Guide
How to check if a used bike is stolen
Ask the seller for the frame serial number before meeting and look it up for free in a stolen bike registry, such as the destolen check, which searches reports from the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police), Bike Index and bikes registered on destolen. When you see the bike, make sure the engraved number matches and ask for the receipt. Be wary of very low prices and of sellers in a hurry. A bike that is not reported stolen is not guaranteed to be clean.
Reviewed in October 2026.
Step by step
Ask for the serial number before meeting
It is usually engraved under the bottom bracket (turn the bike over and look between the pedals), on the seat tube or on the rear stay, and it usually appears on the receipt. On e-bikes, the motor and the battery have their own serial numbers. If the seller will not give it to you, be suspicious.
Where to find the serial number, step by stepLook it up in stolen bike registries
The destolen check is free and searches the number in reports from the Mossos d'Esquadra, in Bike Index and in bikes registered on destolen, without showing any owner details. In Catalonia, the Mossos d'Esquadra also have their own stolen bike search, and Biciregistro publishes a list of its users' missing bikes.
Check a serial number for freeLook closely at the listing and the seller
Warning signs: a price far below normal for that brand and model, unclear photos or photos taken from the internet, a rush to sell, a brand-new profile or one selling several different bikes, and no receipt or no clear story about where the bike comes from.
Check the bike in person
Make sure the engraved number matches the one you were given and that it has not been filed off, scratched or covered with stickers or paint. Ask for the original receipt or proof of purchase and, if you buy from a private seller, put the sale in writing with both parties' details and the serial number.
If it is reported stolen, do not buy it
Do not pay or hand over a deposit, and do not confront the seller. Tell the police (in Spain: 112, 091 Policía Nacional or 062 Guardia Civil) and give them the link to the listing and screenshots. If the destolen check shows it as stolen, you can alert the owner from the theft page without seeing their details.
What happens if I buy a stolen bike?
Under Spanish law, even if you bought it in good faith, the owner can claim it back: article 464 of the Civil Code lets someone unlawfully deprived of a movable item recover it from whoever holds it. If that happens, you lose the bike and would have to claim your money back from the seller.
Buying something you know is stolen can be the offence of handling stolen goods (receptación, article 298 of the Spanish Criminal Code). According to Spanish Supreme Court case law, certainty is not required: it may be enough that a criminal origin was likely given the circumstances, such as a price far below market value or a clandestine sale.
This is general information, not legal advice.
What destolen checks and what it does not
The check searches the frame, motor or battery serial number in public reports from the Mossos d'Esquadra, in Bike Index and in bikes registered on destolen. If it is there, it tells you whether it is reported stolen or listed as recovered, without any owner details.
If the number does not appear, it only means it is not in those sources. Not every stolen bike is reported with its serial number, so a bike can be stolen even if it does not appear: check the seller and the paperwork too.
Sources
- Mossos d'Esquadra: stolen bike search (in Catalan)
- Motorpasión (2021): the Mossos d'Esquadra stolen bike search (in Spanish)
- Bike Index: How not to buy a stolen bike online
- Biciregistro, Spanish Network of Cycling Cities (in Spanish)
- Spanish Civil Code, article 464 (BOE, in Spanish)
- Spanish Criminal Code, article 298 (BOE, in Spanish)
- UNIR Revista: dolo eventual in handling stolen goods (in Spanish)
Have your bike's details ready
Register your bike for free with photos and serial number: if it is stolen, you will have everything at hand to report it and search for it. And before buying a used one, check its serial number.