Watch Ownership/Robberies
Discussion
Crumpet said:
I don’t worry about wearing my Omegas and Breitling anywhere, they don’t feel like they’re targeted in the way some other brands are. Of course there’s still a risk but they’re insured and I think I’d actually prefer to have the full RRP reimbursed anyway! 
I don’t really wear any of my Rolex any more as a result of an attempted mugging four or five years ago. It’s just not worth the risk so I just enjoy them at home or in quieter places rather than wearing them every day.
Sounds like you were very fortunate and unfortunately an ever increasing amount of Rolex/Patek owners are not wearing them as a daily.I don’t really wear any of my Rolex any more as a result of an attempted mugging four or five years ago. It’s just not worth the risk so I just enjoy them at home or in quieter places rather than wearing them every day.
Ninjin said:
981SPYGANG said:
Just wondering to what degree has feeling unsafe/not wearing your watch on occasions decreased your enjoyment of ownership?
Referring to the UK, I wish it would go back to pre 2010 when I could wear anything without much worry. Of course there have always been dodgy areas where "you're asking for it!" but the watch crime curve started in 2010 and went exponential from 2016. Pre 2010, I would happily wear anything carefree... nowadays that is all just a memory unless it is something that flies under the radar for crime.So for me, yes, for sure, the crime aspect has decreased my ability to rotate my full collection in the UK. Many may say I am too cautious but my brother was held at knife point for his Rolex... I don't want that happening to me.
okgo said:
Chicken_Satay said:
I don't think there's any reason to feel unsafe, providing you're reasonably careful where you go/exercise common sense.
But the places these robberies are happening are the most fancy parts of London. It’s not happening in Brixton. It’s Berkeley square. si
800 said:
800 said:981SPYGANG said:
Agreed would love to go back to the days when it didn’t even cross your mind that you might get your watch stolen.
Until about 2018 when I had a season ticket I used to wear my Rolex GMT or AP Royal Oak Chrono to Old Trafford on a Saturday afternoon.It didn't really cross my mind that it wasn't a good idea, and at no point did I ever notice any unwanted attention.
Obviously I'd think twice about doing the same now, and last time I headed into London opted for my Omega.
More broadly speaking I wanted to add a "nice" watch recently (i.e. something that is top of my current collection) and plumped for my Jaeger Le Coultre in part due to the fact it's under the radar - most people dont know what it is.
I toyed with a Sky Dweller, Daytona or a Rose Gold Yachtmaster but decided against with one of the reasons being that advertising you have £20k on your wrist these days seems a bad idea.
okgo said:
What are these watches you guys have that you think put you at so much risk?
Please don't say steel rolex...
They are lovely watches, but so common it would be like bears feeding on sockeye if thieves were bothered by these (unless rare, but most are not).
Thinking it’s fair to say any of the instantly recognisable Rolex steel models make people targets.Please don't say steel rolex...
They are lovely watches, but so common it would be like bears feeding on sockeye if thieves were bothered by these (unless rare, but most are not).
okgo said:
981SPYGANG said:
Yes I do and are you saying the undesirables are not interested in GMT, Submariners etc?
Correct. They are organised, they're not just scrotes on the opportune moment, it seems to be planned and choreographed. Not worth the risk for something every 3rd bloke in Z1 is wearing.okgo said:
anonymous said:
[redacted]
I get that, but it isn't worth the risk of injury or getting caught for a nothing item. Which they are. Because they're everywhere.These gangs are doing it properly, they're attacking properly wealthy people with properly expensive watches. Like the video of them trying to break into the moving bugatti with hammers the other day while decked out in Deliveroo gear. It isn't just happenstance. The same thing was happening in Richmond Park with bikes, they weren't going for boggo s
t bikes...okgo said:
981SPYGANG said:
How can you describe a £10k watch as ‘a nothing item’ that undesirables would not be interested in stealing as ‘it isn’t worth the risk of injury or getting caught’……not all are big time criminals/they all start somewhere.
Because that isn't really what is being stolen is it? Because the reality is that they're everywhere. The majority of women you see walking about Mayfair are going to have at least that in an engagement ring (and very often an expensive watch too), do you hear of people ripping those off fingers? No, it isn't worth it. For some super rare watch, 100%, that's a crime worth committing. These are professional gangs that clearly know what they're doing and what they're going after, otherwise this would be literally all you saw in the news given how common the dive/date watches are.
There are smaller less professional opportunistic robberies.
QJumper said:
okgo said:
Because that isn't really what is being stolen is it?
Because the reality is that they're everywhere. The majority of women you see walking about Mayfair are going to have at least that in an engagement ring (and very often an expensive watch too), do you hear of people ripping those off fingers? No, it isn't worth it. For some super rare watch, 100%, that's a crime worth committing. These are professional gangs that clearly know what they're doing and what they're going after, otherwise this would be literally all you saw in the news given how common the dive/date watches are.
67 watch thefts in central London in June.Because the reality is that they're everywhere. The majority of women you see walking about Mayfair are going to have at least that in an engagement ring (and very often an expensive watch too), do you hear of people ripping those off fingers? No, it isn't worth it. For some super rare watch, 100%, that's a crime worth committing. These are professional gangs that clearly know what they're doing and what they're going after, otherwise this would be literally all you saw in the news given how common the dive/date watches are.
I was followed once in a nice part of London by a group of thugs. My watch wasn't super rare, but distinctive and relatively expensive (£5k ish), and I only avoided anything happening by ducking into a pub.
It's not always professional gangs, after super rare watches. There are plenty of muggers who'll go for anything of value on show.
si800 said:
800 said:okgo said:
Because the reality is that they're everywhere.
Which makes them easier to sell - there is a bigger market for them......okgo said:
For some super rare watch, 100%, that's a crime worth committing.
I'd have thought the complete opposite - it would be way harder to shift, a much smaller target market and buyers more likely to want box and papers....If I was a thief I'd be more likely to rob and sell a Rolex Sub than a Laurent Ferrier Origin
Overall I'd say the chance of a Rolex getting robbed off your wrist in London is quite slim to be fair, if you think how many people wear a Rolex (or fake Rolex!) in London every day and don't get it robbed. But each owner will have their own interpretation of what the risk to them is, and if there is a simple solution to change that perceived risk to zero (i.e. wear nothing/something else) then why not.
Edited by si800 on Thursday 15th September 15:56
800 on Thursday 15th September 15:56Fallingup said:
This has been discussed many times over the years but it's interesting that there's less of the "No-one would mess with me" type attitude being shown now.
Maybe they've all been robbed.
Goalposts having moved over the years with getting stabbed now a lot more likely prob results in less wanting to ‘av it’……Maybe they've all been robbed.
QJumper said:
okgo said:
And people still think it isn't highly targeted and aimed at watches worth nicking?
I don't thiink anyone thinks there aren''t gangs targeting high value watches. What people do think though is that watch theft isn't inclusively linked to them. Anything of reasonable value, that can be easily iidentified and reaily sold on, is a potential target. Thieves operate at all levels of the scale.Lord Marylebone said:
okgo said:
And people still think it isn't highly targeted and aimed at watches worth nicking?
I think it is both.I think, as you correctly point out, that there are numerous well organised gangs specifically spotting and targeting people wearing stuff like £20k, £30k, £50k (etc) watches.
I also think there are plenty of relatively disorganised scumbags looking to mug people on the spot, and on impulse, if they catch a glimpse of tasty looking jewellery, an expensive handbag, a phone, a nice watch, or anything else they think they can sell for a couple of hundred quid to a couple of grand.
okgo said:
981SPYGANG said:
Totally agree, our friend continues to struggle with the concept that ‘thieves operate at all levels of the scale’…..
I'll wait to hear about someone relieved of a stainless Rolex in London, I don't know any myself. I do not doubt that it can happen, but chances are remote. Walking round with a Gold AP, well, that is entirely different. And there will be scouts all over Selfridges/Harrods/Harvey Nicks etc looking out for stuff like that.Do you think that gang above only saw that AP the time they were there? No of course not, every 2nd person who isn't a tourist from Basingstoke in Selfridges will have a high end watch, they are not all being robbed upon leaving - the ones that are desirable though...
My mate lives a few streets north of Selfridges and has witnessed a number of phone muggings first hand. He hasn't seen a watch one yet, it is much more risky and hard to get a watch off someone than snatching a phone out of their hands.
Your view is only top end get stolen and no undesirable can be bothered with anything other than top end.
‘Agree to disagree’ are a few words that come to mind as bored of this debate.
Best wishes X
Portofino said:
Was in Knightsbridge, Kensington, Covent Garden, Regent Street etc etc yesterday & wore my watch. Was more alert & made sure that it was covered whilst walking about after reading this thread. Wife also had a more obvious fancy hand bag but all was good thankfully.
Great to know people are being more careful/thoughtful as a result of this thread therefore making things more difficult for the undesirables.okgo said:
Please inform us how you don’t get into those situations…
Depending on where you are going I would just suggest thinking twice about wearing an expensive watch.If you do decide to, keep it covered up at all times and that includes restaurants, bars, shops etc.
Just being mindful really, sad I know but a sign of the times.
jm8403 said:
alabbasi said:
Trevor Berbick was a world heavyweight champion boxer who beat Mohammed Ali. At the age of 54, he was hacked to death in a church by one of of his relatives. Moral of the story is that even if you're a world champion athlete and fighter, you can't do much if you don't see it coming. Whoever killed him was prepared and he wasn't. Not too long ago, an elderly gentleman was killed on a mobility scooter for pocket change so you never know.
I'm not saying that we live in fear, but it doesn't hurt to exercise a little caution either. It's always better not to get into those situations than it is to try to get out of them.
How do you avoid getting in situations where you don't see it coming?I'm not saying that we live in fear, but it doesn't hurt to exercise a little caution either. It's always better not to get into those situations than it is to try to get out of them.
Edited by alabbasi on Thursday 29th September 23:51
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