“I know I’m missing *something.*”
As St. Patrick’s Day rears its head, many citizens of planet Earth are likely to take advantage of the “holiday” as a reason to celebrate and temporarily forget about the current state of things. As such, responsible citizens may take a rideshare to the destination in which they revel and, according to Uber, are likely to forget a variety of things when vacating the vehicle. Today, the company revealed its 2020 Lost and Found Index of what people forgot, where they forgot it, and other findings that are interesting, to say the least.
The Most Commonly Forgotten Items in Ubers
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the number one item rideshare users left behind in rides this year was their phone. Next up, another essential item—their wallet. The third most forgotten item was keys, with the fourth being a place where keys are probably stored: a backpack/bag/purse. Rounding out the top five list are headphones (with AirPods, specifically, showing up over and over again).
The Most Unique Lost Items
Buckle up, because you’re not ready for this one. In no particular order, the most unique items left behind in Ubers this year include, “mice for my pet snake to eat,” a specimen cup from the doctor’s office, one fake cosmetic tooth and a skin-colored retainer, and an apron with the name tag “Kayla” from Krispy Kreme. Kayla! Come get your uniform, girl!
Recommended Fodor’s Video
The Most ‘Forgetful’ Cities
According to the rideshare company, the most forgetful city is Lubbock, Texas. Oxford, Mississippi grabbed second place, while College Station, Texas, and Fresno, California claimed the third and fourth spots, respectively. Rounding out the top five is Modesto, California. Texas and California: Get it together already.
Most Forgetful Days and Times
Uber riders are reportedly most forgetful on Fridays and Saturdays and late at night; this makes sense because everybody’s Working For The Weekend, which also means they’ll likely be distracted or a tad bit compromised (*insert martini emoji*). Uber also found that some of the most forgetful days were January 1 (potentially due to a New Year’s hangover?) and October 27, Halloween weekend.
Lost and Found Trends
And now, in what’s sure to be a surprise to some people (me), the rideshare company found that riders tend to leave behind “red and blue items most often, with pink, green and purple items being forgotten frequently, too.” When it comes to luxury brands, riders leave behind Louis Vuitton products far more than either Prada or Chanel. And of the types of currency (checks, credit cards, etc.) riders left behind cash the most. “We’ve seen riders forget $4,000 and even $9,000 in cash!,” Uber said in its Index release.
Travel-Specific Items
Is this section the most baffling of the entire data released in the Index? That’s certainly debatable. In no particular order, Uber said it found such items as a travel CPAP (sleep apnea) sleeping machine, a fold-up beach chair, a gold Bahamas pin (as in, lapel jewelry), a bus ticket to and from Columbus, Ohio, and a “big white floppy sun hat.”
How to Find Those Lost Items
The company says the best way to retrieve an item you left in an Uber driver’s vehicle is to call the driver whose car you left it in. If your item is your phone, however, you can access your Uber account via Uber’s website, where there is a tab (under “Your Trips”) titled “I lost an item” that will walk you through the process of retrieving what you’re looking for. Additionally, here’s a step-by-step video you may want to check out if you are using your phone to remedy the situation.