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Original poster

Found money … what should I do !

502 replies

Brighton5555 · 24/02/2022 21:24

Hi so a couple weeks ago I visited my sister and we went around a good few charity shops like we always do when we see each other.

I noticed a lovely patchwork type of quilted blanket that looked like it was hand made ! I paid for it and it’s been still in the carrier bag till this morning as I wanted to wash it first before use

I was checking for any washing instructions on the labels and that’s when I noticed that in one quarter of the blanket it felt different … the more I pressed on that area the more I could almost feel something move so curiously I made a cut and I’ve found money inside

It’s not old notes , it’s uk money and quite a chunk. Most of it in £50 notes and we are talking over £1000, I don’t want to say how many thousands

I don’t know what to do. Go back to the shop? Or keep it

I’m due to go on holiday soon and it would really help with expenses

OP posts:
Gazelda · 25/02/2022 07:48

What a depressing thread.

Someone planning to keep money which was obviously not intended to be hers.
People saying charity shop managers would probably keep the cash for themselves if it were handed in.
A poster saying that the chances of a volunteer making sure the money was given to the charity if handed in was slim.
People not knowing how gift aid works for charities.
The usual knocking of charity worker salaries.

ThatsNotMyGolem · 25/02/2022 07:54

£100 to the chazza you bought it from, and keep the rest.

Original poster
Brighton5555 · 25/02/2022 07:56

The online donation is a brilliant idea which I will do if I manage to deposit it in the bank, x

OP posts:
ThatsNotMyGolem · 25/02/2022 07:57

@Boombastic22

Take it back to the shop/tell the police! Can’t believe you’d possibly think of keeping it.
Operator: What's your emergency?

OP: I found some money in a blanket in a charity shop.

Opertor slams down phone and mobilises a SWAT team.

Forgothowmuchlhatehomeschoolin · 25/02/2022 08:01

I have a guftaid card with my charity shop that l regularly donate to and theybwrite to me every year tobsay how much my items raised them. So there could be a small chance they could trace whoever donated it but in all honesty l would just keep it.
Donate some to a charity if it makes you feel better though.

Onelifeonly · 25/02/2022 08:02

@xxxsuper

@Onelifeonly

"Leave your sarcasm out. I have been given £50 notes for my birthday many times by my Nanna, and like I said, they were often the difference between eating or not eating. Assuming the loser of £50 can afford it because it was a 50 note is a
Tad short sighted."

Only responding like with like.

Actually I did think about it a lot as I'm no thief and wouldn't want to lose £50 myself. But there was no real way to locate the "owner" of the £50. Police stations have been closed in our area so a local nick is a thing of the past.

Years ago I had a handbag stolen containing money and all my house and car keys. Reported it to the then local police station (near to where it was stolen). Some time later my bank branch (80 miles away) wrote to me to say that the same police station had contacted them to say they had my account paying in book. I went in and they also had my handbag and everything that had been inside it, bar the cash. Note the same police station that had my name on file as someone who had had their bag stolen, did not make the connection when my actual bag was handed in.

An anonymous £50 found round the corner of a busy shopping street was never going to be reunited with its owner. Would you have expected me to wait where I found it and asked passersby if it was theirs for the next 24 hours, or maybe a week or two?

Just because you may have been badly in need of £50 at times in your life, doesn't mean my actions were wrong.

BigSandyBalls2015 · 25/02/2022 08:02

When we cleared my mums house we found cash hidden everywhere. It’s quite common with dementia patients.

catfunk · 25/02/2022 08:03

I'd keep it.... likely an old person who passed away and whoever cleaned out their stuff wasn't close enough to them to know where they kept their ££ or didn't want to keep the lovely heirloom themselves. So I wouldn't feel bad tbh.

KosherDill · 25/02/2022 08:06

They won't be able to find the donor. The original owner is likely deceased.

It's a once-in--lifetime windfall. Just enjoy it.

tartanbaker · 25/02/2022 08:08

I can’t actually believe some of these responses - whatever happened to honesty and general decency??? Of course you should contact the charity shop and see if they can trace the donor!! It’s an absolute no-brainer. If they can’t find the donor then you should register the find with the police - they will then give it back to you if all reasonable efforts have been made to find the ‘owner’ and they have no luck. At that stage you can either donate it to the charity or keep it, but I think you know what the right thing to do would be - the money is NOT, and never will be, yours. I couldn’t live with my conscience if I did anything else, and I am really shocked by the number of people who apparently could.

KosherDill · 25/02/2022 08:08

@catfunk

I'd keep it.... likely an old person who passed away and whoever cleaned out their stuff wasn't close enough to them to know where they kept their ££ or didn't want to keep the lovely heirloom themselves. So I wouldn't feel bad tbh.
Exactly. Whoever cast off the heirloom to a charity shop clearly didn't appreciate the deceased.
KosherDill · 25/02/2022 08:09

@tartanbaker

I can’t actually believe some of these responses - whatever happened to honesty and general decency??? Of course you should contact the charity shop and see if they can trace the donor!! It’s an absolute no-brainer. If they can’t find the donor then you should register the find with the police - they will then give it back to you if all reasonable efforts have been made to find the ‘owner’ and they have no luck. At that stage you can either donate it to the charity or keep it, but I think you know what the right thing to do would be - the money is NOT, and never will be, yours. I couldn’t live with my conscience if I did anything else, and I am really shocked by the number of people who apparently could.
How would the charity shop trace the owner?
D0lphine · 25/02/2022 08:14

I have returned items before.

I found an iPad on a train and managed to hack it and get the woman's email address. I sent it over to her. She was v grateful and sent me a £30 m and s voucher to say thanks!

With the cash, there is no way to trace it back to the owner. The charity shop will absolutely not have a record of who donated what. Even if they did, how would you know the person who donated it was the owner?

I'd keep it!

ToffeeNotCoffee · 25/02/2022 08:17

When I deposit a large amount of cash they ask where it came from (money laundering).

Depends whether the blanket was washed.

redlabeltea · 25/02/2022 08:18

I'm really shocked how many people are saying they just couldn't live with themselves if they kept it, even if they had made all reasonable efforts to track down the owner. I don't know anyone in real life who would feel that guilty about it that they wouldn't keep any of it.

user1471538283 · 25/02/2022 08:18

I would keep it but maybe donate some of it to a local charity.

The charity shop will not be able to trace the donor.

Tostig · 25/02/2022 08:27

Some time ago there was a court case like this. A woman bought a coat from a charity shop and found a diamond ring in the pocket. The ruling was that it now belonged to her as she had bought the coat
"as seen" and the shop should have checked it.

xxxsuper · 25/02/2022 08:28

@Onelifeonly

Only responding like with like.

Fair point!!

An anonymous £50 found round the corner of a busy shopping street was never going to be reunited with its owner. Would you have expected me to wait where I found it and asked passersby if it was theirs for the next 24 hours, or maybe a week or two?

I would have handed it in to the police station.

Just because you may have been badly in need of £50 at times in your life, doesn't mean my actions were wrong.

Had I dropped a £50 back then I would have gone to the police to ask if it had been handed in, my need was that great.

Your actions were definitely wrong, you found someone else's money and kept it, justifying it with 'the world was paying you back' - for a parking fine Hmm

gamerchick · 25/02/2022 08:29

@tartanbaker

I can’t actually believe some of these responses - whatever happened to honesty and general decency??? Of course you should contact the charity shop and see if they can trace the donor!! It’s an absolute no-brainer. If they can’t find the donor then you should register the find with the police - they will then give it back to you if all reasonable efforts have been made to find the ‘owner’ and they have no luck. At that stage you can either donate it to the charity or keep it, but I think you know what the right thing to do would be - the money is NOT, and never will be, yours. I couldn’t live with my conscience if I did anything else, and I am really shocked by the number of people who apparently could.
See if you're saying that in a few months....

Unless you're wealthy so money doesn't mean that much to you anyway

Warszawa · 25/02/2022 08:30

To be fair the charity shop owned and sold the item exactly in the state you purchased it in.
Legally speaking the contract had been fulfilled by your payment to them and they can't demand extra payment at a later time.

You won't trace the owner so only choice is give it to that or another charity of your choice, or keep it and use it for your holiday.

You donated to the charity by shopping there - don't feel bad if you decide to enjoy it

Rory1234 · 25/02/2022 08:36

I used to volunteer in a charity shop and this sort of thing happens more than you’d think (although not usually such large value) - they would never be able to to trace who brought the quilt in (unless it was a member of staff which is unlikely) so policy for the charity I worked for is that the money would be held for a certain amount of time in case someone came back for it and then it would be donated to the charity.

So really it’s up to you - either donate it all to the charity or donate some of it and keep the rest.

SpiderinaWingMirror · 25/02/2022 08:36

I think this thread is a lesson to anyone clearing out elderly relatives belongings tbh!

Nodancingshoes · 25/02/2022 08:43

You could give it to the charity or you could keep it or maybe half and half. I'm not sure what I would do tbh. I think most people, despite what they say on mumsnet, would be in 2 minds about this. It would be unlikely that the shop would find the original owner so I would put that out of my mind.

Lockheart · 25/02/2022 08:52

Let's not start getting silly.

  • we don't know if this is a precious heirloom made by a granny or just a lockdown project someone didn't want anymore. Let's not start ascribing emotional weight to something we know bugger all about.
  • yes, the charity shop might be able to trace the owners and for that reason, if it were me, I would ask.
  • no, the charity shop volunteers and the police are no more likely to pocket the money than any other person.
  • the OP hasn't gone out to scam anyone. She's not doing what I would do, but I can understand why some people seize on an unexpected windfall.
hookiewookie29 · 25/02/2022 08:54

I bought a handbag from a charity shop several years ago. When I got home,I found £250 in an inside pocket. Yes, I kept it. My husband hadn't long been made redundant it bought a months worth of shopping! It did cross my mind to take it back- I bought and paid for the handbag so it was mine. The staff couldn't have checked the pockets in it.