A Watford cyclist has won a payout from London Midland trains after his bike was accidently given away.

Joe Fahmy took the train operators to court after his bike was removed from railings outside Watford Junction when construction work started and then collected by the wrong owner.

The 35-year-old, from Princes Way, was told by station staff owners were meant to identify their bikes by their lock key, but the process turned into a "free-for-all".

London Midland has since apologised to Mr Fahmy, who says there was no prior warning to cyclists that the bikes on the railings were due to be removed.

He told the Watford Observer: "We were given no notice the fencing was being removed. I was amazed there was no notice. It is ridiculous the way they went about it."

The problem started when Mr Fahmy, who commutes to his job in central London, left his Kentfield FS 17 Marin bike chained to the railing outside the station on the Thursday before construction work started in November.

When he returned after the weekend he found his bike missing and asked station staff where it was. He was later taken to a storage area of the station but his bike was not among the few left.

He added: "I wasn’t angry I was quite matter of fact. There was not a lot I could do. I was angry they said it was a bit of a free-for-all."

A few days later Mr Fahmy, who works for Westminster City Council, wrote to London Midland asking them to return his bike or pay compensation.

He billed London Midland a reduced price of £389 for loss of the £399 bike, the £39.99 lock and £64.99 worth of lights that were lost.

The company refused and he then filed a claim for his bike online with a county court in Northampton.

Earlier this month London Midland eventually agreed to pay Mr Fahmy £515 for his lost bike, lock and lights.

Mr Fahmy said he was able to file a claim as he has gained legal experience from his job and urged others who may be in the same situation to file a claim.

He added: "I know about county courts, but if I didn’t I would have been stuffed. A lot of people think there is nothing they can do, but there is."

This week London Midland released a statement saying: "We have reached an amicable settlement with Mr Fahmy and this issue has now been resolved. This situation arose through a contractor moving Mr Fahmy's bicycle. We apologise for any inconvenience caused."