Stolen in Style: Chinese Motorcycle Brands Top UK Theft Charts

Think the risk of motorcycle theft hinges on price or power? Think again. An analysis of data from the UK’s DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency) reveals that it’s not luxury bikes most at risk, but new, budget-friendly upstarts, many of them from China. And if your bike happens to be a Tianying, there’s a staggering one-in-eight chance it could disappear.

Last year’s most stolen model in the UK was the Honda PCX, with 1,866 units of its 125cc version reported missing. Honda, as a brand, lost over 6,500 bikes - 50 percent more than Yamaha. But with more than 550,000 Hondas registered across the country, this doesn’t translate into a higher relative risk.

Adjust for thefts per registered vehicle, however, and a different picture emerges. Brands like Lexmoto and Sinnis - affordable and widely available newcomers - shoot to the top of the theft leaderboard. Tianying, in particular, is a red flag: one in eight owners fell victim to theft. That’s enough to make any parking lot glance over the shoulder feel a little more urgent.

A cheap price tag doesn’t mean immunity. Models like the Honda SH350, Keeway Cityblade, and Motorini SXi are all easy on the wallet, but also statistical theft magnets. In the case of the SH350, one in nine were stolen.

What draws the thieves? Light weight, automatic transmissions, and city-ready convenience. The very features that make these bikes ideal for commuting also make them easy to toss into a van or quietly wheel away in the dark.

Want to stay safe? Think big or think classic. The Triumph Rocket III, once the world’s largest production motorcycle by engine size, was statistically the UK’s least stolen bike in 2024 - just one in 1,569 went missing. Similar resilience came from Royal Enfield, Lambretta, and especially BSA, with a theft rate of only one in 3,217.

Among major brands, Triumph, Suzuki, and Kawasaki stood out with notably lower theft rates. Suzuki, the UK’s third most common brand, saw only one in 284 bikes stolen - far better than Honda’s one in 84.

Some models were virtually theft-proof. The Kawasaki ZX750? Five thousand on the road, zero reported thefts. The Honda XL650 Transalp held strong too. And Harley-Davidson led the pack in terms of theft-free models.

The takeaway? If you want your bike to be where you left it come morning, go for muscle or heritage. Small, cheap, and city-smart may seem practical - but the stats tell a much tougher story.