Across North America, more than two million bicycles are stolen each year —around one or two bikes per minute. Since the pandemic, cycling has become a popular socially distant means of transportation and exercise but, because of this, there has also been a 20-30% increase of bicycle thefts.
Though the police recover hundreds of stolen bikes across Canada, less than five percent are returned to their owners because less than one percent of bike-owners know their ride’s serial number let alone registers it. When a bicycle is not registered, there is no way for anyone to know if a bicycle is stolen property nor can they contact the owner if they come across a lost or stolen bike.
In spring of 2020, Cobourg Police had 65 bicycles in their possession that they were unable to return to their rightful owners because they were all unregistered. Because of this, CPS launched an online bike registration program to help protect bicycle owned by Cobourg residents. The program was designed to increase the chances of returning lost or stolen bikes to their owners.
To register your bike, please visit our website at cobourgpoliceservice.com and click on the Bike Registry button on the homepage.
Bike owners will need to provide information about the bike and ownership, including:
- Brand
- Make and model
- serial number
- Owner name and contact information
Bike owners can also include photos and add more than one bicycle at the same time. Once a bike is registered, the owner can pick up a sticker from the Cobourg Police Service at 107 King Street when the station is open.