What to do when your bike is stolen

What to do when your bike is stolen: 1) File a police report. Departments share information through a common database, so if your bike was stolen on a college campus, file it with campus police. Otherwise call 311 and be sure to write down your report number. A copy will be mailed to you to arrive later. Note: we find the best time to file a police report via 311 is late at night-- during the day there can be excessive hold times, and we have found that the automated callback system does not work consistently. 2) File a Chicago Stolen Bicycle Registry report ASAP. One of the most basic rules that thieves follow is to get stolen merchandise turned around as quickly as possible, so hours or even minutes may make the difference in helping you get your bike back. We are happy to add a police report, serial number, or add to or change any other information in your report after it's filed. 3) Assemble any information which could help you prove your bike is yours in the event of a recovery. Ideally, you would have a sales receipt with serial number on hand, but if not, often the shop you bought the bike from has it on record; if not, try to find any photographs or other evidence of ownership you can think of. 4) Set up an alert that searches the web for you and alerts you of possible listings. There are several services including Google Alerts and List-Alert that work well to monitor craigslist; eBay can be monitored by setting up a notification from within your eBay account to alert you when something matching certain keywords is listed; unless the make and model of your bike is very unique, you'll want narrow the results to a useful level by limiting the search to within 25 miles of your location. 5) If you do think you've come across your bike, or are willing to physically search for it, feel free to contact us at info@stolenbike.org for advice specific to your situation (we have been involved in a variety of recovery situations over the years.)