A Hidden Treasure Trove in West Ham
If you were to stumble into Transport for London’s (TfL) lost property office in West Ham, you might think you’ve accidentally entered a bizarre museum. The space is filled with shelves and shelves of items that seem to have come from all walks of life—roller storage crammed with toys, scooters, and umbrellas; suitcases full of false teeth; dozens of bikes lined up on racks. A plastic skeleton grips a guard rail, while a stuffed Spider-Man dangles overhead. Prosthetic limbs are stored alongside vintage wedding dresses.
These are not curiosities collected by some eccentric Victorian. Every one of the thousands of objects in this building should never have ended up there—and the staff are desperate to return them to their rightful owners.
Two years ago, Europe’s largest lost property office relocated from 200 Baker Street—its home for 86 years—to a site beside West Ham Bus Garage. The new facility has an unexpected name, which reflects the approach taken by the staff: it’s called NotLost. TfL wants London’s tube, bus, and rail passengers to know that the precious item they accidentally left behind when alighting may not be lost after all. It may in fact be catalogued and sitting in this unique library.
Diana Quaye, TfL’s performance manager, shared an interesting insight: “There’s a lot of honest people in London, and I don’t think a lot of people realise that.”
Commuters who spot an abandoned bag on the seat next to them often won’t swipe it—they might hand it over to a station worker or simply leave it for a member of staff to spot as they sweep the carriage at the end of a journey. Either way, there’s every chance it will end up in West Ham.
Diana’s favorite example of lost property? “A bag came in, and my staff member opened it, and it had cooked little frogs in the bag.”
Extraordinary Items in the Lost Property Collection
One extraordinary room contains shelves packed with manila envelopes, each of which contains a misplaced mobile phone. Among the classic beige envelopes are a few that are bright red. These are the mobile phones that were left behind in one of TfL’s black cabs.
Like almost every other object in the place, they must be claimed within three months of the date of loss. After that, anything that remains is donated to charity, recycled, disposed of, or sold.
What to Do if You’ve Lost Something on TfL Services
If you’ve left something you need back on a TfL service, it’s best to try and get it back as quickly as possible. It can be claimed for a maximum of three months after you lost it—unless it is cash, which can be claimed for up to a year after loss.
Individual credit and debit cards are securely destroyed when found, and it’s recommended people contact their bank immediately to arrange a replacement even if they were inside a wallet or purse.
TfL also does not keep lighters, e-cigarettes, food, soiled clothing, highly flammable substances, or anything else that might be hazardous to store.
If your item was lost on a bus in the last three days, it’s best to contact the operator as it may still be at the garage. Otherwise, first check at the place it was lost before contacting NotLost—the process is further down in this article.
The collection office is only open for pre-booked appointments. Fees will apply unless your item is picked up directly from the station or garage.
The Numbers Behind Lost Property
The numbers involved are eye-popping: almost 300,000 items were handed in last year, including more than 44,000 bags. Most were left behind on buses.
But most troubling of all for the staff at NotLost is the retrieval rate, which is just 22%.
How to Retrieve Your Lost Item
TfL’s advice is for people to first inquire about their lost property at the place where they know they last had it. If they have no luck there, they can head over to the NotLost website and fill out a form with all the details that might help staff retrieve it from their collection.
Whether it’s an umbrella, wallet, or bag stuffed with tiny cooked frogs—they may just get back in touch with some good news.
For more information, visit the NotLost website or contact the team directly.