Money on floor - WWYD?

[Onemoret1me]

You’re minding your own business completing the food shop in store when you notice £10 on the floor in an aisle? No other customers or staff in the aisle

what would you do? Would you be unreasonable in picking it up and pocketing it for yourself?

I couldn't do it. It could be £1 or £50, the amount doesn't matter. It's not mine so I wouldn't pocket it - it would play on my conscience too much! I always think karma might come back to bite me in these instances.
Anything like a wallet I would hand it in at the shop or try and find the rightful owner.

This is THEFT. It’s theft by finding. I’ve found cash many times over the years. If in a shop or somewhere identifiable I’ve handed it in. If not I’ve given it to charity.

But it isn't theirs!

The loser had just enough money for something that they desperately needed - money that they had earned or been legitimately given - and now they've lost it.

The finder - however poor - has no claim on the money apart from (very dubiously) happening to walk by where the loser lost it. It's not like they did anything specifically or deliberately in order to earn/gain the money that they knew they would need, so they're in no better or worse a position for having spotted somebody else's loss.

I'd hand it in to customer services as I'd want someone to do the same for me if I dropped money in a shop and customer servics is where I would go if I lost money.

I remember watching one of those candid camera type tv shows years ago where they planted money on the street and fiilmed people picking it up, outing people live on camera who pocketed it rather than put it in a nearby charity tin ..I still remember how embarrassed some of the keep the money people were!

My DGF always kept his eyes open for lost money wherever he was.

At a fairground once, he was most chuffed to find a fiver under one of the rides (and this was going back the best part of 40 years); but then he checked the coin return chamber of a public payphone nearby for any forgotten coins (as was his regular habit) and found an abandoned live goldfish in it (presumably an unwanted fairground prize) - which was very unpleasant for him, although granted nowhere near as unpleasant as for the poor fish, I'm sure.

I'm reminded of this old Dave Allen sketch!

In a shop, I'd hand it in as I'd assume someone will notice when they get to the checkout & will need it. I expect the staff would pocket it if no one came forward.

I picked up the equivalent of £30 off the street in my area, on my morning walk during Covid restrictions. The street was empty & the estate was new, houses half built but no one living there. It was weird. I took it home & checked my local FB page. No one posted so I bought my family a treat dinner with it.

It's interesting how, for many people, the bar at which they would happily forego money is much lower than the bar that they ascribe to other people.

Most people wouldn't bother to pick up a penny, 2p, 5p. 20p, 50p, £1, they probably would. Yet if they see a fiver that somebody else has clearly lost, not only IS it worth their while taking, but it ISN'T enough for the owner to miss at all!

I once found £10 on the street as I was walking past a petrol station. I didn't hand it in because I figured the cashier would probably just keep it. I was on the absolute bones of my arse at that moment and it meant I could get some electricity and food. Now my situation is better I try to pay those little bits of luck back by helping out with things when I can.

I found £10 on a car park floor the other week. Nobody else around. I pocketed it.

I found £10 in the middle of the arndale centre last year. Nobody about (unusually) and not near a particular shop.

I carried it round for about a week while it burned me with its presence and put it in the first charity tin I saw.

So if you found a £1 on the street, what would you do with it?

I found a £10 note in a supermarket car park the other day- I handed it in to customer services. The young man on the desk seemed surprised, he said You're very honest!
I always imagine the worst- somebody who has £10 left till payday and needs to feed the family. A child who's saved up to buy a toy. I just couldn't live with myself if I kept the money, it would prey on my mind.
I don't judge anyone who would keep the money, we all have different ideas.

Probably just leave it as chances are if handed in, it wouldn't be claimed but I wouldn't feel right keeping it.

I'd leave it. I know someone else would probably just pick it up but it's still not mine. The whole act of bending down and pocketing it feels a bit dirty actually 🙈

I lost my purse with £70 on Brighton pier about 20 years ago. The relief that a kind person handed it in was immense.
My husband found a role of £200 on country lane recently, I put it on FB without specific figures and the owner was a good friend 🥳

I was in Tesco a couple of years ago with my baby daughter sitting in the trolley seat. She was just starting to talk and she suddenly said ‘Money, money, everywhere’ and pointing down an empty aisle. I thought she was just parroting something but she said it again so I looked and there was a bunch of £20 notes on the floor. So we handed it to customer services. I would have felt guilty keeping it anyway but in the supermarket I kept imagining it being someone’s money for their week’s food and going without. I hope they asked at customer services and got it back - I never heard. My win was my daughter’s first in-context sentence anyway!

I'll be honest......it would be in my purse within seconds!

My Grandson found a fiver in the street last week when leaving my house with his Mum( he's 10 years old and ASD) he said to his Mum " l wish l knew who this belonged to so l can give it back... but l simply don't.. so when we next go to * ( an animal sanctuary) ..im going to give it to them to help feed the animals".
I once found a £20 note at the fun fair and put it in the charity box at the MIND charity shop.

I once saw some money in a charity shop on the floor like it had fell just out of eye shot under a clothes rack.
I picked it up it was £70 i did take it to the till and a young lady put it somewhere in the back.
About 5mins later an eldly man came in and asked if anyone saw or handed in some money.
Young lady said no may i ask how much it was just in case he said it was £70 in notes.
She smiled and said give me a min ill get for you.
She told him what happened and why she asked how much.
It was nice to see.

3 year later i was fucked hit hard times and had nothing 5 days till pay day.
So to take my mind of things i thought id go for walk up a county road pick some apples and get some potatos out the field on my way to said back road the following happened.
I found £40 near a drain crossed the road and found a tenner near a fence, walked just past that and found a fiver near a tree.
Not a sole in sight not even a car.
I was the happiest woman alive i got elecric gas shopping.
I believe it was some good karma that hit me at the right time.

Just pocket it

I found a fiver on the floor just outside a local Co-op recently. I handed it to a lady who worked there. She told me to keep it and made me feel like I was being weird by handing it in. I insisted she took it amd tried to explain why I was handing it in and she just took it wordlessly... part of me feels she kept it herself in the end!

I would do this as you never know …

The Thief you mean?

Hand it in. The person who dropped it may need it to afford their shop. It would be very unpleasant and mean of you to keep it. It's not at all the same situation as finding it on the street where the chances of finding the person who dropped it is very low. The chances of finding the person who dropped it in the supermarket are very high.