WARRINGTON has one of the worst rates of bicycle thefts in the north west according to new figures.

A study by Bikmo found that there were 143 bikes stolen in the town per 100,000 residents during 2020, the third highest level in the region.

The specialist cycling insurer compared the official number of incidents reported in each area, as listed on the police.uk website, to its population.

And only Liverpool and Preston came out with higher rates than Warrington in the north west, with 185 and 151 thefts for every 100,000 residents respectively.

But the region as a whole was the safest in England and Wales for cyclists, with an average rate of 55 per 100,000 across the north west.

This number has dropped ‘significantly’ in the past three years, with 126 thefts per 100,000 having been recorded back in 2018.

Bikmo has released the statistics to coincide with the launch of its new free to use bike theft tracking tool.

Chief executive David George said: “As more and more people begin to realise the many benefits of cycling during the pandemic, it is only natural that fears around bike theft will rise.

“We are proud to today unveil a brand-new public tool, allowing riders across the country to view annual bike theft rates in their local area and identity hotspots where crimes are being reported.

“The new tool will be regularly updated to provide an ongoing resource to members of the public.

“We hope this will be useful to the fast-growing number of riders and help increase awareness in high-risk areas.”