“Only about 5% of lost or stolen items are ever returned to their owners due to lack of identification and a convenient return system.”
“Every 11 seconds, a cell phone is stolen or lost in South Korea” – The Financial Times
“Sydney Ferries collects up to 150 items per day, mostly mobiles phones”
“Telstra Stadium maintenance workers turn in an average of 70 mobile phones per event”
“The Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association reports that approximately 2,000 mobile phones are lost or stolen each week”
“Not tracking PDA’s and cell phones means that when one is lost to theft or absent-mindedness, it can cost much more than the relatively low hardware replacement cost.” – InformationWeek, April 2001
“Gartner estimates that this year alone, more than 250,000 cell phones and handheld devices will be left behind at major US airports, and only 25% to 30% will ever find their way back to the owners” – InformationWeek, April 2001
“New York City’s LaGuardia airport reports having collected up to 70’000 PDA’s and laptops in its lost and found. With no way to link them to their owners, most will never be recovered”
“140’000 items are found annually on Southwest Airlines fights, 50’000 items at Enterprise Rent-A-Car, and 20 a day at some Avis Rent-A-Car locations. Despite best efforts, less than 1% is returned” – The Wall Street Journal, November 2003
“1’200 cell phones, 1’500 sets of keys and over 300 PDAs and laptops are turned into the LasVegas international lost and found department annually” – McCarran Int’l Airport Security, July 2003
“99% of cell phone owners do not back up the data on their phones. When your cell phone is lost or stolen, that precious information is gone” – The Wall Street Journal, May 2003
“Hurried travellers have left as many as 62’000 mobiles, 2’900 laptops and 1’300 PDAs in London taxis over the past six month” – BBC, August, 31, 2001
“More than 100’000 mobile phones were reported lost or stolen in 2002 in Australia” – ZDNet, 16 Sep. 2003
“Over 1.6 million lost items were turned into Tokyo’s lost and found centre in 2002” – Associate Press, July 7, 2003
The New York Grand Central Terminal’s lost and found office has an average daily inventory of 4’000 items” – Associate Press, July 7, 2003
“Airlines lose luggage every 90 seconds” – Reuters, December 23, 2002
“20’000 lost items were turned into the Metro-North lost and found in Grand Central Terminal of New York” – Voice of America, Oct. 3, 2002
“2.8 Million Cell phones are stolen or lost each year in South Korea” – The Financial News, Aug 26, 2002
“Over 7 million cell phones were reported lost in South Korea between 2000 and June 2002” – The Financial News, Aug, 2002
“Nearly one in four have had their PDA lost or stolen” – Palm InfoCenter, May 3, 2004
“On any given day, about 800’000 items pack the four-story warehouse of Tokyo’s lost and found office, with 5’000 new ones trucked in every morning for an annual haul of 30’000 mobile phones, 18’000 eyeglasses and 17’000 wallets” – Associated Press, Jun 29, 2003
“Australian Telco’s recorded more than 250’000 lost or stolen mobile phones last year” – ZDNet, February 7, 2005
“In the last six months in Sydney, passengers have left a total of 13’280 mobiles, 977 laptops and 1’725 pocket personal computers/personal digital assistants behind” – ZDNet January 25, 2005
“Last year the Paris lost and found office took in more than 173’000 objects, 15% more than 2003. Cell phones come in at the rate of 40 a day and only one object in four finds its way back to its owner” – NY Times News Service, May 24, 2005
“London Transport’s Lost Property Office ten Top lost items are:
1. Travel Passes and travel cards
2. Mobile Phones
3. Keys
4. Shopping (granny) trolleys and backpacks
5. Books
6. Hats and sunglasses
7. Umbrellas (depending on the weather)
8. Laptops, walkmans, CD players
9. Passports
10. … And once 2 children, aged three and five were left on a bus and handed over to the Police.
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