Stolen bikes!!! Please keep a look out!!!(UPDATED May 23)

If you make the claim at all, include the bike. It may have been a build, but you bought the parts in the first place. Your policy calls for the insurance company to pay the fair market value.

if it were me, I would seriously consider suing the pawn shop for what is called "conversion."

Tort of “conversion” is act of dominion wrongfully exhibited over another's personal property in denial or inconsistent with his rights therein. I'd bet you get your $300 back. In fact, I'd bet that a strong letter from a lawyer would do the trick. All you need to do is find one who rides and is sympathetic...especially if he had a bike stolen last year.

 

If you are going to make a claim, definitely include the last bike. If it is recovered, the insurance company owns it and they may sell it back to you for a bargain. A friend had this happen, he got a $3,000 payout for his stolen bike. Police recovered it and the insurance co offered it back to him for $1,000. A 33% recovery rate is higher than they would normally recover, so the insurance company was happy despite the overpayment. Friend was happy too!

The bike I had stolen was also built from mostly spare parts and a few new ones. My policy covered full replacement cost so I tallied up the inventory of parts at MSRP. Came out to $3k which was shocking, but they did pay it (depreciated value immediately, the balance after providing proof of purchase of replacement parts). If your policy covers fair market value and not replacement cost that may change things a bit, but it would also make the tools, shoes, etc less worth claiming. If it were all 4 bikes lost then definitely claim it.

But just be aware if you do make a claim here there is a good chance your coverage might be cancelled if you have to make another claim within the next few years. That is what the policies are there for, but it will end up costing you a lot more to replace that coverage later on once you have 2+ claims within a 5 year period. A lot of companies will not insure you at all. So there is a definite cost that may result from making a claim here, down the road. I was able to get a new renter's policy but it was double ($200 more/yr) than what I paid with State Farm. The claim was a lot higher than that so it may be worth it, but the extra $200/yr will add up to $1000 by the time the claims fall outside the 5 year window.

 

very awesome that you had such positive results so soon.

 

was this done through renter's insurance?

 

I don't know exactly how pawn shops work, but I would think the PD would have seized the bike for evidence... and then you would collect it from their property room after they confirm it's yours.

 

If you mean getting the bike back from the pawn shop, no. The bike was placed on "Hold" as soon as it was determined that it was stolen. Since I was the one who found the bike at the pawn shop, the shop owner called the police station while I was there and spoke to an officer who deals with stolen item in pawn shops. That officer placed the bike on immediate "hold" which means the bike cannot be sold, returned/released to anyone until rightful ownership is determined. I was able to prove the bike was mine with detailed pictures I had on my phone.

The officer I spoke to that day then contacted the detective of the case who I've been dealing with. That detective emailed me the next day and told me that he went to the pawn shop and took pictures of the bike & statements and determined it was mine and contacted me that I was clear to pick the bike. Since I was the one who found it and calls were made that day, the bike didn't get entered into the data base for stolen bikes on "hold". If it had, I would have to wait for release forms from the LAPD then take that form to the pawn shop. Instead, since I was there when the shop owner called and I also spoke to the officers, things were a lot easier for me to get my bike back.

As far as the claim..., after reading some of the responses, I will be submitting a list of everything still missing including the 4th bike & the cost it took to get my Niner back from the pawn shop. My renters insurance does cover replacement cost. I'm in the process of gathering receipts and model numbers of items lost the best I can even of the build for the 4th bike. I'll update this thread as more info comes in. Thanks all for the advice and info.

 

Amazing!

 

My last update was that I got the Niner back from the pawn shop. Today, I get a call from the local bike shop that they have my grocery getter! I have now recovered all 4 bikes! I'm pretty lucky as I just dropped a photo at the bike shop only yesterday and today a guy comes in because the front tire had a slash on it and the guy wanted it fixed or replaced. According to the shop employee, the guy bought it for $50. The shop offered to pay him, but he didn't accept the offer and left.



Like the Tribal, the thief started to take the decals off. I have another Rocky Mountain decal, but I'll need to see if RM still has Elevation decals available. If not, I'm not too worried as this is just my beater bike.


They also took the decal from the head tube and the off the forks. I have a spare RM head badge from the cracked front triangle I took the Tribal decals from. Not too worried about the fork.


I've also been replacing my tools little by little, replaced my Oakley riding glasses and my road shoes. I also mentioned they took the decals off the Tribal in an effort to disguise it,




but I was able to replace them using the decals off my cracked frame. Once I get the rear brake line replaced with the white I had on there before, the Tribal is back to normal.




Not wanting to keep the bikes in the garage again, I bought a new rack for my room and put it together last night


It's made for indoor and looks really good.


Close the book on this with more than awesome ending. Hopefully those of you who still have bikes out there have the same luck I did. Time for a beer to celebrate!

 

A happy ending!
It is obvious you are a dedicated cyclist, not just because you have lots of bikes, but you even sleep with them!!!!
Glad to hear this was resolved as well as it was.

 

That is pretty amazing to recover all four bikes! Congratulations.

 

Great news Gene. Congrats!

 

Wonderful news Gene!! You were very diligent and it paid off......

Happy for you!

 

That's amazing Gene! Your strategy and tenacity, combined with the diligent eye of others and maybe some luck looks to have worked well! Congrats, and let's hope it doesn't happen again - to anyone.

 

Thanks everyone. Yes I was VERY fortunate in that the police arrest a guy within an hour of talking to him about reward money for the Road bike and Tribal and recover those 2 bikes that Friday evening and based on the info the police got from him, I recover the NinerOne9 at the pawnshop the following Wed. Now the 4th bike recovered just 1 day after I go to the bike shop and leave my info after some guy brings it in for a bad tire..., what are the odds? I'm very grateful indeed! Thanks for sending out the good vibes..., I wish everyone could be as fortunate.

 

awesome news. would hit a 'like' or 'thanks' button if I could.

 

This is truly a happy ending! Congrats on the recovery Gene!

 

Good news Gene.

I used to live in SP for many years, its a tough city. Was the Pawn shop on Gaffey or Pacific ?

M.

 

Thanks Mario. It's the Pawn Shop on Pacific Ave between 7th & 8th St. I grew up in Pedro. I went to Barton Hill Elementary from Kindergarten to mid 6th grade then moved to Cerritos mid school year.