I found a bike (in a bush) and was tempted to take it as it appeared abandoned.
Then I thought I should take it to the police as it may have been stolen.
Is it still true that after a period of time, if the bike isn't claimed from the Police by the owner, I can keep it? Is that how the lost and found system still works?
So you were going to steal a bike and then thought about whether it was already stolen?
Gold.
Take it to the police. Without sounding creepy you can register your interest if no owner is found.
It belongs to me. Please arrange to leave it in a safe place so I can collect
No problem. I've left it close to your house with a cheap lock on it. Feel free to cut the lock off and take your bike back.
OzBargain Swiss finders fee has been deducted.
Omg, that brings back memories….
Make sure you get a receipt from the police. Otherwise it'll go to unclaimed goods auction
In the interest of actually reuniting the bike with its owner (which seems a bit redundant to say) but you could also post on some local Facebook groups.
And you'll find the bike has 50 different owners.
Rather than posting, just look for posts about lost/stolen bikes that match the description.
I had a colleague who was at the other end of a similar situation and had his bike stolen - he posted on FB and someone found it and returned it to him within days. The front basket and bottle cage were gone but otherwise all good.
So if I post about my lost bike with generic details you are saying that I could have a free bike?
I always take my bikes to the Bush and abandon them there.
Did you try contacting the bikies?
Is it a valuable bike, or a $50 K-Mart special? Unless it's valuable nobody will look for it.
Post it as a deal under "Freebies"
Had a council cleanup lately?
Depends on the type of bike. If it’s a Kmart job just leave it in its natural habitat (abandoned). If it’s a bike shop brand, it’s likely worth something so either take it to police or post on your local socials to try to find an owner.
Alternatively, leave it there for a few more days and if it’s still there then take it home.
If it's an OBike that doesn't count.
I went through this scenario, found an abandoned bicycle whilst walking my dog.
I walked the bike home, rang the local plod… err.. police station and reported it.
Some time later a divvy-van appeared, put said bike in the back, took more details and left. About 2 months later I received a phone call telling me the bike had been claimed by it's owner. I have to take their word on that but I knew I had done the right thing.
Yup, just like [edited] while wearing dark trousers, I had a nice, warm feeling.
Look at it from the opposite perspective. If you had your bike stolen you would be pretty pissed off and some people rely on their bike as primary transport. Do the right thing and hand it in. You will get far more satisfaction knowing it might find it's way home. Bike thieves are low life.
We get more than a few abandoned bikes at council cleanup time. People leave them out for council, local kids think it’s a hoot to ride off on them and just dump them when they get bored.
yes.
take it to the station after taking a few pics where it lays
make sure you take a pic of impressed number on bottom of frame
after 3 months they'll ring you to collect
but sometimes they dont even want to take it cos they got so many and will tell you to take it home, truly