You are reading a single comment by @Tea_Bee and its replies.
Click here to read the full conversation.
London Fixed Gear and Single-Speed is a community of predominantly fixed gear and single-speed cyclists in and around London, UK.
This site is supported almost exclusively by donations. Please consider donating a small amount regularly.
@Tea_Bee
In terms of moral/legal issues, they are different. I believe** that you have the right to do what you like inside your own property. So if the bike is locked in such a way that the lock intrudes into a space that you OWN (rented property does not count - that's the landlord's problem) then you can cut off the part which intrudes into your property. You may have to give reasonable warning though - I don't know about that bit. If it's somehow locked outside you property on the street and locked around a lamp post or something like that so nothing intrudes into your land, then it's none of your business legally. Call the council.
Morally, you ought to give them fair warning before destroying their lock. It would also be polite to drop it into the local fuzz once you've cut it free. You never know, the owner might've just locked up quickly like we've all done occasionally and had an accident or something, so was unable to return to reclaim it.
If you end up owning this bike by liberating it, dropping it into the police and it isn't claimed in 28 days, I need a beater bike. (Hint hint.)
**Please note: I am not a lawyer. This is not legal advice. The above statement is not guaranteed to be legally accurate - it's just what I believe to be true.