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Stolen Wiggins Bikes: UK Frame-Number Check (Free)
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Quick answer
Wiggins frame numbers are stamped underneath the bottom bracket, between the pedals. On the smallest wheel sizes there is very little room on the shell, so also check the underside of the down tube. Run the code through Cyclesite's free lookup for an instant UK check against a stolen-bike registry and rider-filed theft reports.
Where Wiggins stamps the frame number
Under the bottom bracket on the larger frames. On the 16 and 20 inch bikes the shell is physically small and there is little room to stamp into, so the code is sometimes moved to the underside of the down tube. Wheel size markings such as 16, 20 or 24 describe the bike rather than identifying it, and are commonly mistaken for a serial on children's bikes.
Wiggins on the UK used market
Wiggins is a Halfords kids range built around lightweight frames, and lightweight children's bikes hold their value and are resold every couple of years as they are outgrown. That chain of informal private sales, usually with no paperwork at all, is exactly where a stolen bike stops being traceable. The frame code is what keeps it identifiable across owners.
FAQs
- Where is the frame number on a Wiggins?
- Stamped under the bottom bracket. On the smallest wheel sizes check the underside of the down tube too, because the shell has little room.
- Is the wheel size the frame number?
- No. Markings such as 16, 20 or 24 describe the wheel. The frame number is the unique code on the frame.
- What if a used kids Wiggins has no receipt?
- Normal after a couple of owners. Check the code is stamped into the frame and run it through Cyclesite's free stolen-bike check.
Police datapolice.uk releases
Most stolen bikes are never traced back to anyone
Police recorded 28,531 bicycle thefts across 44 UK city centres over three years. A suspect was identified in 10.1% of closed cases, and 1 in 33 reached a charge. Pick an area for the local picture.
Jun 23Down 25% in three yearsMay 26
- 8,221
- thefts recorded in 12 months
- −12%
- change on the year before
- 10.1%
- of closed cases had a suspect identified
data.police.uk · Open Government Licence v3.0