Motorcycle theft information

[Ksucio]

FYI:

LoJack Releases Findings on Motorcycle Theft Study


January 24, 2007 | 11:40 AM


LoJack-Equipped Recoveries Enabled Police to Discover 76 Theft Rings and Recover More Than $4.9 Million in Stolen Assets.

LoJack Corporation today announced the results of its first annual Motorcycle Theft Study, which documents facts and trends derived from LoJack's stolen motorcycle recovery reports for the calendar year 2006. According to the study, law enforcement recovered 292 LoJack-equipped stolen motorcycles in 2006 valued at close to $2.8 million and discovered 76 professional theft rings, enabling police to reclaim an additional $2.1 million in other stolen bikes, bike parts, accessories and miscellaneous items. In total, law enforcement recovered more than $4.9 million in stolen assets through tracking LoJack-equipped stolen motorcycles.

This report underscores the fact that organized crime rings view bike theft as a highly lucrative business opportunity and that motorcycle theft is growing along with the popularity of bike riding - which today is at an all time high. Figures released by the National Insurance Crime Bureau earlier this year indicated that more than 70,000 motorcycles were stolen in 2005. In fact, bike theft has risen 135 percent over the past five years. And not surprisingly, the LoJack report indicates that theft is especially high in states including Florida, California and Texas, where the riding season is year-round.

"Today's professional thieves view stealing motorcycles as a theft of opportunity and an easy money-making proposition, which is why bike theft is increasing at such an alarming rate," said Richard T. Riley, LoJack's Chairman and CEO. "Motorcycles are relatively easy to steal when compared to cars. In many cases, the thief will simply put the bike in the back of a van and drive off with it. Because of this issue, bike owners need to take as many precautions as possible to protect their motorcycles - from employing simple common sense measures to using proven tracking and recovery systems. We're pleased that our recovery system helped police discover such a large number of professional theft rings this year and ultimately put behind bars many of the criminals responsible for these crimes."

While all motorcycles are vulnerable to theft, the report indicates that the most popular theft targets are the newer sport bikes. Four of the top five stolen/recovered bikes are sport bikes and 87 percent were either 2005 or 2006 models.

Below are the top five stolen motorcycle makes:
1. Suzuki
2. Honda
3. Yamaha
4. Kawasaki
5. Harley-Davidson

"Newer bikes are top theft targets for a number of reasons," said Riley. "To begin with, they are typically in high demand and parts for new bikes aren't always readily available. So, thieves have an opportunity to sell the bikes whole or disassemble them for parts, sometimes even selling parts online. In addition, proud owners of new motorcycles tend to ride their bikes a lot initially to show them to friends and relatives, and they often do not take the necessary theft protection measures. Unfortunately, these shiny, new bikes also catch the attention of thieves who can strike while the bike is vulnerable to theft. For all of these reasons, owners of new bikes need to be particularly vigilant about theft."

In an effort to help inform bike owners of the facts about motorcycle theft and provide theft prevention tips, LoJack offers "BikeSmarts," a theft protection guide available on LoJack's Knowledge Center for Vehicle Security at www.lojack.com (click on the "Get the Facts of Vehicle Theft" button).

LoJack For Motorcycles features the core strengths that over the past 20 years have made LoJack's flagship Stolen Vehicle Recovery System such a successful solution to the serious problem of vehicle theft. The product is directly integrated into law enforcement agencies in LoJack markets, is based on LoJack's tried-and-true radio frequency technology, and is hidden on the bike so that thieves would not suspect the device exists and, therefore, would not attempt to find and disengage it. Taken together, these strengths enable LoJack to deliver highly effective, proven recovery systems.

The 2006 LoJack Motorcycle Theft Study is based on state theft statistics and equipment recoveries documented by LoJack in 26 states from January to December 2006. LoJack has been tracking theft/recovery data for the past year and will continue to issue these reports annually to provide the industry with valuable statistics and trend information.

[Dark_Daddy]

Man I am glad Ducati is not on that list. All those stories about how unreliable Ducati bikes are must scare off the thieves.

[parkec]

While having no doubt as to the usefulness of a Lojack System, I do wonder about it's a ability to disappear into some sportbikes.. How do you hide one on a Monster, or a Sport 1000?

[marvin]

How much do these things cost, couldn't find it on their site?

[beestiboy]

I got a quote for my S2R and it was about $780 installed which you cannot do yourself because they supposedly hide it somewhere you cannot find. The kicker for me was that if they do not recover the bike they only pay a fixed amount for the bike, not full replacement value. Essentially in my mind it was an $800 gap policy.

[72sshunter]

It's $750 installed here. One of the kids that works for me got the LoJack because he couldn't afford insurance down here. 06 600RR. Had it 4 months - walks outside to go to work and it's gone. Calls the cops, activate the LoJack and 4 hours later - come get your bike. Found it 2 blocks from his house.

[M5zealot]

I paid $800 installed. I live close to the border (Mexico) and anyone in my town without a low Jack will most likely never see their bike again.

I have piece of mind now when I park my bike at work, at night w/ very little lighting. I used to chain the rear/front wheels and whole frame to a handicap ramp railings to our front doors. I just use one chain now and of course still arm my Scorpion alarm just in case. Oh yes I also cover it after the exhaust cools. Every little thing helps. Cops in my neighborhood have a 98% recovery rate w/ LowJack. They have a full time helicopter (Ghetto Chopper) equiped w/ LowJack detection)