Who was responsible for the theft of my bike?

TE_Yorkshire

Hi guys,

Back in February my bike was stolen from the communal "secure" car park located in the basement of the apartment block I was living in at the time. The bike was locked up on one of those bike stands that are bolted to the ground, these were already in place when I moved in. The thief gained access to the car park by breaking in through the doors that lead into the bin store. He then removed the whole bike stand from the floor because the bolts holding it in place were never properly secured by who ever fitted them.

I contacted the company who managed the building saying that I was holding them responsible because they had forced me to store my bike down there in the first place. Originally I was storing it on the balcony of my flat because I had reservations about the security of the car park but they told me to store it down there because it was "unsightly" on my balcony. I also pointed out that the bike stands available were not secure either because anyone with a spanner could effectively steal any bike located in the car park.

Naturally, the response was that they were not responsible for the theft of my bike and reluctantly I left the matter at that because I simply did not have time to deal with the problem because of work and other commitments. Instead I claimed on my insurance but did not get the full value of my bike due to stupid, obscure clauses in the policy. I have since moved out of the building and have a bit more time on my hands so have decided to follow up the matter even though it happened several months ago, the reason I have posted on here is to see if any of you think I have anything to go on.

I should also add that several months after the incident, signs were put up stating that the management company would take no responsibility for theft or damage or property in the car park, these were not present when my bike was stolen.

Any advice would be much appreciated. I think I've included all of the key points but if anything seems unclear just ask and I'll try to answer it as best as I can.

Quentin

If you felt the insurance offer was too low, you should have disputed it, but it looks like you accepted their final settlement. If that is the case, there is little else you can do except hope the thief gets caught and (the slim hope) you can get your uninsured losses off him.

TE_Yorkshire

Yes I did accept their final settlement. It was not what it should have been but they had me over a barrel, all of the deductions stated were included in the policy I agreed to. That was my fault for not reading the policy properly. Luckily the money I lost wasn't too great and any T&C's and policies that are included in something involving me parting with my money are now read word for word. I guess I'll have to think of the whole situation as one of lifes little lessons.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

If the thief had broken the entry door, broken your front door, and stolen the contents of your flat, would you hold the management company responsible then?

discplayer

TE_Yorkshire wrote: »

Luckily the money I lost wasn't too great and any T&C's and policies that are included in something involving me parting with my money are now read word for word. I guess I'll have to think of the whole situation as one of life's little lessons.

Having had a car and a bicycle vandalised in a shared, supposedly secure parking area where I lived a while ago I can sympathise. If I remember correctly, at quoting time the car insurers did not consider it secure simply because it was shared.

I think you're right. Treat it as one of life's lesson - I can't see you'd get anywhere with the building owners and insurance companies will always find absolutely any excuse to pay out as little as possible.

Was it one of those sets of bicycle stands joined together and bolted down (at least in theory!) as a set?

If someone forced a door and removed a set of stands as well as a bike attached to it then they were pretty determined!

Strider590

TE_Yorkshire wrote: »

Who was responsible for the theft of my bike?

Dunno, but im betting he was wearing a Burberry hat.

TE_Yorkshire

discplayer wrote: »

Was it one of those sets of bicycle stands joined together and bolted down (at least in theory!) as a set?

If someone forced a door and removed a set of stands as well as a bike attached to it then they were pretty determined!

No it was the individual stands, but even so I agree with what you said. The guy must have been quite determined.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers! wrote: »

If the thief had broken the entry door, broken your front door, and stolen the contents of your flat, would you hold the management company responsible then?

If someone had broken into my flat no I would not blame them. The reason I was blaming them in this instance was because as I said originally, they forced me to remove my bike from the balcony and lock it in the car park assuring me it was safe even after expressing my concerns about the security.

masterlumps

the only person responsible for stealing your bike is the person who took it

vaio

masterlumps wrote: »

the only person responsible for stealing your bike is the person who took it

Spot on, however it's certainly arguable that the management company have a liability because they insisted on the OP using the bike park when it was not secure because of defective fitting of the bike rack.

OP….might be worth a letter and maybe a small claim but what’s going to count against you is the lack of evidence of poor fitting (presumably the rack went with your bike) plus the forced entry.

You’d have a much stronger case if say the management company had failed to maintain the door to the bike racks so the thief could just walk in.

forgotmyname

I would have added my own fixings or ground anchor, If you knew the rack was insecure
why use it?

I always locked my scooter up, Never left it unlocked anywhere. Seen tests on the net of them
cutting or breaking different locks, Some are useless.

Sadly i doubt you have a case.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

TE_Yorkshire wrote: »

If someone had broken into my flat no I would not blame them. The reason I was blaming them in this instance was because as I said originally, they forced me to remove my bike from the balcony and lock it in the car park assuring me it was safe even after expressing my concerns about the security.

"Forced" is somewhat subjective. I'd have been "forced" to tell them to foxtrot oscar tbh.