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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to rage at people who post lost property on social media

68 replies

austounding · 15/03/2016 12:23

Instead of doing the right thing and handing it in?

Latest example:

www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10156545729445231&set=a.10150187213680231.441922.722955230&type=3&theater

Woman finds an ipad on a train. Instead of handing it in to the lost property office, she TAKES IT HOME and asks everyone to share her facebook post to reunite ipad and owner.

If I owned that ipad, my first action would be to call the lost property office - why do people think sharing on social media is remotely a better idea?!

Some time ago there was another one where a woman had found a beautiful engagement ring at Wimbledon - again, shared all over facebook rather than handed in. What is wrong with these people?!

and breathe Angry

OP posts:
BombadierFritz · 15/03/2016 13:00

Have any of you tried to hand in an iphone or similar to the police recently, cos thats not how it works round here at least. They dont want it and wont take it but there is an online registry you fill in details on

BombadierFritz · 15/03/2016 13:01

I would definitely suspect staff of stealing it, yes. I'm surprised you dont tbh

LookAtAllThesePhucksIGive · 15/03/2016 13:01

I lost my purse in town. It's and tatty old thing that I use when I just take a small bit of cash with me. There wasn't much in it except for the one photo I have of me with my dad and some receipts, bit of cash etc. When I couldn't find it I was upset and did ask on my FB for people to keep an eye out. About a year later my FB went crazy. A charity shop I'd been in found it behind a shelving unit during a tidy up. In fact I remember being in there but of course I had no idea how it ended up under there. The manageress posted it on the shops FB along with my photo. People recognised me and I got it back. I don't think the manager wanted recognition or praise because when I picked it up she was a bit arsey with me. :o I'm glad she did it though.

Peaceandloveeveryone · 15/03/2016 13:03

I wouldn't suspect staff of stealing, most people are honest and wouldn't want to lose their job over something like that. The underground is full of CCTV too. I have had good luck with lost purses, cards etc, they have been handed in at the place where I dropped them, supermarkets.

BombadierFritz · 15/03/2016 13:07

I would be fairly trusting of rail lost property (not random staff on platform) and would use their lost property system though

mumofthemonsters808 · 15/03/2016 13:09

I found a brand new boxed IPhone6 on the tube and got off a stop earlier and took it to lost property. I must admit all day I kept thinking I had done the wrong thing and should have tried to contact the person direct as their name and address was on the box. I often wonder if they got it back.

Maryz · 15/03/2016 13:10

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

boredofusername · 15/03/2016 13:12

You are so right OP. To be fair it can sometimes reunite property and people - it seems to work a lot of the time on our local FB group but I sometimes wonder whether people really believe that everyone in our town is on Facebook and then on this particular group.

My husband found a ring on the train a few weeks ago. He handed it to the guard but then I put a post on the local group to say that he'd done it. The lady concerned did see the post, so knew to contact the rail company lost property. It may well be the case that she has to pay, but at least she is getting it back.

Sallyingforth · 15/03/2016 13:14

Unfortunately this brainless women is one of the vast number who can only communicate via Facebook and do not understand that there is a real world out there.
The owner of the ipad will probably lose it because of her selfish action.

Sallyingforth · 15/03/2016 13:15

woman not women

CorBlimeyTrousers · 15/03/2016 13:16

I don't understand the people here who think transport staff are likely to steal valuable items that people hand in. Perhaps that's how you think?

In London the lost property system works - hand the stuff in!

Schwabischeweihnachtskanne · 15/03/2016 13:18

Absolutely 100% agree with you OP - the people who do this are pretty much always massive attention seekers of the type who post the vague ambiguous fishing "so upset" or "some people deserve a slap" or whatever types, and never actually say what they are talking about.

gasman · 15/03/2016 13:20

I lost something on a train.

They charge 5quid at king's cross to even look for it...

It was a DVD so not worth it.

LookAtAllThesePhucksIGive · 15/03/2016 13:20

I work in a pub. We get a lot of lost property. We'd be sacked (and rightly so) if we kept anything. I once found £400 on the floor while cleaning up. I didn't tell the staff what I found but just to let me know if anyone came in looking or asking. I was at home when I got a phone call. It was one of our very well known regulars and he'd had a win on the horses and then got drunk and careless. He wasn't expecting to find it and had written it off. He was ecstatic. He was even happier when I said that I'd put it in an envelope and hidden it in the ornamental beer jug behind the bar and wouldn't have to wait to see me to get it. He then said to me in an odd tone "it's not all there" I said what I found is all there and he went "no, no listen. It's not ALL there... You get me?!" I was like ... Ok...?! When I went into work he'd left a £20 note in the beer jug. :o I was very happy.

Schwabischeweihnachtskanne · 15/03/2016 13:20

Handing it in and then posting on fb / trying to trace the owner via social media is fine - its taking it home and keeping it and only posting that you have it on fb that isn't - in fact it is not far off from being plain and simple stealing...

newmumwithquestions · 15/03/2016 13:23

I agree....although having just lost my iPhone which had loads of (and the only) photos of the DDs that I stupidly stupidly hadn't copied then I'd be grateful to anyone bothering to find it and post it on social media, even if they are just doing it to look good.

Schwabischeweihnachtskanne · 15/03/2016 13:24

I lost a wallet at Stanstead airport years ago and only realised just before my flight took off - I got it back from lost property when I flew back in 3 days later, everything was there and I wasn't charged.

Taking something home with you, especially if it is valuable or likely to be very important - and posting about it on fb is so arrogant IMO.

Birdie85 · 15/03/2016 13:26

Sometimes I don't mind people posting about found stuff if they've also handed it in but I've seen people posting driving licenses and bank cards. Driving licenses have the person's address on so just drop it off/post it and hand the lost bank cards into the bank rather than post on FB for the likes and shares! On one of the local pages people keep posting pictures of other people's post that's been delivered in error, FFS!

BombadierFritz · 15/03/2016 13:27

Its more the random cafe worker that i would think, no, i know i wont steal it but i dont know them. So i'd leave my details with the cafe instead. Phones are easy to hang onto though cos the person just phones you up

Once again, there is no such thing as lost property at the police where we are. So unless you find something on a bus/train there is nowhere to hand it in to. the police encourage you to put a sign up. Social media is just a type ofsign

Original poster
austounding · 15/03/2016 13:35

Bombadier yes I think that is a fair balance. My complaint is exactly as PPs have said about people who keep the item and only post on FB without engaging with the systems in place at all.

newmum oh how horrible, I really hope you find it!

OP posts:
Tywinlannister · 15/03/2016 13:38

My phone was lost in one of the roughest areas of North London, at a train station.

No chance of getting that back, says I.

Went to the ticket desk the next morning and there it is waiting for me. No hassle, no having to pay, they don't have an official lost property there although I'm sure if I'd not picked it up for a week it would have been sent somewhere central. All was good in the world.

wasonthelist · 15/03/2016 13:42

Having left a cd player on a plane, a phone and a fleece on a train, my experience of even trying to get a response from any lost property"services" means I'd far rather have seen my items on facebook. Not everyone doing this on social media is trying to signpost how wonderful they are - and in any case if I had got my phone back I wouldn't have minded. And before anyone starts I know the responsibility for these things is mine alone.

JeanGenie23 · 15/03/2016 13:44

If I find something I had it in, without a doubt! I used to work in a bar and you would occasionally find phones down the side of chairs so I would dial the last number and then leave behind the bar (this was before the modern password protected phones)

TattyDevine · 15/03/2016 13:45

If I find a wallet (only have once or twice) I'll always get it back to the person myself rather than hand it in somewhere. That way I know the cash is still in there and the right person gets it. That's easy enough if there is a phone number and address/driving licence etc.

I wouldn't put it on social media.

Something on a train I'd always hand in to the guard or office, that's the first place they would try.

If I found a wedding ring or something in a local park, for instance, perhaps that had some engraving, I might be tempted to put in onto social media rather than the police station, as it's less faff and possibly more likely to be found by the person - but this has never happened. If I didn't find the person I'd take it to the police station though I suppose. Just musing, I've never had to do it.

diddl · 15/03/2016 13:48

Makes sense to me to hand it in.

How's he supposed to access FB without his ipad?Grin

I one left a cardi & jacket at the swimming pool.

When I colleted the next day they had been washed!!

That's service!!