Get-out clause that was on the cards for E&L over my bicycle claim

I had my bicycle stolen from a communal bike shed in February. It was insured for £1,100 with E&L Insurance at a cost of £70.02. I reported it to the police and got a crime number, which I passed on to E&L along with the original receipt and invoices for the cost of a replacement. I also provided the key to the insurance approved lock I had fitted and the packaging. There was no damage to the key card entry system to the storage shed. Since then, I have had to pay £75 for E&L to get a police report. I have now received an email stating that E&L is not going to settle because the theft did not involve "forcible and violent entry into or exit from the home or forcible and violent removal of the security devices". In reply, I stated that the bike was stolen from a communal shed because I was not allowed to park in my room (student accommodation). Furthermore, as the bike has not been recovered, how can the police, or anyone else, decide that the bike lock was not forcibly removed? RW, Beeston, Nottinghamshire E&L is adamant that its decision to decline the claim was correct, but we don't agree. We have pressed the company on the exact definition of "home" and, also, why it concluded there had been no "violent removal" of your insurance-approved lock. According to the policy "home" includes "any garage or outbuilding at the address shown in the schedule". However, E&L says that only your room can be categorised as your home, as the company that manages your student housing accommodation only licences the room for occupation. This seems unreasonable and is not at all clear from the policy. E&L also says that, as someone was apparently equipped with the appropriate apparatus (the key card) to enter the storage area, it is "reasonable to assume they had sufficient equipment to remove the lock without necessitating force". We're not sure this is "reasonable to assume" at all but, in any case, without evidence of "violent removal" it won't pay out. We also asked E&L why you were charged £75 for a police report, as we have never come across this before. It told us it is standard practice to obtain such reports and that you are required to pay "in accordance with General Condition 9 of the policy wording". The British Insurance Brokers' Association says it has very rarely come across this – if an insurer does want to read the police report it will pay for it. To us, this seems that you, as policyholder, took reasonable steps to ensure the safety of your bike and have fallen victim to the poorly worded small print. However, the good news is that "in the interest of good customer relations" E&L has offered £1,050 (the amount your bike was insured for, less the excess) and, after some further pushing, the £75 for the police report. If you take your case to the Financial Ombudsman Service, we believe you would win but it is unlikely you would end up any better off than if you accept E&L's "goodwill gesture". You have agreed to this settlement. We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at [email protected] or write to Bachelor & Brignall, Money, The Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number