During the most forgetful days house keys are always on the list. Photo: Pixabay.
DURBAN - Drivers of e-hailing taxi services often find the most bizarre items in their back seats left behind by preoccupied, forgetful or even intoxicated passengers.
In Durban it’s on Tuesdays that most items are lost and found and these include keys, cellphones, bags, groceries and sunglasses.
Nationally the list also includes items of clothing, cellphone chargers, laptops, handbags and wallets.
Uber’s 2023 lost and found index reveals that riders have in the past forgotten a vacuum cleaner, a fridge, a red carpet, a clear podium and inhalers.
The index indicates that lost items peak on certain days. On Mondays people are most likely to forget keys, watches and jewellery. On Tuesdays its wallets that are left behind while on Wednesdays it’s groceries that top the lists. Lost passports are often found on Thursdays and Fridays its the cellphone chargers that are left behind.
During load shedding hours, items such as solar lights, candles and lamps are often on the most forgotten lists. While during shopping hours, it’s the Woolworths shopping bags that are found. The most popular baby items lost include strollers, bottles and blankets.
Cape Town women are said to have lost the most handbags and some of the items found in the Mother City include wedding rings.
Lorraine Onduru, Communications Manager for Uber, said what has stood out in Durban were a single computer mouse and a Zulu band in a black packet.
She said Cape Town took the title for the most forgetful city followed by Johannesburg with the most lost house keys with the most valuable item to date being a TV set.
“If you are wondering why your party concept could have been better executed, it may have something to do with the event planner leaving a few items behind.”
Onduru said that in an instance when a driver has retrieved a lost item and is unsure who it belongs to, it is often kept at the Green Light Hub, where riders would be able to come in and collect their items in their own time.
“Neither Uber nor drivers are responsible for the items left in a vehicle after a trip ends. We’re here to help but cannot guarantee that a driver has your item or can immediately deliver it to you. If you lost your personal phone, enter a friend’s phone number instead.”
She said altthough they did not have a specific number of independent operators in Durban, they had created thousands of economic opportunities since 2013.
“We cannot specify how many per city but currently, we have over 20 000 drivers and delivery people earning through the Uber and Uber Eats apps.”
Takura Malaba, BOLT regional manager, East and Southern Africa told the Sunday Tribune that they have over 2 000 active drivers in Durban and on Saturdays and Sundays they discover a lot of the lost items.
He said the most common items across all cities also included phones, bags in the boot, laptops, shoes, power banks, phone chargers and groceries but the most strange was underwear.
“Where riders have reached out directly through the app, our customer support team will assist the rider by getting in touch with the driver and facilitate the return of the item.
If a rider is certain that a driver is in possession of a personal item, they can open a case with the SAPS. Once we have received the case number, the Safety team will initiate a block on the driver's account and the driver will have to report to the Police Station to state his case,” he said.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE
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