When thieves come for your bicycle in the dead of night they have a significant advantage. You are asleep. They have time to prise open sheds and dismantle locks in peace. There is no real alternative to a good insurance policy, but there are simple and cost-effective ways to make a thief’s life more difficult.
Poacher alarms use a simple spring, trip wire and a shotgun blank to create an extremely effective and legal booby-trap to attach to your bicycle when it is on your own property. When tripped by a thief, the device detonates a 150 dB blast of sound; more than enough to startle a thief and raise the alarm. It’s a simple, low-tech means of protecting your bicycle and it cost less than £20.
Environmentally friendly cycle insurance
There are few real alternatives to a good cycle insurance policy. While on the on the face of it, all cycle insurance policies appear the same, the devil is the detail. How much excess you will be charged is just one of the things that varies wildly between providers. Another is so called ‘new-for-old’ replacement – many insurers use this term, but if your bicycle is more than a few years old, devalue it severely. This means you are left out of pocket when you come to replace it.
ETA cycle insurance has been named ethical by The Good Shopping Guide. We have a low standard excess of 5% (minimum £25) and offer new-for-old for life – however old your bike, if it’s stolen you get enough to buy a new model.
For over 27 years we have been providing straightforward, affordable bicycle insurance. Whether you use your bike to commute, shop, race or amble in the park, ETA Cycle Insurance has you covered.
Jim Clark
I’ll believe it’s legal when the cycle owner isn’t arrested because the thief was shocked by the experience.
As I’ve said before, based on my experience the police are more concerned with protecting the feelings of criminals rather than protecting house holders or their property.
We live in a fairly remote cottage, Two local criminals were in our garden having climbed over a locked gate, they threatened my wife and myself one of them came face to face with me and raised a clenched fist, eventually they left after shouting and jeering at us. I was later taken to the police station under threat of arrest assigned a duty solicitor and had a taped interview, because the criminals said I threatened them with a pick axe. I had three more interviews before all charges were dropped, what a waste of money. Meanwhile one of the criminals threatened me several times in public places and I was told it was a civil matter when I complained, later he pushed and threatened me in the street and was put on an ASBO.
Another triumph for justice.
The ETA
That sounds absolutely dreadful. Poacher alarms are legal under British law, but you are right to point out that in certain circumstances criminals are able to pursue civil proceedings against the home owners they have been robbing.
Mat
Once again another “ethical” product brought to you by ETA. And once again I hope it goes off in the hands/face of anyone stupid enough to fit one. I wish you would stop promoting anything that could possibly harm and lead to prosecution of the installer. If anything I (and I bet many others) would definitely not consider taking out an insurance policy with yourselves as I would not want to be associated with your ethics! Oh, and by the way I realise you wont post this but feel free to reply!
The ETA
The poacher alarm is one of a series of videos we’ve shot this summer to illustrate outlandish methods that cyclists might use to protect their bikes. The wider context of these contraptions, all of which are entirely legal under British law, is an active community of thieves who blight the lives of cyclists and a police force that, for various reasons, has little or no time to address a crime they appear to view as minor. This sorry situation leaves many disillusioned with cycling (research has found that a high proportion of those who fall victim to cycle theft do not subsequently return to cycling) as well as somewhat impotent in the face of thieves who operate with near impunity. For our part, we try and help the situation as best we can by offering an excellent cycle insurance policy, lobbying parliament for better security provisions for cyclists and through the work of our charity, which will have attended over 50 community events this year alone to give out help and advice about cycling. The video above – alongside the others in the series – is little more than a tongue-in-cheek story intended to be firmly at the expense of the cycle thief. Is a cycle owner likely to implement the ideas? It’s possible, but unlikely. Not least because they all are incredibly fiddly to set up once, let alone every day.
Bob Longhurst
This works for me BUT, being somewhat forgetful. A note clipped to the handle bars with BANG written on it would be needed!! LOL.
The ETA
You and us both, Bob. In reality, the contraption is far too fiddly to be practicable as a daily security measure.