Our Ref:         FOI-3095-1920

Thank you for your request received on 15 January 2020 asking for information about lost property found on the TfL network.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm we hold some of the information you require. You asked:

1. Please could you provide me with tables, broken down by month, showing the numbers of items of property that were (i) handed in as lost and (ii) returned, broken down by the category of the property for the 2019 calendar year?

In accordance with the FOI Act, we are not obliged to supply the above information as it is subject to a statutory exemption to the right of access to information, under Section 22 of the Act.

In this instance the exemption has been applied as the information you have requested is intended for future publication. Customers can claim items for up to three months from the date it was found. By April we estimate that we will have a complete record of what was found on the TfL network during 2019 and what was claimed. We expect this information will be published on our website in the spring:

http://content.tfl.gov.uk/lost-property-office-transparency-data.pdf

This exemption is subject to a public interest test, which requires us to assess whether the public interest in applying the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure. In this instance, it is considered that the public interest favours the publication of this information, in context and according to the pre-determined schedule, rather than in response to your request, to ensure the information is provided accurately and in an accessible manner.
2. How much money was collected by Tfl by auctioning/selling off items that had been lost by passengers and then not reclaimed in each of the last financial years (2018/19}?

The information you asked for is available on our website:

https://tfl.gov.uk/help-and-contact/lost-property

In accordance with section 21 of the FOI Act, we are not obliged to supply you with a copy of the requested information as it is already accessible to you elsewhere.

3. For the 2018/19 financial years please state the three individual sales that made the most money. Please state what the lots consisted of and how much money TfL received for each item?

Apple Macbook Pro A1706 13" 1TB 16GB RAM Core i7 Mid 2017 10.13 High Sierra  £978.80
Apple Macbook Pro 15.4" A1707 Late 2016 Core i7 512GB 16GB RAM Laptop Touch bar £940.93
Apple Macbook Pro 15.4" A1707 Late 2016 Core i7 512GB 16GB RAM Laptop Touch bar £924.45

4. In 2019 please state how many on the following items were (i) logged as lost property by Tfl and (ii) returned to the owner? (a) wigs, (b) sex toy/aids, (c) crutches, (d) prescription Viagra

As stated above, customers can claim items for up to three months from the date it was found. By April we estimate that we will have a complete record of what was found on the TfL network during 2019 and what was claimed. This information will be published in the spring, if you require further detail then this can also be requested in the spring once our figures are finalised.

If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for some reason, please feel free to contact me.

Please see the enclosed information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]