Pimlico man compensated for destroyed belongings

As a tour manager, he went away to Europe for a month and when he returned, he discovered all his possessions were gone.

Believing he had been robbed, he informed the police.

He then told the estate's office, run by Westminster Council's housing arm CityWest Homes (CWH), where staff admitted they had destroyed his possessions.

The housing organisation has now offered to pay compensation of £1,272 to Mr Dennis, as a gesture of goodwill.

A CWH spokeswoman said: "We accept that the correct procedures were not followed in respect of clearing the belongings from the shed, and that Mr Dennis has also received a personal apology from the contract manager for the way in which the matter was handled."

However, Mr Dennis believes he should have been given around £2,000.

He says the goods, which were removed from the storage unit at some point between July 1 and July 26 when he was away, included plates, a suitcase with £700 worth of designer clothing, a hoover, pots and pans, a wine rack, colour TV, video and DVD players, videos, glasses, a food processor, a toaster and tour guide books.

Mr Dennis said: "It's good news for me because CityWest Homes have realised they are in the wrong, but the amount they have offered me was a little bit under what I was expecting.

"I kept receipts for some of the things, like the clothes, but for others, like the crockery set, I didn't have receipts so I can't prove how much they were.

"I'm getting something, which is better than nothing, and they have apologised, which is worth it's weight in gold."

The outcome of Mr Dennis' appeal is expected to be revealed towards the end of November.