Top tips for protecting your bicycle

· Register your bike for free with www.bikeregister.com, the UK’s only police-approved cycle database. This will help police to find it if it gets stolen.

· Take a photo of your bike and keep it with the insurance details. Make a note of the make, model and serial number.

· When parking away from home make sure your bike is locked to a heavy-duty piece of street furniture and where possible with the lock or chain off the floor.

· Make sure the lock you use is independently tested (e.g. Sold Secure approved), the correct size and difficult for thieves to access to break it.

· At home, lock bicycles in a secure garage or shed if you have one, using a good quality U-lock or chain and padlock to a ground anchor. Consider using two different types of security devices, as often tools to attack one type of device aren’t so applicable to others.

· Mark your bicycle frame with your postcode in two separate locations if possible, one of which should be hidden.