Uber is a handy way to get around town.
With thousands of drivers operating in cities across the world, you can pretty much guarantee you’ll get a ride.
The large supply of drivers, however, can create problems if you happen to misplace an item in your Uber ride.
What are you to do if you lose an item during your trip with Uber? What steps can you take to get it back?
In this post, we’ll take a look at how to recover Uber lost and found items, including what you can do to maximize your chances of getting the driver to return the important things you’ve lost.
- Does Uber Have a Lost and found?
- What to Do If You Lost an Item in an Uber
- How to Report Uber Lost Items
- How to Maximize Your Chances of Getting an Item Returned
- What to Do If You Found an Item in an Uber
- If You Can Imagine It, Uber Riders Have Lost It
- Uber Lost and Found for Drivers
- Uber Lost and Found FAQ
- Turn Lost Into Found
Does Uber Have a Lost and found?
Uber does not have an actual lost and found where drivers can drop off items that were left behind in their vehicle.
Drivers are independent contractors and do not have any headquarters or office that they report to.
Simply put, there is no central location where you can find an item that you lost.
However, if you do lose an item, Uber has a system in place to help you get your belongings back as promptly as possible.
Lost Items: What Are Uber Drivers’ Obligations?
While you’d like to think that every driver would return lost items to you, this isn’t the reality of the world we live in.
There are a variety of reasons for this.
To start, your Uber driver may not know that you’ve lost the item to begin with.
It could be buried somewhere between their back seats, or another rider after you may have taken the item.
Beyond that, the driver is under no legal obligation to return the item to you.
Uber drivers are independent contractors, meaning Uber does not directly pay them for their time.
Any time they spend trying to give an item back to you is time they could be spending giving more rides and earning fares.
To help compensate for this issue, Uber has instituted a policy in which all passengers must pay a flat $15 fee for the return of lost items.
This fee will be charged to your Uber account with your current payment method and will compensate the Uber driver for the time they took out of their day to return the item you left behind in their vehicle.
This fee goes entirely to the driver, helping to pay them for their time. Still, the fee might not be enough to make it worth it for some drivers to meet up with you.
Finally, not all drivers are honest. This is a sad reality, and there’s not much you can do about it.
A driver could decide to take whatever you’ve left and deny knowing anything about it, especially if it’s a valuable item such as a lost phone.
This is the least likely reason you might not get an item back, but it can happen.
What to Do If You Lost an Item in an Uber
If you lose an item in an Uber, this can be a very stressful situation.
Whether it was your wallet, house key, or favorite face mask, you might still be able to get it back. These commonly forgotten items are not necessarily lost forever.
Once you realize you have lost the item, you should contact your Uber driver immediately.
Uber, the company, will not be able to do much to help you other than put you in touch with the driver. You can save steps and time by contacting the driver yourself.
How to Report Uber Lost Items
To get help with lost items, you first need to report the item as lost.
To do this, you’ll need to follow these steps:
First, open the Uber app, go to the menu, and tap on “Your Trips”:
Then, select the trip where you lost the item from the list of past trips:
Scroll down till you see the option that says “I lost an item.” Tap on this option:
To inform the driver you lost the item, tap “Contact driver about a lost item”:
From there, you’ll need to read Uber’s various disclaimers about lost items (which we’ll discuss below).
Once you’ve read the disclaimer, enter your personal phone number into the field (or a friend’s mobile number if you’ve lost your phone) and tap “Submit”:
You can now attempt to contact your Uber driver about the lost item, leaving them a message if they don’t pick up when you call.
How to Maximize Your Chances of Getting an Item Returned
Even though there’s no guarantee you’ll get your items back, there are steps you can take to increase the chances of a driver returning it.
To start, you should do everything you can to accommodate the driver’s schedule.
In an ideal world, you and the driver would find a mutually convenient time for you to get the item back.
In practice, however, the driver may not be interested in working around your personal schedule.
Whatever you can do to decrease the amount of time it takes to return your item, you should do.
Beyond the amount of time it takes the driver, there’s another way you can increase your chances of getting the item back: offer a reward.
Sure, Uber does already require you to pay $15, but this will hardly cover the cost of going to meet you somewhere while the driver isn’t working.
It’s better to offer the driver an additional cash reward for returning your item.
How much you want to offer is up to you — it depends on the item’s monetary and sentimental value.
But you should make it enough that it’s compelling for the driver.
What to Do If You Found an Item in an Uber
If you are an Uber rider and notice an item leftover in your Uber vehicle, you should inform your driver that this does not belong to you and looks left behind.
Hand the item to your Uber driver, as they can contact their rider to return the item.
Step by Step Instructions
If you are a driver and you found an item in your vehicle or a rider brought a lost item to your attention, follow the steps below to try and return the item to its owner.
- In the Uber app, drivers can select their most recent trip or the trip when the item was left behind and report a lost item.
- The app will prompt you with a form to describe the item and, then, will notify the rider that their driver found something left behind by them.
- After this, all you need to do is wait for the rider to contact you. Then, you can schedule a mutually convenient time and place to make the exchange.
If You Can Imagine It, Uber Riders Have Lost It
Forgetful riders never cease to amaze when it comes to the things they’ve managed to lose while riding with Uber.
According to the Uber Lost and Found Index, passengers have lost some pretty strange things.
Here are some of the strangest (and most concerning):
- Gold grills
- Leaf blower
- Flat screen TV
- Emoji lunch box
- Hair extensions
- Mario doll
- Minnie Mouse light
- Marriage certificate
- College diploma
- Nintendo 64
- Bulletproof vest
- French bulldog statues
- Rhinestone mask
- Kevin Durant jersey
- Feather headband
- Tax returns
- Mouse light-up ears
- 1.3 carat round diamond
- Burger King visor
- Dead Sea mud
- Divorce papers
The most common things people forget in Uber rides, on the other hand, are not as surprising:
- Phone
- Wallet
- Keys
- Clothing
- Glasses
- Bag
- Backpack
- Vape/E-cig
- Headphones
- ID/Drivers License
The pain and frustration of losing something in an Uber vehicle are great no matter what it is you’ve lost.
So what steps can you take to get the lost item back?
Uber Lost and Found for Drivers
When drivers find a lost item, they can contact the rider through the Uber app to let them know their item has been found.
The instructions for this process are laid out above and are very simple.
However, you will need to take time out of your schedule to meet with the rider that lost their item.
You will be compensated for your time by receiving a portion of the $15 fee they charge Uber riders for item returns.
Are Drivers Obligated to Return Lost Items?
No, under no circumstances are any Uber drivers legally obligated to return your lost items.
Neither Uber nor their drivers are responsible for items that riders leave behind in Uber vehicles.
If you have a dishonest driver, they may claim they did not find your item and keep it.
Most Uber drivers are honest and will return your item at their convenience, but it is not guaranteed.
Uber states that all lost items in Uber vehicles are the responsibility of the rider and no one else.
Uber Lost and Found FAQ
Losing an item in an Uber is a stressful and frustrating situation.
For more information on how to go about getting your lost items back or handling the situation, read the frequently asked questions about Uber lost and found below.
What If I Lose My Phone That Has Uber on It?
If the item that you have lost is your phone that has all your Uber account and rides information on it, you have two options.
You’ll need to either borrow a phone from a friend and sign in to your account or wait until you have access to a computer where you can enter your Uber account information.
Uber lost and found services are available on both their desktop website as well as the Uber app, so even if you lose your phone, you can still pull up your ride history and let Uber know that you need to contact your driver.
Unfortunately, losing your phone means it will likely take you longer to get in touch with your driver because you won’t be able to contact them immediately.
Do You Tip Drivers for Returning Lost Items?
There is no obligation to tip your driver for returning your lost item.
The drivers receive some compensation for the time they took to meet with their rider and return the item.
But if you feel so inclined, tipping your driver for their time is a kind and appreciative gesture.
However, if you decide you want to tip them for their time, effort, and honesty, you will have to do so with cash or exchange Venmo or another money transferring service, as you cannot add a tip onto the lost item return fee through the Uber app.
Turn Lost Into Found
We hope this guide has helped you understand how to get back items you lost during an Uber ride.
Remember that you can also report trip issues to Uber customer service, though you should save that as a last resort for after you’ve tried all other possible ways of getting your item back.
Did you lose an item in a Lyft ride? Learn how to get it back with our guide to Lyft Lost and Found.
How do I ensure that my driver receives the $15.00 return fee when I didn’t report it lost?