Just as some locks are better than others, some ways of locking up your bike are better than others too. Here’s our quick guide to the Do and Don’ts of securing your e-bike

DO buy the best lock that you can afford. Ideally you actually could do with two U-locks or a U-lock and a cable lock. Two locks enables you can attach both the front and rear wheels to something secure – making your ride much more difficult to steal.

DO unlock and remove your e-bike battery if it is left unattended and vulnerable to theft. This depends on a few things, but generally, nicer areas might be okay to leave your e-bike outside a shop locked with the battery on the bike for 10 minutes. Other places you probably wouldn’t... If in doubt don't risk it.

DON’T think “any lock is better than no lock”. Using a weedy lock will probably just make you complacent about where and how you lock your e-bike. And one day you’ll arrive back to find that it’s not there anymore. A heavy, solid lock or something extremely tough made from hardened steel are very tough to break for the potential thief and will act as a big deterrent, especially if there is a less well secured bike nearby.

DON’T carry around your heavy U-lock if you only ever use it in the same place when you get to your workplace. Leave it locked to the post/gate/whatever while you’re not there. (Having said that, DO think about not locking your bike in the same place all time. It increases the chances of thieves spotting it and monitoring it.)

DON’T lock your bike in quiet public spaces. Thieves like quiet places to get busy with the angle grinder. Try to lock your bike in spots that have plenty of people passing by.

DO buy a U-lock that can fit around what you need it fit around but don’t automatically go for a whopping huge one. We think it’s best to go for U-lock that’s just long enough to pass through your rear wheel, chain-stay or seat-tube and the lamppost (or whatever is you anchor on to). Keeping things compact mean there isn’t room for thieves to use leverage bars to break open the U-lock.

DON’T lock your bike to something that it can be lifted over or off.

DO try to lock your bike in a position where you or a workmate can see it.

DON’T leave a very expensive looking e-bike in a 'sketchy' neighborhood… Make your flashy commute e-bike look a bit ordinary by duct taping over the posh brand logo, try to make it look as bland and tatty as possible to deter the would-be thief. Added tape and stickers can also protect your bike's paintwork from parking scratches too.

DO lock your bike next other less-well-secured e-bikes. Make your bike the least appealing prospect to thieves.

DO hide an Air Tag somewhere in your e-bike if you would like to be able to recover it - if the worst happens and it is stolen. While Air Tags don't stop the complete pain of having your bike taken, you should at least be able to track it down afterwards.

DO try to get together with other bike commuters in your workplace to try to get secure parking at your work. Modern, ‘nice’ employers will want to offer secure bike parking, everyone knows bike riders are healthier, more productive employees…. 😊