Most items left on the Tube, buses, trams and black cabs are handled through Transport for London's Lost Property Office. Items left on a train are held by the operator that ran your service (such as Southern, Thameslink, GWR or LNER), so contact them and quote your route, date and time.
Lost property in London
Lost something in London? Here’s how to get it back.
A quick guide to where lost property goes in London — on the Underground, buses and trains, and around the city — plus a calmer way to report a lost or found item and arrange a safe return.
Where lost property goes in London
In most cases, lost property is held by whoever runs the place or service where you lost it — so it’s worth knowing who to contact first:
For a black cab, TfL's Lost Property Office is the route; for private hire, contact the operator or the app you booked with. Keep your receipt or booking reference — it makes tracing the driver much easier.
For a shop, bar, gym, university or venue, ask reception or the duty manager. Valuables and documents found in a public place can be reported to the Metropolitan Police; hand-ins are usually kept for a set period.
Lost property on London’s university campuses
Each university runs its own lost property. Here’s where to start on each campus, taken from the university’s own pages.
UCL Security’s Security Systems office handles lost property for the Bloomsbury campus. Report a lost item with UCL’s online form; things found in UCL libraries are passed to Security.
Contact the security team at the King’s site where you lost it. You can also report a lost item through King’s NotLost form, linked from its student safety page.
Found items are reclaimed from the Security Control Room at South Kensington, between 8am and 4pm. Items found in the Abdus Salam Library are kept for three weeks.
LSE Security runs a Lost Property Office. The first port of call is reception in the Old Building, and the office can be reached by email.
Contact the Security Control Room at the campus where you lost it, as soon as you can.
Birkbeck’s customer service coordinators deal with reporting and claiming lost property in each building.
Report it on Pinglo — and let the city help
Official lost property offices only work if someone hands your item in. Pinglo adds a second route: a live, local feed where anyone who spots your item can tell you straight away — and a safer way to hand things back.
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Post your lost item with a clear description, rough area and time — keeping proof details private so the public post never gives everything away.
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Get a ping the moment someone nearby spots it or posts a matching found item.
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Start a private chat and use claim checks, so both sides can be sure it’s the right match before sharing anything.
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Arrange a safe return with public-meetup guidance, and confirm the handover in the app.
Where things go missing in London
Phones, keys, wallets, bags, laptops, headphones, documents and jewellery tend to go astray on the Tube and night buses, at the mainline termini, around the West End and the City, on campus at UCL, KCL, Imperial and the rest, at the O2, Wembley and the festivals, and on the way home from a night out. Pinglo works for any of them, right across London.
Questions people ask
How do I report something lost on the Tube or a London bus?
Items left on the Tube, buses, trams and black cabs are handled through Transport for London's Lost Property Office, while items left on a train are held by the operator that ran your service. Contact the right one and quote your route, date and time. Alongside that, post the item on Pinglo so anyone who spots it nearby can let you know instantly.
I lost something on a London university campus. What should I do?
Start with that university’s security or lost property office, because that’s where handed-in items go. At UCL, King’s, Imperial, LSE, Queen Mary and Birkbeck the route is on the university’s own security or estates pages, linked on this page. Then post it on Pinglo, so a student who picked it up can reach you without knowing which desk to use.
Is Pinglo free to use in London?
Yes. Pinglo is free to download on iPhone and free to use in any browser at pingloapp.com/app. You can report a lost item, post a found item, and arrange a safe return at no cost.
I found something in London — what should I do?
Hand valuables and documents to the venue, transport operator or police where possible. You can also post the item on Pinglo as a found report so the owner can find it, start a claim, and prove it is theirs before you arrange a safe handover in a public place.
Can a London venue, campus or workplace run its own lost and found?
Yes. Universities, venues, stations and workplaces can run a private Pinglo community with their own safety feed, hand-in points and member chat. See Universities.