Handing in found money

[TWOCHOICEStom]

Having worked there as a kid I can tell you now that it's EXTREMELY unlikely that the girl pocketed it. They'd have just kept it for a while, waiting for a call, then slung it in the nearest charity pot.

 

[BigGully]

When I was about 9 Years old I was walking with a friend in a park near my junior school, we both noticed something in the stingers and it was brand new set of Bagpipes wrapped in paper !!

Handed it in to my school and never found out what happened to them.

More recently found a wallet with £250.00 cash in it, as there was credit cards and a family picture I never thought I would do anything other than hand it in.

I located the owners home and gave it back to him, he offered about £30.00 reward but I declined.

It has crossed my mind whether he had already claimed on his insurance and got double bubble, but there you go.

 

[Return of the Rev]

This is the situation.

A couple of months back, my wife was in Sainsburys queuing up at one of those self service till things. The customer in front of her finished dealing with her shopping and my wife therefore went to the now vacant till. While she was putting her shopping through she noticed that the previous customer had left some of her change in the bit where the notes are dispensed so, being the good citizen, she handed the money over to the customer service counter when she had finished her shopping, explaining where she had found it.

She was told by the girl on customer services that if the person whose money it was did not come and claim it within the next two months, then my wife was entitled to claim it. So she left her name and number and waited.

Today she went back in to Sainsburys and asked after the money. She was told (by the same girl that had originally seen her) that any unclaimed monies were given to charity! My wife reminded the girl of the original conversation and the girl conceded that she did recall that conversation but that she had been unsure of whether what she had told her was right. She now knew it to be wrong! She said she would have to get her manager to call my wife tomorrow morning.

So, wise sages of NSC, what are our rights to the unclaimed cash? We are not talking about a large sum so it is more a point of principle. If she had handed the money in to the Police, they would have handed it to her if it was unclaimed wouldn't they. It is not Sainsbury's money to donate to charity so why have they?

Wait outside for the Sainsbury worker and give her a good slap

 

[piersa]

cringe

 

[Leighgull]

Mate. I hate to tell you this. The bird you handed it into went straight out after her shift and spent it ALL on drugs for herself.

Charity begins at home.

 

[marshy68]

This is the situation.

A couple of months back, my wife was in Sainsburys queuing up at one of those self service till things. The customer in front of her finished dealing with her shopping and my wife therefore went to the now vacant till. While she was putting her shopping through she noticed that the previous customer had left some of her change in the bit where the notes are dispensed so, being the good citizen, she handed the money over to the customer service counter when she had finished her shopping, explaining where she had found it.

She was told by the girl on customer services that if the person whose money it was did not come and claim it within the next two months, then my wife was entitled to claim it. So she left her name and number and waited.

Today she went back in to Sainsburys and asked after the money. She was told (by the same girl that had originally seen her) that any unclaimed monies were given to charity! My wife reminded the girl of the original conversation and the girl conceded that she did recall that conversation but that she had been unsure of whether what she had told her was right. She now knew it to be wrong! She said she would have to get her manager to call my wife tomorrow morning.

So, wise sages of NSC, what are our rights to the unclaimed cash? We are not talking about a large sum so it is more a point of principle. If she had handed the money in to the Police, they would have handed it to her if it was unclaimed wouldn't they. It is not Sainsbury's money to donate to charity so why have they?

Ridiculous that you handed the money in - what was it max £4.99? Even more ridiculous you went back to claim it. If you find money keep it unless you see the person lose the money etc. If you find wallets with money in and ID contact them and hand all back - its about Karma - the Sainsbury girl pocketed the money as you should have done. I found a purse in a trolley at ASDA about 2 months ago - had full name and address in it and £150.00 in cash. Drove to the persons house and she was unloading her shopping - gave her the purse with all the cash in tact - she was amazed and very happy gave me a tenner for a beer so was very happy. If it had been just £150 in cash lying in the trolley straight in my pocket. Thems the rules....

 

[Bean]

All that AND you write a thread about it on a forum? Jesus Christ

 

[seagulls4ever]

Not in the slightest bit true.

Yes it is. It is obviously more complicated than I have outlined but that is the general gist of it. In property law it is all about who has the better right to claim.

Sainsbury's are well within their rights here. They will have a policy whereby if the owner cannot be found within a set time the money will go to charity - this is what a lot of places do. They could keep it for themselves if they wanted to.

If you think I am wrong please provide some proof.

 

[Nibble]

Yes it is. It is obviously more complicated than I have outlined but that is the general gist of it. In property law it is all about who has the better right to claim.

Sainsbury's are well within their rights here. They will have a policy whereby if the owner cannot be found within a set time the money will go to charity - this is what a lot of places do. They could keep it for themselves if they wanted to.

If you think I am wrong please provide some proof.

Something being left on private property in no way entitles the owner of the property to claim ownership of the left item. I wish people would check their facts rather than spouting this half baked, semi-understood gubbins on here. NSC, the home of the "experts". If th eowner cannot be located in a reasonable time then of course Sainsbury's assume some rights but automatic ownership as you have stated is not how it works.

How the law see's it....

Uncollected or abandoned goods

If you have uncollected or abandoned goods you have a duty to look after them, but cannot use them or treat them as your own even if found on your property. You will be liable for anyloss or damage caused to the goods while they are in your care. If you've made steps to find and contact the original owner and they fail to collect the goods within a reasonable period, you can sell them. However, you have to prove you've followed the correct procedure here.

 

[seagulls4ever]

Something being left on private property in no way entitles the owner of the property to claim ownership of the left item. I wish people would check their facts rather than spouting this half baked, semi-understood gubbins on here. NSC, the home of the "experts".

Reasonable steps should be taken to find the owner but after that it is all about who has the better claim, in this case Sainsbury's do. As I said, if you think I am wrong please provide proof or kindly pipe down!

 

[Pavilionaire]

I think some people are a little sanctimonious about this. It's all very well saying if you found cash you'd hand it to the police / member of staff etc, but what would you do in the situation I found myself in during Euro 2004?

I was in the middle of a bottleneck of several hundred people being funnelled through ticket turnstiles outside Porto's ground for Italy vs Sweden. I looked down to get my ticket out of my wallet and saw a big wad of Euro notes on the ground. I quickly picked them up 'mid-shuffle' and, once through to the other side, counted up close on 200 Euros. There was no way that was going to some greasy Portuguese steward.

 

[Nibble]

Reasonable steps should be taken to find the owner but after that it is all about who has the better claim, in this case Sainsbury's do. As I said, if you think I am wrong please provide proof or kindly pipe down!

You stated that if it is lost on private property they own it. You were trying to sound like an expert, you got it wrong. No bother, I accept your apology. As for proof, I have dealt with many issues like this in my former professional life and you are wrong. If you wanna prove me wrong then I hope you have a lot of fun trying. I would suggest you pipe down though, you are making a nincompoop of yourself.

 

[marshy68]

I think some people are a little sanctimonious about this. It's all very well saying if you found cash you'd hand it to the police / member of staff etc, but what would you do in the situation I found myself in during Euro 2004?

I was in the middle of a bottleneck of several hundred people being funnelled through ticket turnstiles outside Porto's ground for Italy vs Sweden. I looked down to get my ticket out of my wallet and saw a big wad of Euro notes on the ground. I quickly picked them up 'mid-shuffle' and, once through to the other side, counted up close on 200 Euros. There was no way that was going to some greasy Portuguese steward.

Mmmm but it later did go to some greasy portuguese hooker..... i will never forget the words "Grande Grande" as her adams apple moved up and down awww happy days.....

 

[Nibble]

How the law see's it....

Uncollected or abandoned goods

If you have uncollected or abandoned goods you have a duty to look after them, but cannot use them or treat them as your own even if found on your property. You will be liable for anyloss or damage caused to the goods while they are in your care. If you've made steps to find and contact the original owner and they fail to collect the goods within a reasonable period, you can sell them. However, you have to prove you've followed the correct procedure here.

 

[B52]

Found $400 malaysian dollars on a train in a wallet when going to Panang in 1959...a fortune then...I was going on leave for a fortnight....I had $32 dollars for my leave...I found an ID card in there, it belonged to an RAF sergeant...I tracked him down and gave him his wallet...he just put it in his pocket and carried on talking to his mate without as much as a thank you. 4 years ago found a purse with £42 in it,it had a Co-op card in there so I handed it into the shop...never heard what happened to it....but what made everything seem worthwhile I found a purse belonging to an old age pensioner,the grand amount of £4.87p...I found her in a shop and gave it to her...she was so grateful that she said she would buy me some sweets....bless her...those toffees were great....(joking)....it was so nice to get a thank you and made it all seem honesty is the best policy.

Nice touch, bet that made your day

 

[StonehamPark]

Reasonable steps should be taken to find the owner but after that it is all about who has the better claim, in this case Sainsbury's do. As I said, if you think I am wrong please provide proof or kindly pipe down!

You stated that if it is lost on private property they own it. You were trying to sound like an expert, you got it wrong. No bother, I accept your apology. As for proof, I have dealt with many issues like this in my former professional life and you are wrong. If you wanna prove me wrong then I hope you have a lot of fun trying. I would suggest you pipe down though, you are making a nincompoop of yourself.

It's a fairly grey area and it's not 100% clear as to the right or wrong thing to do as there are so many variables. For this particular circumstance, see the first paragraph below; 'Mislaid Property'.

--

Mislaid property
Property is generally deemed to have been mislaid or misplaced if it is found in a place where the true owner likely did intend to set it, but then simply forgot to pick it up again. For example, a wallet found in a shop lying on a counter near a cash register will likely be deemed misplaced rather than lost. Under common law principles, the finder of a misplaced object has a duty to turn it over to the owner of the premises, on the theory that the true owner is likely to return to that location to search for his misplaced item. If the true owner does not return within a reasonable time (which varies considerably depending on the circumstances), the property becomes that of the owner of the premises.[9]

Abandoned property
Property is generally deemed to have been abandoned if it is found in a place where the true owner likely intended to leave it, but is in such a condition that it is apparent that he or she has no intention of returning to claim it. Abandoned property generally becomes the property of whoever should find it and take possession of it first, although some states have enacted statutes under which certain kinds of abandoned property – usually cars, wrecked ships and wrecked aircraft – escheat, meaning that they become the property of the state.

 

[Nibble]

Seems very clear cut to me. The bottom line is if you return within a reasonable time and can prove the items/money belong to you the owner of the premises is legally obliged to return the goods/money. Just because it is private property the owner of that property does not automatically assume ownership. Once a reasonable time has passed, say a month or two to be on the safe side, it can be reasonably assumed the item/money has been lost or abandoned and th eowner of the property can assume ownership. Simple as that.

 

[seagulls4ever]

You stated that if it is lost on private property they own it. You were trying to sound like an expert, you got it wrong. No bother, I accept your apology. As for proof, I have dealt with many issues like this in my former professional life and you are wrong. If you wanna prove me wrong then I hope you have a lot of fun trying. I would suggest you pipe down though, you are making a nincompoop of yourself.

I provided a simple statement without complicating matters so that the OP could know that Sainsbury's were well within their rights here. What is also relevant is where on private property the money is found. If money was found in the street the OP would have a better right to claim. I have provided further details in subsequent posts. How do I know? I found myself in a similar position when I found some money in a university and asked my property law teacher what my rights were, who outlined similar to what I have. In any case I handed the money in and was told that if the money was not claimed the university (who had the better right to claim) would give the money to charity.

 

[Southstandfaithful]

i found money in the street near the post office when i was younger and handed it in as i thought it was probably someones pension or similar.....a couple of years ago my husband dropped he's wallet in a car park in Horsham and a very nice lady handed that in...... Karma!

 

[seagulls4ever]

I note other things have now been posted which support what I have said, including by the poster who was disputing what I said in the first place