Bikes are being stolen regularly from the streets of central Auckland, police say, including two in a day by a father and his sons.

Video footage released on Wednesday showed a bike being taken outside a swimming pool on Broadway in Newmarket by the man and his two sons, who snip a lock around the bike with bolt cutters.

It is a brazen theft near a busy road with high volumes of road and foot traffic and it took just seconds to carry out.

Later that day, both the boys and their father were caught by police attempting to steal another bike outside AUT University in central Auckland.

The father was charged with theft and is currently in custody, while his children have been referred to youth agencies.

Buying a solid D-lock that is not going to be snipped in seconds is the best way you can prevent your bike from being stolen, says Acting Inspector Graeme Anderson from Auckland Police.

"Lots of the bikes that get stolen are worth hundreds to thousands of dollars, but we often find owners are using a $20 lock that is easy to snip," he said.

The thieves are often teens, Mr Anderson said.

He also said Auckland Police have dozens of unclaimed bikes that could be returned to their rightful owners if the thefts were reported or a cellphone number was written in marker pen on the bike.