WHAT WOULD YOU DO? – FINDERS KEEPERS? (1 Viewer)

Aug 18, 2017
241
763
Antequera, Spain
Funster No
50,050
MH
Adria Coral 680 SP
Exp
5 years and still learning
WHAT WOULD YOU DO? – FINDERS KEEPERS?

Went to grocery store this morning for milk and bread. Walking around I saw an envelope lying on the floor. Picking it up, I opened the flap and saw a wad of cash. I felt my heart heart skip a beat and immediately thought “What to do?” and I put it in my jacket pocket. Finishing up my bit of shopping I went out to the car and and opened the envelope. £800 and a bank withdrawl slip were the contents!

Getting home a short while later and thinking “oh boy what I could do with that amount of money”. However, along with those thoughts were “what if it was another hard up pensioner or this was someones holiday money”. I know I could have used some extra cash for my week in Spain this Friday.

I will admit, I wrestled with my conscience for an hour before calling the police to find out if anyone had reported losing money that morning. The officer said there had been a distraught gentleman who had reported losing his months pension after taking the cash out of his bank account. He asked me if I had found it, to which I replied yes and would they give the gentlemans name and phone number, which they did.

So I phoned and told the gentleman my address and asked would he like to come and get his cash. He turned up a little while later to collect his money and despite my reluctance he made me accept a reward for returning it to him. So at least I can add that to my holiday spending money with a clear conscience.

What would you have done? ... We all like to think we are honest but temptation can be a bugger!
 
Oct 24, 2015
5,265
32,880
Helgas house
Funster No
39,736
MH
hymer e650 battered!!
Exp
None
WHAT WOULD YOU DO? – FINDERS KEEPERS?

Went to grocery store this morning for milk and bread. Walking around I saw an envelope lying on the floor. Picking it up, I opened the flap and saw a wad of cash. I felt my heart heart skip a beat and immediately thought “What to do?” and I put it in my jacket pocket. Finishing up my bit of shopping I went out to the car and and opened the envelope. £800 and a bank withdrawl slip were the contents!

Getting home a short while later and thinking “oh boy what I could do with that amount of money”. However, along with those thoughts were “what if it was another hard up pensioner or this was someones holiday money”. I know I could have used some extra cash for my week in Spain this Friday.

I will admit, I wrestled with my conscience for an hour before calling the police to find out if anyone had reported losing money that morning. The officer said there had been a distraught gentleman who had reported losing his months pension after taking the cash out of his bank account. He asked me if I had found it, to which I replied yes and would they give the gentlemans name and phone number, which they did.

So I phoned and told the gentleman my address and asked would he like to come and get his cash. He turned up a little while later to collect his money and despite my reluctance he made me accept a reward for returning it to him. So at least I can add that to my holiday spending money with a clear conscience.

What would you have done? ... We all like to think we are honest but temptation can be a bugger!


Exactly what you did!!

But I would have taken it round to him, instead of making him walk 30 miles uphill to your house, hoping he would have a heart attack and didn't turn up!! Lol xx. Well played tibbo, your a gent!!

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Carol

LIFE MEMBER
Oct 2, 2007
14,042
111,434
North Wales.
Funster No
519
MH
A class
Exp
18 years s Motorhome (33years caravans)
The same as you, no matter how hard up you may be if your honest you would never get any benefit from it, always on your conscious Good on you, he was lucky not everyone is as honest.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Feb 24, 2013
12,991
101,154
Bolsover, Derbyshire
Funster No
24,833
MH
Hymer S800
Exp
not long enough
the one thing I wouldn't have done, which nobody has suggested either, is handing it over to the shop

nice story, great ending, gratifying to meet the loser as well in this case

but what on earth is he doing drawing out all his pension in cash o_O
 

jumartoo

Funster
LIFE MEMBER
Oct 19, 2015
6,888
187,777
Alhama de Murcia, Spain
Funster No
39,634
MH
Hymer Tramp
Exp
Since 1994
I found a wallet containing cards and a substantial amount of cash (over £1,000) in the middle of a road after leaving an orienteering competition in Nottinghamshire. We rang the contact phone number every half hour until late at night. When the number was answered the man hadn't realised it was lost. He'd put it on the roof of his car whilst he'd changed his clothes and driven off!!!

He was in St Albans and insisted of driving to Sheffield to collect it even though we said we'd send it to him by registered mail. We sat up until after 2 am, gave him a coffee, offered him a place to stay for the night which he declined, and then he left.

No reward was offered, even though we wouldn't have wanted it!!!
 

Puddleduck

LIFE MEMBER
Jan 15, 2014
12,357
43,865
Scottish Borders
Funster No
29,703
MH
Without at present
Exp
On and off for many years.
I would (and have) done pretty much what you did. When I found cash it went to the police. When I found a handbag it had a name and address and I contacted the person directly. "Have you lost something recently and can you describe it?". With a bank slip I think I would have gone to the bank and asked them to contact their customer - most police stations here are unmanned these days, just a phone handset to contact a central call centre on the outskirts of Edinburgh.

I have also found an ATM with a cash card in it and with the PIN number entered. I cancelled the transaction and handed the card into the bank telling them the circumstances in which I found the card. I waited until they had checked the account for missing money, left my name and contact details as they were unable to contact the card holder. I heard nothing afterwards.

My Mum lost a purse, she carries my contact details in her purse, not her own as she has a house key in there. The man who found it contacted me before she even realised she had lost it...... actually it took me quite a long time to get her to check her bag for her purse as she denied having lost it (left at a supermarket checkout). Anyway all is well that ends well and I am sure the majority of people are honest.
 

Mikey RV

LIFE MEMBER
Mar 7, 2010
4,847
23,856
Devon
Funster No
10,532
MH
Burstner Elegance I821G
Exp
Since 1977
I would have done exactly the same as you. Well done. Karma is a wonderful thing. (y)
 

Puddleduck

LIFE MEMBER
Jan 15, 2014
12,357
43,865
Scottish Borders
Funster No
29,703
MH
Without at present
Exp
On and off for many years.
So what do you do if you find something like a gift card or small amount of cash with no way of finding the person who lost it? Would you keep it or donate to a charity?

My daughter works for Royal Mail and over Christmas she was doing overtime in the sorting office. She said they often find gift cards in the bottom of sacks. There is a procedure for dealing with them. If the procedures are not followed it's an instant dismissal.

So if you lose a gift card in the post it is worth asking, especially if you have some sort of proof of posting.
 
Last edited:

magicsurfbus

Free Member
Oct 11, 2010
4,673
10,127
NW England
Funster No
14,057
MH
Bessacarr Coachbuilt
Exp
Since 1997
I'd have taken it back to the bank if there was an identifiable withdrawal slip with it, then maybe told the Police station it was at the bank.

Recently I put in some online bids at the local auction house, won some boxes of old house clearance stuff, and on turning up to collect them found some thieving git had pinched one of my boxes off the shelves in the auction room. I was refunded, but it's not the first time it's happened. Anyway, I took the remaining boxes home and started going through them - one was a mixed box of cameras. As I took one of them out of its case £50 in cash fell out. That definitely was finders keepers - thieving git stole the wrong box didn't he? :)

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Mar 16, 2010
3,050
29,974
Carmarthenshire
Funster No
10,651
MH
In between
Exp
Since 1988
Would have done the same as you
I once found an envelope with just under £100 in by the pumps when filling up with fuel I told the cashier and I gave him my number and told him if someone reported it lost to ring my number.
About 15 mins later a very elderly gentlemen rang to say he had lost his pension money at the fuel station and he told me exactly how much was in the envelope. He came in his car to where I was and was so grateful and wanted to give me a reward but it was reward enough to see the look of relief on his face when he got his money back.
 

Bailey58

LIFE MEMBER
Jun 23, 2010
8,782
29,102
Norfolk and Toftir.
Funster No
12,267
MH
Sold
Exp
July 2010 (ex tugger)
Like everyone else I would try everything to contact the owner but I can't imagine anyone posting on here saying anything else. Does that figure that anyone not answering this thread would keep the dosh? :LOL:
 

cliffanger

LIFE MEMBER
Apr 15, 2013
4,793
33,793
Saltford
Funster No
25,562
MH
Hymer A class
Exp
Since 2013
Small amount of cash - into a charity box, not sure with a gift card - probably give it to the originating shop, if it wasnt miles out of my way to do it - but I wouldn't spend it myself.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

funflair

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 11, 2013
19,196
29,881
Guisborough
Funster No
29,351
MH
MORELO palace
Exp
since 2012
Anybody struggling with this dilemma, and I am pleased to see very few if any are BUT if you were just ask yourself if it was the other way around what outcome would you wish for;)

Martin
 

Silver-Fox

LIFE MEMBER
Sep 5, 2014
9,234
28,694
Cheltenham Spa
Funster No
33,201
MH
Rapido
Exp
im a not so newbie
I would have gone to the bank if there was a withdrawal slip they would then be able to contact the owner . But you did right
if it had been £8,000,000 in a briefcase left by Nigerian in taxi then maybe ?

That being the case it’s probably our tax money that has been lifted from our foreign aid.
So if you kept it you would just be repatriating it :D
 
Sep 4, 2017
198
370
North West, UK
Funster No
50,345
MH
VW T6.1 Transporter
Exp
Since 2017
Well done you, Karma and all that (y)

A few years back some friends were trying to sell their house. It was a really weird property (converted school) and whilst beautiful in places, it needed a huge amount of work and a lot of money spending on it, and had been on the market for a couple of years; the inability to sell was causing a lot of stress.

This couple were walking their dog and found a mobile phone, clearly dropped. Thankfully it didn't have a screen lock in operation so they went through the contacts, found "Mum" and called her. The phone belonged to her son who was visiting from south of England. A couple of hours later, the son arrived at our friends to collect his phone. They got chatting and he joked that theirs was the perfect house for him, and the completely separate one-bed cottage (which used to the the Headmaster's house) would be a perfect granny annex for "Mum".

Three months later he (and his Mum) moved in . . . Karma and all that :D
 
Feb 5, 2014
1,674
3,909
mid-Norfolk
Funster No
29,980
MH
A class
Exp
since 2006
My 90y old Dad, with dementia, likes to have £1000 in cash in his wallet (n).
He puts it in his LH trouser pocket, gets it out, counts it, transfers it to his RH trouser pocket .
Then he gets it out, counts it and transfers it to his shirt pocket.(n)(n)
Then he gets it out, counts it and transfers it back to his LH pocket.
If he goes out, his jacket allows him 2 further pockets to transfer it between.
Quite often he forgets which pocket it is in and complains that someone has stolen it :whistle:.

At least, that's what used to happen. In 2017 we got him down to £500 (y). Quite often he would ring me (I live 200miles away) and complain that he had no money: when I got him to count what was in his wallet it might only be £300 and he would say "like I said - no money".

When he was admitted to hospital, the nurse was very keen to have the money taken away from him, but it causes him such stress.

Now he is in a care home and he is getting used to having £5 in cash, but I still think that is too much. However, it is my brother who deals with his money and it is also him who deals with the constant aggravation (usually whilst at work) from Dad.

They say that "a fool and his money is soon parted" and that "there is no fool like an old fool" :(. However, my Dad has always been a really nice man who would help anyone and I would like to think that if he did lose his wallet, someone would do as everyone on here has stated.

Gordon

PS I handed a beautiful gemstone ring in to the police and was sent a cheque for £80 from the owner who said it was the only memento from her dead mother, so losing it would have been disastrous. Honesty is always the best policy :).

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Jun 2, 2010
4,924
11,286
Flintshire
Funster No
11,891
MH
Low profile
Exp
since 2010
I found a wage packet once, the ‘owner’ was on an emergency tax code and had a shed load of tax stopped from the gross pay, just my flaming luck:cry:
 

Two on Tour

LIFE MEMBER
Sep 16, 2016
10,202
49,848
Near the junction of the A14 and A1, Cambs
Funster No
45,145
MH
Elddis Autoquest 175
Exp
Since 2010
About 4 or 5 years ago I was walking down the street when a fiver came blowing towards me on the wind. I trapped it with my foot and as there was nobody obvious that it could have come from I smiled and put it in my pocket, but if I had been in the same scenario as Tibbo the I would not of hesitated in following his actions.

Many many years ago I lost my wallet with about 40 quid in it. We had been hang gliding at Hay Bluff in Wales so I had lost most likely at Hay Bluff or Luton while we were loading the hang gliders on the roof rack. About a week later a recorded delivery arrived with my wallet in it with everything still in it. It had been found by one of the lads who were on an outing from a borstal who handed it over and as it had my driving license in it they posted it back with a short covering letter. I rang the borstal and asked if I could reward the lad to which the reply was his reward was doing the right thing and being praised for it. (y)
 
Oct 24, 2015
5,265
32,880
Helgas house
Funster No
39,736
MH
hymer e650 battered!!
Exp
None
the one thing I wouldn't have done, which nobody has suggested either, is handing it over to the shop

nice story, great ending, gratifying to meet the loser as well in this case

but what on earth is he doing drawing out all his pension in cash o_O

That goes without saying Dave,,,, would prob never been seen sgain!!!

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Join us or log in to post a reply.

To join in you must be a member of MotorhomeFun

Join MotorhomeFun

Join us, it quick and easy!

Log in

Already a member? Log in here.

Latest journal entries

Funsters who are viewing this thread

Back
Top