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Original poster

Flatmate says I owe her £600

641 replies

Digestivesandcheese · 02/11/2023 15:11

I was meeting my flatmate (who is also a good friend) in London recently and agreed to bring her weekend bag with me on the train (She was meeting her DM earlier in the day for a trip to the Theatre) I had a rucksack containing my things for the weekend.
I got off the train in London and realised I had stupidly left her bag on the train. I got back on the train but the bag was gone! It hasn't turned up in lost property. I have chased up several times.
My friend says I owe her £600 for the bag and contents. I agree it was my fault but can I claim compensation from the rail company as the bag hasn't turned up? If not, I will have to borrow money to pay my friend for her things

OP posts:
EbesneezerCold · 02/11/2023 15:26

Also get a crime reference number from the police, given the speed it vanished at you'll need to claim it as stolen not lost.

BitofaStramash · 02/11/2023 15:27

@HakunaMatiłda

Both my home & contents and travel insurance would cover this.

Original poster
Digestivesandcheese · 02/11/2023 15:28

I have basic home contents insurance but looking at the policy it doesn't cover me away from home. I will have to pay up

OP posts:
Climbingthehillfast · 02/11/2023 15:28

You’re responsible, you pay.

plumtreebroke · 02/11/2023 15:29

Do you or your friend have insurance that might cover it? House insurance possibly? Get a crime number from the police for the insurance company to prove it was stolen. I would suggest going halves if you can't claim anything, you were (trying) doing a favour so partly her fault.

StarlightLime · 02/11/2023 15:29

BitofaStramash · 02/11/2023 15:25

She needs to claim on her insurance

The friend won't be insured for her friends transporting her belongings and losing them. It's squarely on op.

BitofaStramash · 02/11/2023 15:29

What about her insurance?

HakunaMatiłda · 02/11/2023 15:29

@BitofaStramash

I cannot imagine an insurance company covering the negligence of a third party (OP) for losing the items.

Lovethatforyouhun · 02/11/2023 15:30

Home insurance doesn’t cover unattended stuff!!
A weekend bag - £100
High end makeup bag - £200 (eg chanel cream blush is over £45!)
Lotions and potions - £50
GHDs - £200

I haven’t even started on clothing, jewellery and shoes!
Things cost more than you think.

EbesneezerCold · 02/11/2023 15:31

Digestivesandcheese · 02/11/2023 15:28

I have basic home contents insurance but looking at the policy it doesn't cover me away from home. I will have to pay up

Does hers? Given the value I would have thought she'd have them covered on her policy. You can offer to pay the excess

SofiYol · 02/11/2023 15:33

Doggymummar · 02/11/2023 15:21

It's your responsibility, you didn't take care of it. Claim on your contents policy

The OP can’t claim on her insurance for things that she didn’t purchase - she hasn’t suffered a financial loss, her friend has.

Cyclebabble · 02/11/2023 15:34

Items sometimes take a while to turn up. Keep trying.

BitofaStramash · 02/11/2023 15:34

@HakunaMatiłda

You don't need to imagine it. You just need to purchase it and check it covers you.

Resilience · 02/11/2023 15:35

So annoying! I hate it when you try to do someone a favour and it goes wrong and backfires on you enormously. No good deed goes unpunished as they say... We'll all end up in a society where we're too afraid to take the risk if we don't have some tolerance for failure, but £600 is a lot!

First thing is would do is report it stolen. If it wasn't where you left it in the few minutes you got back on the train, someone has clearly taken it. If it hasn't turned up in lost property they have taken it with no intention of handing it in. You might have the exceptionally rare person who saw you leave it behind and has looked for and found your friend's address inside (highly unlikely anyway) and will return it directly, but that does seem to have happened and is highly unlikely to. Therefore it's been stolen. Report it. Do it quickly as public transport is normally only 28 days, if there is going to be any chance of identifying an offender and getting the bag back. However, the crime reference number may be sufficient for your friend to claim off insurance.

If you were my friend and I couldn't claim off the insurance I'd probably let it go because it was an accident. However I appreciate not everyone could afford to be that generous (although if her overnight bag is worth £600 she's more likely to be able to afford that than many). I definitely think it's cheeky to demand the full amount when you were doing her a favour in the first place and it was an accident. Also, if she's regularly moving around the place with high vale items, she should have them insured. If you have 'form' for being careless, then that's as much on her decision making as it is on you, so...

All that said, if I list someone else's stuff I would be offering to pay in full.

Tricky! Sorry you're in this position.

BitofaStramash · 02/11/2023 15:35

If you can afford £600 worth of high end stuff then you can afford insurance

SecondUsername4me · 02/11/2023 15:36

How did she manage for the weekend you were both there with no bag/clothes/toiletries etc?

Manadou · 02/11/2023 15:37

Thieves are everywhere. Someone could have noticed you get off the train without taking the bag and nabbed it straight away.

LIZS · 02/11/2023 15:40

Digestivesandcheese · 02/11/2023 15:26

The CCTV footage isn't available with no explanation as to why

Only police can get hold of cctv footage. Has the loss/theft been reported to them (necessary to make any insurance claim) and have you checked lost property at all main stations in the route, not just the destination.

Cosywintertime · 02/11/2023 15:43

Can’t quite believe some folks think if you lose your mates bag your house insurance might cover it. 😳

op, this is on you, so yes you need to pay to replace her items.

MetalFences · 02/11/2023 15:43

SecondUsername4me · 02/11/2023 15:36

How did she manage for the weekend you were both there with no bag/clothes/toiletries etc?

Why does this matter? Presumably she bought things that she needed. It doesn't make any difference to the situation though.

Cosywintertime · 02/11/2023 15:44

SecondUsername4me · 02/11/2023 15:36

How did she manage for the weekend you were both there with no bag/clothes/toiletries etc?

She was in London there are shops.

GladysHeeler · 02/11/2023 15:44

BitofaStramash · 02/11/2023 15:35

If you can afford £600 worth of high end stuff then you can afford insurance

What insurance do people take out for their friend leaving their weekend bag on a train?

Movinghouseatlast · 02/11/2023 15:44

£600 isn't a lot at all. Shoes, clothes, make-up, perfume, maybe hair straighteners, the bag itself.

I've just added up my weekend bag from a recent journey
Jeans £65
Jumper £75
Dress £100
Cardigan £55
Dressing gown £45
Slippers £40
Perfume £120
Make-up- over £100
The bag £75

Nothing 'designer' all the items could have cost a lot more.

EbesneezerCold · 02/11/2023 15:45

Cosywintertime · 02/11/2023 15:43

Can’t quite believe some folks think if you lose your mates bag your house insurance might cover it. 😳

op, this is on you, so yes you need to pay to replace her items.

Probably because some of us have policies that cover our belongings outside the home. Revolutionary I know. Perhaps the OP needs to ask her flatmate to check her policy to see if it has the same clause.

PrinceHaz · 02/11/2023 15:45

Nothing you can do big pay up. Don’t assume your insurance won’t cover it though. Ring and find out.

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