Found Money

[stephanier.1765]

At which point do you turn in found money? I found a $20 bill on the floor at Target and I will admit to toying with the idea of keeping it. However, it wasn't hard to quickly come to the decision that $20 was too much to sit on my conscience so I turned it in at the service desk. I figured that if the service desk was less than honest with it then at least that was on their conscience and not mine.

 

But also to be honest, if it had been less than $10 I probably would have kept it. Over $10 but less than $20, I would have thought long and hard but more than likely I would have turned it in (at least I think I would).

 

All this thought process had me wondering what others would do in similar circumstances. At what point is it okay to keep found money and at what point is it not? Or is it never okay? This isn't a JAWM. I really am curious where others draw the line.

[I talk to the trees]

I found a social security card on the ground at Target a couple of weeks ago. (Sorry. I know that doesn't answer your question, but when you mentioned Target I thought of it!)

 

I think I would be more likely to tell customer service that I had found something, and give them my phone number or email address. I'd probably post on Craigslist too.  Maybe I'm an old humbug, but I would be afraid that the employee would just pocket the cash.

[solascriptura]

A few bucks? I don't think it matters either way. However, if i find money, I usually donate it by putting in one of those donation jars at cashier counters.

[AlmiraGulch]

Just a plain $20 bill laying wherever?  I'd keep it.  If it were in a wallet or I saw someone drop it I'd turn it in/tell them. 

 

If I dropped $20 it would not occur to me to expect I'd get it back so I would not bother asking about it at the customer service desk or whatever.

 

I agree with this.

 

If I found a significant amount of money, like an envelope full of cash or something, I'd likely turn it in, if I were in a place that had somewhere to turn it in (like a store).

[Excelsior! Academy]

At Target I'd probably turn it in no matter how small.  On a public street I might pocket a small amount if I had no clue to whom it belonged.  If were a larger amount like $50 or more I'd likely turn that in to a police station.

[Guest submarines]

Just a plain $20 bill laying wherever?  I'd keep it.  If it were in a wallet or I saw someone drop it I'd turn it in/tell them. 

 

If I dropped $20 it would not occur to me to expect I'd get it back so I would not bother asking about it at the customer service desk or whatever.

 

This. It would not occur to me to go to customer service if I lost just money, even if it was more than $20.

 

If I saw a $20 bill on the ground I'd stick around for a little bit to see if anyone looked like they were looking for it, and I'd approach them.

[poppy]

I really can't imagine anyone who dropped money going to the service desk to ask if it'd be turned in.   I am just picturing the conversation.  "Can you describe the $20 bill?"

 

I'd just look to see if anyone nearby looks to have dropped it. I'd ask "did you just drop some money?" and if they said "yes, a $20 bill" I'd give it  back. Otherwise, I'd keep it.

 

A large amount of money would go to the local police.

[Kathryn]

At Target I'd probably turn it in no matter how small. On a public street I might pocket a small amount if I had no clue to whom it belonged. If were a larger amount like $50 or more I'd likely turn that in to a police station.

This. If I were in a place that had a definite area the loser (that sounds mean) would go to in order to attempt to reclaim the money, I'd turn it in no matter how small (okay, not for coins). In a public place, I'd take to the police for over $20 or in a wallet.

[shawthorne44]

To me it isn't the amount that makes a difference.  If there was anyway to identify the owner, then I would turn it in no matter the amount. If there was no way to identify the owner, I would keep it regardless.  I would assume that it would just be snagged by the store or an employee if I did turn it in.  

Something jewelry that is identifiable?  Always turned in.  

[Night Elf]

Honestly, even if I had lost my wallet and got it back, I'd never expect to find cash still in it. I would have kept the $20, but more than that I would go turn in, even if I believed the person in customer service would pocket it. I wouldn't feel guilty over $20. It wouldn't occur to me to go ask customer service about cash I might have lost, unless it was my purse and/or wallet.

[Tap]

I don't know, it is hard to say.  I have found almost $500 in a wad outside the post office when I was a teenager.  I turned it in the PO. Later when I inquired they said the owner came to claim it.  I always wondered if they were honest or not. 

 

When I have found a $20, I kept it. When I found a $100 and a gold bracelet (different times) in a bar that I worked at, I kept them.  But I knew that if anyone came to claim it, I would have been the one they asked and I would have returned it without a second thought.  I didn't turn them into the manager or owner, because they were not honest and would have pocketed it themselves.

 

I have never returned the random $1-20s I have found over the years. Like others, it wouldn't occur to me to go ask about that amount if I lost it, so it didn't occur to me to turn it in.  

 

 

I do find money quite often, at least once a month or so. I think I look down more than other people. I have a bad leg and trip easily, so I need to keep an eye out for uneven ground.  When I do find money, I have a little tradition so to speak that I do with it.  I kept it in my purse and then the next time someone asks for a donation or tells me about a volunteer project they are working on, I give them the money.  

 

The last time I did this, I gave $20 to the person driving kids to Mexico for a mission trip.  But it has been random donations to kids knocking on the door fundraising, or the big glass donation jar for the children's hospital in our area at Costco.  It makes it a bit fun for me to see where the money is going to end up.

[Chelle in MO]

We always try to find the owner, but if we can't we don't worry about it.  We don't turn money in to the service desk at the store--we tell them we have some money someone might miss and leave our number for them to call if the person comes looking for it.

 

Some examples I can think of when this has happened to us:

 

This happened to ds11 and me at a grocery store a couple of months ago.  We found a $20 bill in the parking lot on the way back to our car.  I asked ds if he noticed any of the people who were going into the store, and he said, "Yes, there was a guy wearing a black t-shirt w/a hockey logo on the sleeve."  We went into the store, found the guy, asked if he might've dropped some money in the parking lot, and he checked his pockets and said, "Yes, a twenty." We handed over the bill and he was amazed that we would go to the trouble of finding him and he was very thankful.

 

Another time, we were walking out of a grocery store and saw $100 lying on the sidewalk.  I went to the service desk and told them I'd found an amount of money that I thought someone would miss.  I left my number and asked them to call me if someone came in asking if money was turned in.  As I was leaving the store, I saw a man scanning the ground and asked him if he'd lost something.  He said, "Yes!  $100!"  I gave it to him and he was so grateful.

 

Last week, dh found a $5 bill lying in the street about 1/2 a block away from our house.  He kept it.  There was no way of telling who it might've belonged to, short of going door-to-door, which we thought would be silly.

 

[Lolly]

Where is the other option?

 

I never turn it in. I tell the service counter I found some money, a purse, a wallet, a necklace and give them my contact number. If the person calling to claim it can identify it in some way, it is returned to them. A purse or wallet will usually have identification of some sort to allow the owner to be found. I have used a credit card to call the issuing company and have the owner contact me. I've used the cell phone ice feature to call that person and locate the owner. Jewelry and cash, I have never had someone call to identify it. Cash simply identified through size of bill/amount.

[school17777]

Dd found a $20 bill on the ground of at a lax game. We were behind the bleachers on the way to use the restroom. There was nobody around us, except for the athletic director who told dd to keep it. I pointed out where we were just in case someone was looking for it.

[AlmiraGulch]

To me it isn't the amount that makes a difference.  If there was anyway to identify the owner, then I would turn it in no matter the amount. If there was no way to identify the owner, I would keep it regardless.  I would assume that it would just be snagged by the store or an employee if I did turn it in.  

Something jewelry that is identifiable?  Always turned in.  

 

Well, yes.....if there were a way to identify the owner, no matter what the amount, I would never keep it. 

[gardenmom5]

I voted for less than 5, but that usually only involves change.  a quarter, a penny, a single piece of metal, it hasn't occurred to me to look for an owner who is probably long gone.  for a $1 (or a stack of coins), I probably would turn it in because someone may be missing it.  as you say, if the service desk is less than honest, that's their conscience, not mine.

[mom2att]

I'd be comfortable keeping a twenty or less, but I would keep my eyes out while I was still in the store for someone obviously looking for something they'd dropped.  If it were a $50 I'd probably turn it in to customer service.

 

My brother-in-law found a $50 in the water while we were at the beach and he kept it.  There were a ton of people there--it would have been pointless to have asked everyone if they had lost money, because eventually someone would have guessed the right amount.

 

But this discussion makes me think of It's a Wonderful Life where Uncle Billy loses the money and evil Mr. Potter keeps it.  I hate that part of the movie!

 

[trudence1]

I never leave cash at the customer service.  Thanks to stories of friends who have worked there, I don't trust them.  I do what some of the above posters said and let customer service know I found cash and give them my number so someone could contact me.  I then put it aside for a couple of months.  If they don't call in that time, I consider it mine.

[TeenagerMom]

I once lost my wallet with several hundred dollars in it. My Mom worked at the store & the finder lady wouldn't even give it to her! She said the person who lost it could leave their # at the service desk & she would call them. Fortunately my Mom knew the lady worked at the highway department so I called the police to contact her. They got a hold of her & she contacted me because she wouldn't even give it to the police with that much money in it! She insisted she hand it to me directly! I was very greatful & sent her a nice bouquet of flowers to thank her.

 

Any amount over $10, I would give my # at the service desk. Anything under, I would keep.

[DawnM]

Good thinking.

 

Dawn

 

 

Where is the other option?

 

I never turn it in. I tell the service counter I found some money, a purse, a wallet, a necklace and give them my contact number. If the person calling to claim it can identify it in some way, it is returned to them. A purse or wallet will usually have identification of some sort to allow the owner to be found. I have used a credit card to call the issuing company and have the owner contact me. I've used the cell phone ice feature to call that person and locate the owner. Jewelry and cash, I have never had someone call to identify it. Cash simply identified through size of bill/amount.

 

[DawnM]

A man came to our house in a huff.  He had a wallet and one of the ID things had our address on it.  Turns out it belonged to the previous owners of our house.  

 

He wouldn't give it to me either.  

 

However, we had mutual friends I knew how to get in contact with him, so I called our mutual friend and the man who found it gave it directly to the owner.

 

Dawn

 

 

I once lost my wallet with several hundred dollars in it. My Mom worked at the store & the finder lady wouldn't even give it to her! She said the person who lost it could leave their # at the service desk & she would call them. Fortunately my Mom knew the lady worked at the highway department so I called the police to contact her. They got a hold of her & she contacted me because she wouldn't even give it to the police with that much money in it! She insisted she hand it to me directly! I was very greatful & sent her a nice bouquet of flowers to thank her.

Any amount over $10, I would give my # at the service desk. Anything under, I would keep.

 

[freeindeed]

I would try to return any money I found...except for coins.

[Katy]

hmmm, when I've randomly found $5 on the ground, I kept it.

 

If I found a wallet or something with ID that could be identified, I'd turn it in or get it back to the owner.

 

I've returned cell phones to the carrier's store.

[Melissa in Australia]

depends where it is found. if it is in a shop we hand it all in. if it is out in the street and it is a coin 10 c to $2 coin in isolation we keep it, if it is a note (lowest note here is $5) we would hand it in to the nearest shop.

[nd293]

I keep coins.

 

I would keep notes if found in a place that they couldn't be handed over to someone or properly identified (eg blowing around on a busy road - actual experience I had). But if this was a large amount such as a wad of money I'd hand it in to the nearest police station.

[Mergath]

If I find five bucks or less on the ground, I'd probably keep it, just because almost nobody is going to try to hunt down a couple bucks they dropped.  More than that though, and I'd turn it in.  I know there's almost no chance it will ever get back to the owner, but I'd feel bad keeping it regardless.  If the customer service rep pockets it, it can be on their conscience, but I don't want it on mine.

[swellmomma]

I don't know.  I remember the sick feeling I had when ds15 lost a $20 of mine.  I sent him to the grocery store with it to get milk and bread.  He got to the till and the money was gone.  We had no other grocery money that week, that was it.  No one turned it in (yes we did ask, and posted signs at the community message boards in town), but never did find it.  For some $20 is nothing and they would not bother asking at customer service for it, but for others, that $20 may have been all they had to pick up the diapers or whatever else they were getting at target and they would be searching everywhere and asking.  For me a $20 or greater I would turn in.  Most places here will take your name and number and phone you if it is not claimed in X number days so you can have it.  But I would not feel right just keeping it, because you just don't know what kind of person lost it.

[Artichoke]

If we were in a store, we'd turn any paper money that we found into customer service. I know that it's a long shot that it'll be claimed, but imo, it's not ours to keep. If we found it on the street, then we'd probably place it into a charity jar unless it was a rather large amount that someone could identify.

[FO4UR]

I found $7 the other day.  It was under a lawn chair at the park.  I waited until the person came and sat in the chair  and returned it.

 

 

$7 isn't much...unless it's your lunch money...then it's a great deal until supper time.

[Farrar]

If it's clear someone dropped it or I can return it, I'd do that, obviously, but I've never had that happen.  My policy is usually that I pick it up and hold on to it and then give it to the first person - no judgment whatsoever of reason - who asks me for money.  I don't need found money.

 

The most I've ever found though was $20 once.  I was 20 yo, completely broke (my wallet had been lost), alone by myself across country, waiting for a plane home - I think it was two days or a day later.  I had a free bus card to get to the airport and a sort of place to crash but nothing left for food or anything else.  It was like...  the heavens opened up and dropped that money in that phone booth for me.  I've never been happier in my life.  So that one I didn't give away.  I ate two meals off it and bought a used book to read.

 

I don't know what I'd do if I found more than that.  I mean, in a wallet, I'd definitely turn it in.  Just by itself...  How would you ever know who it really belonged to?  Part of me would want to give it to charity.  Not sure...

 

 

[Camelfeet]

Where is the other option?

 

I never turn it in. I tell the service counter I found some money, a purse, a wallet, a necklace and give them my contact number. If the person calling to claim it can identify it in some way, it is returned to them. A purse or wallet will usually have identification of some sort to allow the owner to be found. I have used a credit card to call the issuing company and have the owner contact me. I've used the cell phone ice feature to call that person and locate the owner. Jewelry and cash, I have never had someone call to identify it. Cash simply identified through size of bill/amount.

 

This is exactly what I would do.  I've only ever done it once, with a bracelet I found.  No one ever contacted me.      

[Luanne]

It is doubtful that Target is going to find out who actually dropped the $20.  I think I would still turn it in to customer service though.  I wouldn't feel right about keeping it.

[JoJosMom]

At which point do you turn in found money? I found a $20 bill on the floor at Target and I will admit to toying with the idea of keeping it. However, it wasn't hard to quickly come to the decision that $20 was too much to sit on my conscience so I turned it in at the service desk. I figured that if the service desk was less than honest with it then at least that was on their conscience and not mine.

 

But also to be honest, if it had been less than $10 I probably would have kept it. Over $10 but less than $20, I would have thought long and hard but more than likely I would have turned it in (at least I think I would).

 

All this thought process had me wondering what others would do in similar circumstances. At what point is it okay to keep found money and at what point is it not? Or is it never okay? This isn't a JAWM. I really am curious where others draw the line.

 

We return everything except change.

Interesting note:  We had the exact same situation happen in Big Lots as happened to you in Target.  When we turned it in, the manager looked at me like I had lost my mind. But, as I explained to my then 6 year old daughter, for all we know that $20 was all that person had and he/she would quickly recognize its loss and return.  No way would I want that loss on my conscience, thank you very much.  But I expect the store employees got a subsidized pizza out of it. :glare:

[Annie G]

I'll be honest- if I found $20 on the bike trail, I'd keep it. If I found $20 in Walmart, I'd probably feel obligated to turn it in. It's the same amount of money and the same chance of finding its way back to the true owner...virtually none.  It's curious that I would act differently even though the amount of money was the same.

 

If there is identifying info, then of course I would try to locate the owner.  

 

 

[ereks mom]

When EK was about 9 or 10 years old, she found a neatly folded $100 bill on the floor in the grocery area at Walmart.  Dh went to the service desk and asked to speak to a manager.  Dh told the manager that his daughter had found some money--he didn't disclose how much--and that she would like to return it to the owner. Dh gave the manager his phone number and told her that if anyone came and reported having lost some money, to have the person call him and tell him how much money it was and to describe it as best they could. 

 

A short time later that day, an older lady telephoned dh and said that she had been instructed by the Walmart manager to call dh.  "In the grocery area at Walmart," she said, she had lost "a $100 bill, all folded up."  We agreed to meet her at a fast food restaurant nearby, and EK returned the money to her.  The lady was SO grateful that she gave EK a $25 reward! And she kept telling EK over and over, "I can tell that your parents have raised you right." 

[Annie G]

Does anyone think that today a Walmart or Target might pressure you to leave the found money, as it's 'not yours' to take?  I just wonder where that line is. If there's a purse in a cart in the cart corral, taking it with you might be viewed as stealing it. Just wondering...

[goldberry]

When I was a kid and arcade games were first starting to be *big*, my friend and I walked to the 7-11 to play Ms. PacMan.  When we finally ran out of quarters and were walking home, lo and behold on the ground...A QUARTER!! 

 

I have to say we did not consider reporting it, but rather thought it a gift from God giving us one more game of Ms. PacMan.  We squealed like we won the lottery...

[Chelle in MO]

Does anyone think that today a Walmart or Target might pressure you to leave the found money, as it's 'not yours' to take?  I just wonder where that line is. If there's a purse in a cart in the cart corral, taking it with you might be viewed as stealing it. Just wondering...

 

I can't imagine them doing that around here, but stranger things have happened!  The way I see it, It's no more theirs than it is mine, and since it's essentially abandoned property I wouldn't think stealing would apply.

[LMV]

I was raised not to take that which was not mine.  We're trying to raise our children the same way.  In this view, there really isn't an amount of money that is "inconsequential" enough to justify going against that basic principle.

[Lolly]

Does anyone think that today a Walmart or Target might pressure you to leave the found money, as it's 'not yours' to take?  I just wonder where that line is. If there's a purse in a cart in the cart corral, taking it with you might be viewed as stealing it. Just wondering...

 

I have simply handed them a piece of paper with the basics of what it was (jewelry, money) that I found and my phone number. I don't give them the option. I have had them tell me I should hand it to them for safe keeping. They have never questioned it when I respond that I am not comfortable with that. I have actually found a purse in a cart in the corral. I don't see how anyone can consider it stealing when you immediately phone someone to make contact with the owner (from info inside the purse). If the person chooses not to contact me after I have located them (never happened before), then it was abandoned and mine for the picking up. I have had to try a couple of times to make contact before.

[MissKNG]

My oldest turned in a $5 bill she found in Walmart, her idea and she was 7. I was very proud of her honesty.