Lost property

[BurtonM]

Does anyone know any lost property numbers for TPE stations? I misplaced a bike (yes, I know) on a TPE service at Manchester Airport last week and TPE have been less than helpful. Phoned up a lost property number their Facebook page gave me, that just gave me the phone number for MIA ('as it's a terminus station they'll have done a sweep of the train'), who said they hadn't had any bikes in. Phoned lost property again and they wouldn't give me much to go off, couldn't provide much except a phone number for central lost property (what?! why are there two lost property numbers?) that nobody ever answers on, as apparently BTP removed all the phone numbers for stations or something...
Or on the off chance anyone working for TPE sees this, did you find a white bike left on a train last Weds? If so I'm looking for it. :roll:

 

[wellhouse]

Can't help you with phone numbers beyond the info on their website, but the FTPE lost property office is on Platform 1 at Huddersfield.

If you have no luck by phone, PM me full details of the bike and train you were on and I can check when I'm passing in the next day or two.

 

[DarloRich]

I had a issue with LM. It took ages to get the property I lost to the repository in Euston. I found that by twittering them I was able to get it sorted out.

The LM staff were really helpful and I cant praise them enough as they safely got my stuff back. The reasons for the delay, when explained, were very sensible and stemmed from staff trying to "go the extra mile".

The outsourced lost property office at Euston however...........

 

[Eeveevolve]

Can't help you with phone numbers beyond the info on their website, but the FTPE lost property office is on Platform 1 at Huddersfield.

.

As im from huddersfield I assumed Lost Property was a thing at all stations. So if something is lost in Windermere or Scarbrough, it ends up in a pokey room in Hudds?

 

[DarloRich]

the items tend to be kept at the local station for a certain ( short period of time) before being sent onto to a central collection point.

 

[jopsuk]

(I live and work in Cambridge) a colleague of mine who commutes in from Royston left a bag on a GN train. He reported it, they located it. But then he had to get to City Thameslink between 8:30 and 5:30 on a weekday to collect. Just crazy. Not customer friendly. Note that for the time being City Thameslink is not even connected to Cambrdge or Royston by trains.

 

[Harlesden]

Lost property is surely more secure at a central point rather than laying around in a station office. The central point is convenient for the TOC and not necessarily for every station served by that TOC. How is a railway official taking initial custody of the item supposed to know whether the owner is a daily commuter or just someone passing through?

 

[BurtonM]

Can't help you with phone numbers beyond the info on their website, but the FTPE lost property office is on Platform 1 at Huddersfield.

If you have no luck by phone, PM me full details of the bike and train you were on and I can check when I'm passing in the next day or two.

Been trying the phone since about last Thurs/Fri, and nobody ever answers, I left a voicemail on Tues and they still haven't got back to me.
I don't know the exact train I was on unfortunately, I only know the approximate time I left Manchester Piccadilly for the airport on last Wednesday morning.

Thanks for letting me know where the lost property office is though, that's a big help.

 

[jopsuk]

Lost property is surely more secure at a central point rather than laying around in a station office. The central point is convenient for the TOC and not necessarily for every station served by that TOC. How is a railway official taking initial custody of the item supposed to know whether the owner is a daily commuter or just someone passing through?

perhaps, but "central London, weekday office hours only" is pretty darn inconvenient. After all, there's people using GN trains to commute from Watlington to Kings Lynn.

 

[mullin]

My experience with TPE when I've left something in the past started off poor too. When I did get to speak with someone they were lovely, polite and friendly and even waived their fee for me without me even asking.
Tried to email TPE customer services twice to say thank you and pass on my thanks and each time no reply or acknowledgement to my messages

 

[PHILIPE]

As I understand it, I may be wrong, the GWR Lost Property Office is at Bristol TM and visits can be made in person. The telephone number is not in the public domain and not to be given out. Any inquiries by telephone have to go via India.

 

[hairyhandedfool]

(I live and work in Cambridge) a colleague of mine who commutes in from Royston left a bag on a GN train. He reported it, they located it. But then he had to get to City Thameslink between 8:30 and 5:30 on a weekday to collect. Just crazy. Not customer friendly. Note that for the time being City Thameslink is not even connected to Cambrdge or Royston by trains.

Before joining with GN, Thameslink used that very same office, one man operation for the whole of the Thameslink line. Regularly he would get enquiries about Southern (because they often used Thameslink 319s) or Great Northern (because of 317s going back to GN after a period on lease) services, or just because someone in a call centre got cuonfused between Thameslink and First Great Western Link (formerly Thames Trains), and enquiries where the units had gone to Selhurst Depot (under Southern control). It's fair to say that he was a busy man.

I imagine he has long since retired now, but I suspect FCC just lumped the TL and GN offices together in one central location to save money. The old chap did his best to reduce the need to travel to central London by sending out items with the drivers of trains to a more convenient location, but I guess that doesn't happen very often now, with cards not being taken over the phone and personal cheques not being accepted any more.

 

[LowLevel]

Lost property is an interesting one. Having had to deal with it, it's either very simple or a pain in the backside.

If your item is found, and you enquire, straight away, it can often be handed back at a convenient point.

If however it's just found it'll be put off where the train terminates or similar. On a long distance service if something isn't found for a while it may be at the other end of the country.

Managing lost property while you wouldn't think it comes at quite a cost to the TOCs. They have a duty of care towards the property and depending on what it is it can take up a lot of space that could be used for other things, and staff time in cataloging, maintaining and disposing of it. Bicycles are a particular problem.

Therefore in my opinion if you've been careless and left something on a train it's quite reasonable to expect you, rather than the TOC, to go out of your way to get it back. If that means making a special journey so be it.

I speak as someone who has also left things on trains and had to go and get them - I was just grateful to the TOC for looking after them for me.

Things aren't delivered the same way they were. I personally won't carry any lost property between stations for anyone. The reason being is I know a guard who found an iPhone on a train. He reported it to his control but owing to service disruption etc didn't manage to drop it off and forgot it was in his bag at the end of his shift. The next day he had to go to a remote location to relieve a train again due to service disruption off spare but made a note to drop it off later and again kept control informed that he had this phone.

The owner activated the tracking device and BTP turned up and arrested the guard for theft. I understand it took the intervention of the TOC's managing director with the police to get him released.

That being the case I'm afraid you can pay for the courier or make the trip yourselves!

 

[BurtonM]

On a long distance service if something isn't found for a while it may be at the other end of the country.

A problem I'm currently experiencing. I suspect someone in York or the like has got a free bike out of me, or it's in a lost property office I can't realistically get to.

 

[yorkie]

A problem I'm currently experiencing. I suspect someone in York or the like has got a free bike out of me, or it's in a lost property office I can't realistically get to.

If it's in York, I'm sure one of us can get it back to you!

 

[jopsuk]

Therefore in my opinion if you've been careless and left something on a train it's quite reasonable to expect you, rather than the TOC, to go out of your way to get it back. If that means making a special journey so be it.

Making a special trip is one thing. Having to take time off work to make the special trip is another. Opening the office at weekends would be good customer service. Doesn't even have to be a seven day operation...

 

[PHILIPE]

Making a special trip is one thing. Having to take time off work to make the special trip is another. Opening the office at weekends would be good customer service. Doesn't even have to be a seven day operation...

ATW Office is at Newport with opening hours 1000 to 1600 Monday to Friday. Telephone inquiries via Customer Service and I believe that section is based in India.

 

[LowLevel]

Making a special trip is one thing. Having to take time off work to make the special trip is another. Opening the office at weekends would be good customer service. Doesn't even have to be a seven day operation...

It is evidently at present a one man operation working a standard 5 day week. Therefore opening at weekends is likely to be significantly more expensive for the train operator as another staff member will need to be made available depending on the existing person's contractual arrangements.

Whether it's morally right or not is another matter but I suspect that would probably be your answer.

 

[gimmea50anyday]

The problem with the lost property on the UK railway network is the system isnt joined up. Lost property found on a train is supposed to be logged by traincrew with control and handed in at the destination station, but if its a tight turnaround then the traincrew might be unable to do so, or it might not necessarily be found at that time. The service may have arrived from destination, but then be heading in a completely different destination and may well end up there instead before being discovered.

If the destination station is operated by a different TOC, the lost property will end up under their management, and not with the TOC you travelled with, there are also third party lost property offices at some stations (excess baggage company at MAN and LIV)

You need to find out exactly which train you were on, you also need to find out what that trains next working was. A bike will not necessarily be considered lost for some time, probably until it actually gets taken out of service, so if the train came in from Middlesbrough, for example, then went back out as an Edinburgh service, it may well have ended up at craigentinny, which will then be handed to East Coast, not Scotrail, but would have gone to Scotrail if taken off at Waverley.

 

[BurtonM]

So, a few days have passed. Went over to Hud on my day off as I was visiting a friend anyway, seeing as nobody ever answers the phone there (seriously, don't call the Hud lost property office, they didn't get back to my voicemail in the space of a week either).
The man there was really helpful and had a look on the TPE lost property system to no avail. Why nobody on the phone could do that for me really confuses me.
The man gave me a national lost property number - I'll have to call that at some point as now that I think about it it can't really have ended up at a TPE station - see below.

I can't remember what train I was on to the Airport but I'm pretty sure it was a 185, and it was between 9am and 10:30am on Feb 17th.

Thinking about it, and where it could be:

• anywhere in Scotland is unlikely as TPE Glasgow services were terminating at Carlisle.
• Carlisle is managed by VTWC, so it's at least possible it's there.
• It's not in Hull as TPE would have it.
• This is also true of Middlesbrough.
• ...and Blackpool North
• ...and Barrow-in-Furness
• ...and Windermere
• ...and Scarborough
• ...and Cleethorpes
• York isn't a terminus typically (as far as TPE are concerned), but if my bike somehow spent all day on a train it could possibly have ended up there. In which case, I'd have to contact VTEC.
• Liverpool Lime Street is theoretically possible being a TPE terminus, but seems unlikely (TPE don't run Man Air-Lime Street do they?). In which case I'd have to ask Network Rail.
• Newcastle is plausible as Man Air trains do run there, and is also managed by Network Rail.
• What if I didn't even put my bike on the train when I mistakenly went to the Airport? My bike would be in Man Picc if that was true.
  In which case I need to phone the third party lost property again - last time the automated system hung up on me - what do I do if it's between 24 and 72 hours since I lost something?! Their system doesn't have an option for that, and if you choose 'less than 24 hours' it tells you you haven't waited long enough since you lost your item and hangs up on you and you've wasted a load of airtime on an 03xxx number.

Have I missed anywhere? It's not at MIA so I've discounted that.


Also, the lost property at Hud is terribly signposted - it's under 'station information' or something. The only 'lost property' direction sign I could see anywhere at all was on the P4-8 end of the subway - it took me a short while to find it, knowing it was on P1 (I arrived on P8, I wasn't lost).
It'd help a lot if the office was open longer on weekends (8-12 Sat is all you get), however the 7-7 service on weekdays is pretty good I'd say.

 

[yorkie]

York isn't a terminus typically (as far as TPE are concerned), but if my bike somehow spent all day on a train it could possibly have ended up there...

A lot of trains terminate at York, especially in the evenings, so it's very possible. If it is at York, let me know and I can bring it to Manchester (or potentially drop it off at Huddersfield if that's easier) on the 19th.

 

[BurtonM]

Thanks for that - I'm actually on the TPE line in Stalybridge, but I can move around between Hud and Manchester pretty easily, especially on a Saturday. I'll persist with my enquiries and let you know if I do find out where it is.

 

[jamesbwxm]

I once left three beer kegs on a train. The brewery owner took a very bemused phone call from ATW in Machynlleth the next day and after phoning them after that we arranged to pick the kegs up in Shrewsbury at no charge. Full marks to ATW for that one.

And for those CAMRA lot on here who know me and want to be pedantic I can confirm that they were kegs and not casks.

 

[gimmea50anyday]

Newcastle is managed by VTEC, not Network Rail. If it ended up there it will be handed to the Station Management and will end up in Retford. (I think or Newark, its one of those two!)

York is also managed by VTEC for the moment. TPE have a lot of crew changes at York as does a number of services terminate there. Again as VTEC are the controlling station TOC Retford will be the eventual destination for lost property handed in here.

Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Piccadilly will be in the hands of the excess baggage company as they have an office there, syou need to approach them.


As i said before, theres no central or joined up lost property system. Anything lost has a slim chance of being retrieved unless an proactive member of staff (such as myself) makes use of the correct reporting channels (and indeed bothers to report it) and make use of any info connected to the property to trace the owner

 

[Smethwickian]

If someone manages to lose something as big as a bike I might begin to suspect they are beyond the help of any lost property system, however well organised.

 

[Harlesden]

Isn't there the possibility that someone on the train arriving at the terminating station noticed the apparently abandoned bike, furtively looked around to see if anyone was watching, and then took off with it.

 

[BurtonM]

I've addressed that.