AIBU to think this is an unfair lost and found policy

[Midlifemusings]

I went to a lasertag play place with the kids a few days ago. I had worn a very lightweight camping jacket that I have. I have had it for a decade and I love it as it is very compact and lightweight but very warm. I hung it up on the available coatracks The place was really warm and the kids hadn't worn jackets and when we left, I walked out without it.

I have looked for it over the last couple days, thinking I must have left in the car or another room and then today it dawned on me where it was. I drove back over and found out that they do not keep a lost and found and that they thorw out (in the garbage) anything left in the lockers or coat/shoe area at the end of each day! The worker seemed a bit embarrased themselves to tell me this was the policy but it was on orders of the owner. There is a small sign up that he pointed to saying not responsible for any lost items.

First, I think it is unreasonable to not keep things for a reasonable length of time so people can come back and claim items. Secondly, at least donate them rather than sending them to the dumpster.

I am really upset I lost my favorite jacket and they don't make it anymore. Not the biggest problem in the world but it was so cozy and warm and just perfect.

I'm having the same problem with school. Lost countless jumpers, hoodies, cardis and even jackets since august and all I get from school is we don't have a lost property due to covid. They don't actually say what happens to the stuff but there's only one possible answer.

@fairylightsandwaxmelts

If that's the actual policy, that's awful.

But I suspect it's been been taken accidentally or stolen and either kept or sold on. Not necessarily by staff or the owner, just a chancer perhaps.

Keep an eye on eBay or local selling sites.

Is there much of a demand for a 10 year old jacket?

I do think it’s unfair but I also see both sides of this

You have to take personal responsibility for your own belongings, it was this special to you but you didn’t realise it was missing until it was too late. Had you returned sooner or called them to make them aware you left it, you would have been more likely to reunite with it.

Also you’re assuming that 1. You definitely lost it there and 2. The manager disposed of it. There’s no guarantee that this was the sequence of events. You could have lost it somewhere else or it could have been eg another customer that accidentally took it and not the fault of the staff.

A decade old jacket has minimal value to others, it would have some wear and tear. You can probably replace it with something better.

agree it sounds a bit unreasonable
wonder if it was introduced post lockdown, as in not wanting to subject staff to piles of covidy lost property?

Yanbu. To bin things at the end of each day without giving people the opportunity to retrieve them is very mean, and yes, very wasteful.
A similar thing happened to me years ago though I suspect it hadn’t been binned. It was a Levi’s denim jacket that I’d only worn a couple of times so I doubt they’d have thrown it out. They said it was their policy and I didn’t kick up a fuss which I always regretted. I was a (shy) trainee at the time and rarely bought anything nice/new as I couldn’t afford it. I certainly couldn’t afford to replace a jacket that had more than likely been stolen by a member of staff. It was literally years ago but I still think of that jacket, daft as that may sound.
How frustrating for you OP, especially as it was something you really liked and can no longer be replaced.
What if it was a beloved toy or a child’s school coat etc etc. I’m pissed off on your behalf 🤬

Thanks all. It was a ten year old jacket but due to the material, it looked exactly the same as the day I bought it so they wouldn't have known it was old. Thankfully it had no pockets so nothing else but the jacket. I only asked about my jacket so I don't know about more expensive things but as soon as I said I was here to see if they had my jacket, the young man's face just fell and he said oh sorry we don't keep items that are left, we don't have a lost and found. He did go and look 'in the back' and seemed to want to help me. He told me the owner goes through at the end of each day and cleans out the lockers / coat area. I get that as the space isn't that big and they want it clean for the start of the next day. Maybe they have no storage space or maybe due to COVID, they just bin them. He didn't volunteer the info about them going in the bin, I started asking questions about where would it go if they don't have a lost and found. When he told me in the bin, I was shocked and clarified - you just throw it away. He immediately said well I don't, but the owner does.

It is possible someone else took it or I actually left it somewhere else but I don't remember taking it from the coat rack and I can't find it and given their policy it made sense that it went in the bin as he told me.