Flatmate says I owe her £600

[Digestivesandcheese]

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

I'd have offered to pay before she even asked, I'd be mortified!

Sounds more like ot was stolen! I wouldn't say you're responsible for replacing her stuff!

It may well have been stolen, but it was stolen because the OP left it on a train. She forgot about it and got off the train without it.

If your mate was looking after your laptop, and they accidentally left on a park bench and then when they went back five minutes later it was gone, would you expect the Council to pay for that because they own the park?!

Had it been stolen during the journey, and the OP noticed when she went to leave the train - fine. These things happen.

Rhe OP forgot about the bag and got off the train and left it unsupervised.

This would be a very good scam if you could claim off of the insurance.

Unfortunately, you made a mistake and now have to pay for it.

I’m sure you feel awful and I would too but there’s no point beating yourself up about it.

I honestly can't imagine asking a friend to cough up £600 for something that had gone wrong ^when she was doing me a favour"! Surely the gracious thing to do in that situation is to say "these things happen, don't worry about it".

If you can't afford to lose that much, then take responsibility for your own bags or pack less expensive stuff!

I wouldn’t claim off a friend for this if I’d asked them to do me a favour. I would have put the risk on them, accidents happen and there was no intent to lose the bag.
I once lent a bike to a friend who had it stolen when he turned his back a minute. Shit happens sometimes, it’s life and if you can’t see this then you don’t ask for favours or lend things.

She's literally asking you to transport and insure her possessions for her for free.

We had to claim for luggage on Travel insurance. They wanted itemised receipts and did not pay full price as we hadn't insured for "as new" replacement. I think this has a bearing on your circumstance OP.

If your friend had got a parcel service or similar to transport her bag, she would have had to pay quite a price and she would have been offered insurance. She took a risk asking a friend to transport a £600 parcel without any insurance. She wants the friend to pay for that risk, but doesn't accept any responsibility herself.
If the bag was gone two minutes after you left the train. It was stolen. That could also have happened to her. She should be sharing the cost of that risk and not putting it all on you - you were doing her a favour in the first place.

Also the £600 quote. If it was me asking an insurance company. I might claim for things like the bag if it was a good one, sunglasses if they were good ones, or a new outfit I'd just bought.. But underwear? Cost of replacing used eyeliner and mascara? That's a cheek. And trainers she's been wearing for a year don't get repaid at cost to replace as she's had a years wear out of them.

So I'd want to know what it is that adds up to £600. If she wants you to pay that amount - its the least she could do.

I would not be friends with her anymore. Nor would I be giving her £600.

FGS, why did she give someone else a bag that had around £600 worth of stuff in it to 'look after?' I withdrew £400 last week out of 2 bank accounts, and put it in my purse. I would not have let the bag my purse was in out of my sight. Sounds like she is trying it on.

But if no one has stolen it it would still have been there a couple of minutes later, it might well have been stolen on the journey.

I guess it was end of line to be able to get back on the train again?

Ridiculous there are posters saying to not pay or start going to search for used stuff because its not new.

Good friends you are.

If you are stupid enough to lose something entrusted to you, then you replace it, that's just what decent people do.

Call it an idiot tax.

Which insurance is going to cover you for a bag that was a) being 'looked after' by someone else while you were nowhere near it, and b) actually left unattended on a train?

No, your don't have to pay her £600 because you did her a favour. No way. She's a CF.

Sounds like she is trying it on.

Are you suggesting that she's lying to her own flatmate and friend about what was in her weekend bag? Or that she asked the OP to bring it because she thought she would lose it?

Surely though if someone asks you to do them a favour, your agreeing to it means you take responsibility for it? You can't just half arse it and leave them to deal with any fall out.

She's literally asking you to transport and insure her possessions for her for free
The absolutely hype on here is quite entertaining 😄
She asked op to carry a weekend bag to save her carting it out to lunch, not pack up her flat and transport it to another city.
She's no rival to Pickfords. The drama!

household contents insurance or annual travel insurance. both of these are possible. I certainly wouldn't be paying anything until she had checked if she could claim on these. I would also be reporting to the police as soon as possible.

We had to claim for luggage on Travel insurance. They wanted itemised receipts and did not pay full price as we hadn't insured for "as new" replacement. I think this has a bearing on your circumstance OP
It has zero bearing.
Op's friend doesn't want to buy lightly used makeup, underwear or hair straighteners. Or trainers, come to that.
The stuff can't be replaced on a like for like basis, and it only needs replacing in the first place because op left it on a sodding train.

I've just raised this with DH, we travel extensively with work and for weekends away together.
He priced up his bag when he goes away for work, and even that touched £300.

We then discussed how we'd approach it with our friends and decided that it isn't that cut and dried.

Friend A -

Earns similar amounts, and has a similar total household income and expenses. Travel with them occasionally, would be absolutley mortified they'd lost it and would offer immediately to pay there and then to resolve the problem. Is generally a very concientious person.

Outcome - we'd say don't worry about it. Accidents happen. But would accept their help in sourcing replacements/their paying at the till whilst away.

Friend B -

Lower income, single parent. Generally concientious. A weekend away is a much saved for and needed treat

Outcome - we'd say don't worry about it. Accidents happen. Refuse any attempts at payment. Accept a drink as way of recompense.

Friend C -

Same as friend A, but very scatty and constantly losing their own things/damaging things of ours when at our house. But a lovely person.

Outcome - they wouldn't offer to pay, they'd laugh about it being "oh isn't that typical of me". Wouldn't ask for payment, would edge out of the friendship - they've shown they don't respect things/me.

Friend D - same as friend B. But with a bad attitude.

Outcome - wouldn't have asked in the first place. Wouldn't be friends in the first place.

So overall - I wouldn't ask for or accept payment from anyone because I'm very aware that these things do happen. I'd be annoyed, and gutted because I would have packed things I loved and spent time and money on. But life happens.

I'm not clear when this happened but it's definitely worth carrying on asking at the stations at the beginning and end of the service -there is not a lot of joined up thinking. I used to commute for many years so inevitably (maybe not, but for me yes) had one or two left-on-train mishaps. One time it was lost but two times it turns up at the lost property at the end of the line, once a couple of weeks after it first went missing. They were unable to say on the phone but you could go along in person and ask etc and I just kept going back til it turned up! (we're talking maybe 5 years ago for the last mishap)

Sorry if this has been mentioned before as I haven’t read the whole post, just OPs. But do you or she have an annual travel insurance policy? I have an annual travel insurance policy, free with my HSBC bank account. Covers me and my bag on Uk trips as well as abroad.

Never suggested the friend should buy lightly used make up or underwear! 😂

Simply saying that an insurance company would not necessarily pay out for brand new replacement of everything in the friends bag. That there were some items that are just not worth claiming for.

I think asking the OP to pay out on better terms than an insurance company would repay is a bit much - since the Friend didn't insure her bag of stuff - she took a risk.

The OP has said she wants to take responsibility and compensate her. If the friend is asking for £600 - she should at least let the OP know what she is paying for, she would have to give that information to an insurance company before they paid her.

OPs friend values her stuff more than her friendship with the OP.

Just wanted to say POOR YOU! I have left bags on buses and trains, it is so easy to do. £600 is loads. Really feel for you :(

That's no way to live your life though.