Uber Lost & Found: The Craziest Things Riders Have Left in Cars
Uber is a great way to get around. Whether providing a ride to the airport or a lift home after a late night of fun, the rideshare service is a convenient option. But sometimes, passengers find themselves distracted or in a hurry when exiting hired cars. And that means they unwittingly leave belongings behind.
That’s where the Uber Lost & Found Index comes in. This annual list of the most common, funniest, and craziest things passengers have left in cars is thoroughly entertaining. Here are some interesting findings from the 2021 index.
The most-forgotten items riders have left in Uber cars
The recently released 2021 Uber Lost & Found Index reveals riders’ “most commonly forgotten and most unique lost items.” It highlights the cities with the most forgetful passengers and even indicates the days of the week and time of day when riders misplaced their belongings.
Over the past year, phones and cameras were the most frequently lost items. Other commonly forgotten items include wallets, keys, backpacks, headphones, glasses, vape pens, IDs, and water bottles.
Passengers in Texas are the worst at remembering to gather their belongings before sliding out of Uber cars’ backseats. Austin, Houston, and San Antonio ranked among the top 10 most forgetful cities. Floridians didn’t fare much better, with Fort Myers and Tampa Bay appearing on the list. Other cities with the most absentminded passengers are Nashville, Phoenix, Kansas City, Charlotte, and Sacramento.
The craziest things passengers have forgotten in Uber cars
Uber also reports some of the “most unique” items left in Uber cars. They include 22 bundt cakes, part of an ankle monitor, a green dinosaur costume, and antique rollerblades.
Oddly, one passenger left a toilet seat in the backseat. Other strange items include a leopard-print pink bikini, a mannequin head, a Harry Potter wand, and hospital scissors. An Uber driver even found a prosthetic leg, which seems impossible to leave behind.
Uber found that worldwide, Friday and Saturday nights are consistently the most forgetful days and times. Most people forget their belongings between 8 p.m. and midnight. The company received the most reports of lost items on Halloween weekend 2020, New Year’s Day 2021, and Mardi Gras night 2021.
Uber even analyzed the most popular items left on certain days. For example, riders commonly misplaced groceries and backpacks on Monday. They left behind cameras on Tuesday and cash on Wednesday. Riders forget to take their birthday gifts with them on Thursdays. Baby items were the most popular things left behind on Fridays and jewelry on Saturdays. And phones were lost most on Sundays.
How to retrieve your lost items
This year is proving to be another forgetful year for Uber passengers. Already, more than 60 riders have left behind their Invisalign retainers, gold grills, or dentures. There were even a few riders that forgot a single tooth.
When it comes to electronics, Apple products are forgotten almost nine times more often than Samsung. Uber reported that in 2021 alone, riders left more than $60,000 in cash in the back of rideshares, with 17 instances of passengers leaving more than $1,000.
If you’re among the many passengers who’ve forgotten something in an Uber, the easiest way to retrieve your belongings is to contact the driver. But if you forgot your phone, log in to your Uber account from a computer.
Then fill out the “find lost item” section and hit “contact driver about a lost item.” Enter a good phone number to reach you, and click “submit.” The process will connect you directly to your driver so that you can arrange a time to retrieve your items.