to think this should have been treated as a normal fare?

[pluckpluckpluck]

NC because I was talking about this in work today.

TLDR: left important cards in taxi, paid £15 for 630pm return, they arrived at 750pm.

Took a taxi from Sainsbury's to my house on Wed. I usually bus it but I did a big shop with lots of heavy things. Realised the next morning on my way to work that my bus pass was missing (almost 3 weeks left on it). It was in a cheap fold over plastic holder. In the other side, stuffed behind some receipts was my driving license and bank card. I'd shoved them in there a few days before purely for convenience.

I rang the taxi company and told them I'd left a bus pass in one of their cars and told them the car details etc (they text that to you when you've booked a car). I didn't feel the need to specify that I'd lost more than my bus pass. They put me on hold, contacted the driver and said yeh he had my pass. Great, I suggested collecting it from their office later in the day. Except they don't handle lost property and connected me to the driver.

Driver said he would be in my area that evening (Thurs) and would drop it round for a fee. He suggested £15, I agreed. That was more than I expected but whatever, I was just happy to know my cards had been found. He said he'd be there between 6 and 630. 630 came, he hadn't been so I texted him asking when he would arrive. He replied at 655 saying he had some other fares and would be with me ASAP. It gets to 730, I send him another text which he doesn't reply to. He rings me at 740 saying he'll be there in 15 min (and he did arrive within 10).

I'm really glad to have my bus pass and bank card back but mostly my license because I need it for ID proof when sorting out details of a new job. However I'm kind of pissed off that I paid him £15 to deliver my 'bus pass' by 630 at the latest and he doesn't show up until 750pm.

AIBU to expect him to treat a £15 'non human' fare with the same priority as he'd treat a 'human' passenger? If it matters, a £15 fare would get me from one side of my city to the other with change to spare.

Friends think IABU because he didn't know my bank card and licence were in the holder. I think it doesn't matter if I'd left a paper clip in his car, if I'm paying him to bring it back to me surely that's what matters?

I accept I may well be unreasonably annoyed!

[wheresthel1ght]

I think £15 is cheap to get it back in one piece although he should have arrived at specified time allowing for any traffic hold ups - if he had a fare that took loner he should have messages or called to let you know.

[TheGruffaloMother]

I think YABU to expect him to pass up other fairs in favour of £15 he's guaranteed either way. But it would have been better for him to not give you a specific time given the nature of his work...a 3 hours window would have been more practical.

[TheGruffaloMother]

Fair? Fare? Fayre? I dunno, I'm too tired to work it out!

[pluckpluckpluck]

I see what you're saying gruffalo but is it not a bit piss takey that he charged me £15 to arrive 'at some point' because he knew I was up against a wall? I obv wasn't going to say 'oh fuck it don't bother', which is my AIBU. Am I being unreasonable to expect him to treat my higher priced non human fare as a normal one?

[TheGruffaloMother]

I do still think that's a bit unreasonable. Not horrendously, but every fare counts when you're a taxi driver as the overheads are huge. Maybe you could have asked him to drop it at the taxi office and you'd collect it from there?

[pluckpluckpluck]

I did, they don't handle lost property

[TheGruffaloMother]

Bit of a cop out that I'd be quite irritated at them. All they'd have to do is keep it in a desk drawer until you arrived.

[pluckpluckpluck]

I know, it would have been much easier for me to call in to the office on my own time! Never mind

[Shizzlestix]

He should have dropped it off at the office where you should have collected it. I think it is disgraceful that you were charged for this!

[pluckpluckpluck]

I wouldn't call it disgraceful...it was my fault that I left them in the car. But it was weird and really inconvenient that the office refused to be involved

[TheGruffaloMother]

I wonder if it was a driver they didn't particularly trust? They may not have wanted to be involved in case something was actually missing.

[PersianCatLady]

Whatever happened it is done now, at least you got it back and it still cost you less than getting a new driving licence.

[PersianCatLady]

All they'd have to do is keep it in a desk drawer until you arrived
Perhaps they didn't want the responsibility of leaving it in a desk drawer when there are likely to be many different staff coming in and out of the office?

[Champagneformyrealfriends]

It sounds to me like he waited until he had a customer who lived near you so he didn't have to go out of the way. I think yanbu-it seems a lot to me but I suppose it also depends where you live (eg London taxis are more expensive than one in West Yorkshire where I'm from ime)