Small Claims Court - Witness Statement

[legalpug123]

Hello everybody,

I am the claimant in a small claims case revolving around my bicycle that was stolen from within the defendant's shop. The defendant has accepted liability, however, is not willing to compensate me for what I am claiming. The case now goes to court because we cannot agree on the compensation amount, for which I have to send out my witness statement. I have never written a witness statement before and guidance to be found online is scarce. I am pasting my draft below and would appreciate receiving any feedback you may have (length, structure, phrasing etc.). Many thanks for all of your help in advance!

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WITNESS STATEMENT

1. I, XXX of XXX, am the claimant in this claim. The facts in this statement come from my personal knowledge.
2. On Sunday, 28/06/2020, at 2.45pm, I brought my bicycle with a flat tyre to repair at XXX. The defendant offered to repair the flat tyre and handed me the receipt of the service (refer to Document 1 - XXX) to be paid upon receipt of the repaired bicycle. Having returned 45 minutes later, I was advised by the defendant that my bicycle was stolen from within the shop. The shop is assumed to be occupied by the defendant and his employees throughout. The CCTV within the shop was not working as I left my bicycle there. The defendant recommended to meet on the following Wednesday, 01/07/2020, at 3pm at his shop to discuss possible steps to be taken. He provided me with his personal phone number (XXX) and advised that his name was “XXX”. He further offered that I could message him if anything further happened or if I had any questions.
3. On the very same day, I reported the incident to the police, which, as the investigation progressed, communicated that my case serves as the initiation of an intelligence report on the defendant’s shop as similar cases seem to have been amassing over recent times.
4. On Tuesday, 30/06/2020, I messaged the defendant on the phone number he provided (refer to document Document 2 - XXX). The defendant did not respond.
5. On Wednesday, 01/07/2020, at 3pm, I arrived at the defendant’s shop. The defendant was not present, only the manager of the shop. The manager then called the defendant, who advised that he would not be present today and that he already replied to my text message. The manager mentioned that the defendant would be present on Friday and that the defendant would to “sort me out”.
6. On Wednesday, 01/07/2020, shortly after having left the defendant’s shop, I received a text message from the defendant (refer to document Document 3 - XXX), to which I responded (refer to document Document 4 - XXX).
7. On Friday, 03/07/2020, the defendant and I spoke outside of his shop. Negating that he has reported the case to the police or to his insurance, the defendant immediately asked me for the frame number of the bicycle and the purchase receipt. He showed willingness to compensate me for the monetary value of the bicycle, but mentioned that he needed me to sign a document which, in case the bicycle was found, assigned the ownership of the bicycle to the defendant. He added that he may be insured for this for the theft of my bicycle at XXX, the association of XXX. I mentioned the Consumer Rights Act 2015, upon which he denied his liability for the bicycle, arguing that “as a standing thing, all bicycles left here (in the shop) are left at the owners’ risk”. The defendant concluded that we should speak again on the following Monday, 06/07/2020, that he would seek legal advice and that I should send the purchase receipt and the frame number of the bicycle to his assistant “XXX”, who would then guide me through the next steps to be taken. He added that, if I this incident would proceed to court, he could pay the monetary compensation I seek over a year or 18 months.
8. Later on Friday, 03/07/2020, I wrote an email containing all the information on the bicycle and the purchase receipt to the defendant’s shop’s email address (refer to document Document 5 - XXX), however, I did not hear back for seven days (refer to document Document 6 - XXX).
9. On Monday, 06/07/2020, I visited the defendant’s shop as agreed. Similar to Wednesday, 01/07/2020, the defendant was not present, only the manager of the shop. The manager offered to call the defendant on his phone, which he then handed to me so I could talk to the defendant. He asked if I sent the email with the information, which I confirmed, and mentioned that he waits to hear back from “XXX” and from his solicitor. I asked the defendant why he failed to report any information he may have on the incident to the police, seeing that it has been more than one week since it happened, upon which he responded that he requires more information. He concluded that I would hear from his solicitor in 28 days, after which we agreed to take the case to the next level.
10. A full written transcript as well as the recordings of the conversations between myself and defendant can be provided (for the written transcript, please refer to Document 7 - XXX).
11. It is my understanding that the defendant and I, the claimant, cannot reach an agreement on the monetary value of the bicycle that is due for compensation. I wish to justify my position with three key arguments: 1) the bicycle was custom-made to fit my above-average height, which does not only indicate the above-average purchase price that I paid, but also the therewith connected extraordinary duty of care that I felt was reasonable to be applied throughout the ownership – including the cleaning of entire bicycle after every use and inside storage throughout the seasons; 2) in full awareness of the value of the bicycle, I was hesitant to ride it in Central London, in fear of theft, which is the core reason as to why the annual usage and therefore the depreciation of the bicycle is limited to a minimum (average usage of four times per year); 3) while the bicycle held monetary value, it also held significant emotional value, as it was tied to precious and meaningful memories of bicycle tours together with family and friends.
12. Despite the difficulty in valuing a custom-made bicycle, it is the information mentioned under point 11 in combination with self-directed market research, comparisons to similar-in-kind bicycles and my professional experience with depreciation accounting methods that led me to claim the amount claimed herein.
13. Information about the purchase value of the item that is subject to this claim is laid out in Document 8 - XXX, the original purchase receipt.
14. Finally, the case was brought to the attention of the police, which is reflected in document Document 9 - XXX, and reported to XXX, the association of XXX, as evident in document Document 10 - XXX.
15. I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true.