to ring the bw to see if its on their books. typical Irish solution

Agreed, complete waste of time and effort unless its an accessible nationwide database/iniative. Half arsed. Compliments to those at the BW though, but you would have thought that some sort of national directive instigated it, or maybe not.

UCDCommuter

Almost threadomancy at this point, but Donnybrook have now rolled out this scheme and looks like its an improvement as the details are to be registered on the Garda Pulse system. That means effectively it's nationwide.

Donnybrook can be contacted at (01) 6669200 for details plus there's some info up on the UCD commuting blog.

DubLu

a similiar scheme existed years ago( early 90's). Part of the neighbourhood watch scheme. You filled out the form and the guards embezzled your DOB on the bike.
Good to see it back. must enquire to the local station in swords to see what the craic is.

MiskyBoyy

http://bikeregister.ie/

"Bike Register is Ireland’s premier online Bicycle Registration scheme. With our recent recession, crime rates have soared and bicycle theft has increased. Bikes have always been an easy target, and even when recovered by the Gardai, it has proved difficult to identify the legitimate owner. Most recovered stolen items end up in a Garda auction.

Bike Register aims to reduce bicycle theft, by deterring thieves, and to provide a system for returning recovered bikes to their legitimate owners."

-Chris-

I'd much rather register with the Gardai than that website.

Who knows who they are or whether they're legit.

If your bike is nicked, what use is the info in their database? Will the Gardai contact the various bike registration databases and say "hey, do you know who owns this bike?". Probably not, and even less likely now if they've launched their own initiative.

username2010

Dord wrote: »

Just noticed a poster on a local shop window that the Bridewell Garda station in Dublin 7 has a new scheme on whereby you can register your bike with them. I guess in the event of a theft where they recover it they can return it. Anyone done this?

Hey!....
Was cycling down Constitution Hill in Phibsboro today, and the Gardaí were out flagging down cyclings to tell them about this scheme....
It's a really good idea - You can fill out the form and drop/post it in, or just email them with serial number, photo etc...
They were also giving out high-vis jackets this afternoon too....
As someone who has had two bikes stolen and may well again, this is a great initiative....

username2010

El.duderino wrote: »

Is there any way to get an online version of the form? So you can just go straight in with forms and photos all filled out. Thanks

Hi El.Duderino...
You can email the details (incl a photo) to the Bridewell....The details looked for on the form are:
- First Name
- Surname
- Email Address
- Home Address
- Contact Number
- Make
- Model
- Frame No.
- Mens/Womens
- Colour
- Serial No.
- Identifying Marks
- Date Purchased
- Value When Purchased

I've DM'd the email address to you....

Cheers....

Dermot Illogical

-Chris- wrote: »

I'd much rather register with the Gardai than that website.

Who knows who they are or whether they're legit.

Even if they are, how secure is the database which contains details of where to find all the expensive bikes?

lovebikes

yeah, i heard about this. you can bring your bike to donnybrook garda station and they will put it on the garda pulse system. its a nationwide database. if the guards stop someone on your bike they will know its yours even if you haven't report it stolen, sounds good to me!

endacl

Bridewell scheme was set up after an individual guard took the initiative, due to frustration at not being able to reunite owners with recovered bikes. Nice to see the initiative being so roundly knocked here...

Popoutman

I'll be registering all of our bikes as soon as it's available in Henry Street..
Good initiative overall I think.

Kintarō Hattori

What are the chances of more rural stations (Balbriggan) taking this on? Do you reckon it's citywide only?

lovebikes

I don't know about ballbriggan but anyone can call into donnybrook or ringsend with their bike. doesn't mater where your from!

monument

BTW the garda press office would not say if the scheme is to be expanded, well they did not comment at all on the scheme... http://cyclingindublin.com/2012/01/25/call-for-database-to-help-return-stolen-bicycles-to-owners/

UCDCommuter

I've uploaded the registration form and the public scheme info sheet to scribd, they're available for download here and here respectively. The new scheme is based mainly off the serial number, I think it might be a bit different from the Bridewell one (Is it purely local maybe?) looking at the info fields.

The form states that it can be submitted by email and that the registration will be on the Pulse system so no reason why it couldn't be submitted from anywhere in Ireland. It's a pilot project so maybe interest from cyclists around the country might help get it developed further... really what would be good for Gardai would be something like the National Mobile property Database in the UK, useful for more than bicycles too.

Unless the Gardai have committed to work with the bikeregister.ie scheme it's probably not going to work for the reasons outlined by -Chris-. I signed up for the bikeshepherd.org scheme as it's effectively a private citizen scheme. It offered a deterrent sticker and allows anyone to check if a bike has been stolen or not, then contact the owner via the site (no details shared). I'm going to go with the Garda scheme also so hopefully that'll be all bases covered...

oneworld01

I've been trying to find a stolen bike and have found this website which asks bike owners to register their bikes. Does anyone know anything about it? It seems to me that it would be a very handy thing for a bike thief to know where expensive bikes are kept. No mention of who runs it, whether its affiliated to the Gardai. Any info?

GampDub

Hi,

I recall previously hearing about registering you bike with you local Garda station so it has a chance of being re-united with you if recovered as stolen.

Went to my local station at the weekend (Blachardstown, Dublin) and they hadn't a clue what I was talking about.

Does anybody know if this still in place and/or if it down to the individual station to do this?

Cheers

brock92

Found this using google

"Irishtown and Donnybrook Garda stations have started a trail registration scheme, call in for details and to have your bike registered"

http://www.dublincycling.ie/cycling/tips-how-avoid-bike-theft

CramCycle

brock92 wrote: »

Found this using google

"Irishtown and Donnybrook Garda stations have started a trail registration scheme, call in for details and to have your bike registered"

http://www.dublincycling.ie/cycling/tips-how-avoid-bike-theft

Donnybrook you had to fill in a form with your BB bumber and that was it, very simple. Not sure if it goes up onto Pulse or onto another DB for the admin staff who deal with the records.

Thargor

Related question, do the guards read the frame numbers on bikes when they recover them or do they just put them in storage and wait for someone to come looking in peoples experiences?

CramCycle

Thargor wrote: »

Related question, do the guards read the frame numbers on bikes when they recover them or do they just put them in storage and wait for someone to come looking in peoples experiences?

They have a civilian office crowd in most of the storage places who put it all on a database.