Official Information Act Request – Case-Level Bicycle & E-Bike Theft Data for New Zealand: Auckland & Christchurch Focus
Shourjo Dasgupta made this Official Information request to New Zealand Police
Currently waiting for a response from New Zealand Police, they must respond promptly and normally no later than (details and exceptions).
From: Shourjo Dasgupta
Kia ora,
I am preparing a national report on bicycle and e-bike thefts in New Zealand, with a strong focus on trends and risks in Auckland and Christchurch.
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I respectfully request the following information for all of New Zealand, with the highest possible detail for Auckland and Christchurch:
All recorded bicycle and e-bike thefts (Jan 2023 – latest available month in 2025, or Police's standard analytic period):
Incident date & time (including hour or AM/PM if available)
Incident location (meshblock, street, suburb, or police area—highest permitted detail, fallback to police area/suburb if privacy requires)
Police station or area responsible
Type of bicycle (distinguishing e-bikes if possible)
Value of item stolen (raw or in banded ranges)
Event/case reference number (where held)
Outcome/disposition (recovered, unresolved, prosecution, conviction)
Additional analytic fields (where available):
Storage context (e.g., shed/garage, outdoor rack, workplace rack, balcony/porch, public place, other)
Locking method and whether bike/e-bike was locked (e.g., cable lock, U-lock, chain, combo, multiple locks)
Reporting channel (police, registry, public tip, social media, other)
Victim demographics (age band, gender, ethnicity, aggregated/anonymized)
Recovery condition of property (rideable, repairable, junk/salvage)
Indicator if incident involved sale/online fencing (bike offered/sold via marketplace)
Indicator if incident occurred near university/school
Insurance status of victim, if recorded
Police internal estimate of underreported/unrecorded thefts (if available based on analysis, survey, or modeling)
Recovery & reporting details:
Number & percentage of thefts resulting in recovery, by mechanism (police action, public tip, registry match, etc.)
Preferred data format:
CSV, spreadsheet (xlsx), or GIS shapefile.
Geospatial and summary data:
Any “hotspot” maps or spatial models of bike/e-bike thefts at national level, and with strong focus on Auckland and Christchurch.
Incident time-of-day breakdowns (e.g., overnight/morning/afternoon/evening).
Privacy and aggregation:
Do not include personally identifiable information. Please aggregate or anonymize where required to comply with Section 18(c).
Optimal time frame:
If Police use a recommended or standard period for reporting/analysis, please advise and provide as appropriate. Otherwise, Jan 2023 to present.
Please acknowledge receipt and advise if any clarification, refinement, or technical adjustment would improve delivery. I am happy to collaborate as needed.
Thank you for your assistance.
Ngā mihi
Things to do with this request
- Add an annotation (to help the requester or others)
- Download a zip file of all correspondence (note: this contains the same information already available above).