I found $150 on exiting the toilets, and handed it to the receptionist. She sent out an email to the whole office, and the owner was found.
From where I come from, if you lose something, and someone else finds it, and returns it, you owe him 10% of the value.
Well, this guy did not even thank me.
Although I know it's illegal and partly immoral, next time I find money in the office, I'm even more tempted to keep it.
can i ask what state you live in and what the socio demographic is in your area, as where i am (melbourne) i dont see what you have just described.
Middle class, south east melbourne. I see it frequently. I will add, it seems virtually useless to help someone if they look down on you
You have forgone a $15 reward to gain information which might be useful in the future.
What information? People can be assholes? Like how are there no assholes where you come from?
Look, there is no law obligating the owner to give finders fee in Aus and the person who lost the wallet is not a nice person.
Personally if I lost my wallet, I would have give a sincere thank you maybe offer a coffee, but I wont be offering cash…
And also if I found a wallet with cash I would not expect the owner to pay me anything… a simple thanks is more than enough. If the owner didn't thank me.. well at least I did a good deed even the person is ungrateful.
Everytime I return a found item to someone, people always are very thankful… I never see what you described.
Also, I think it is more insecure that you need to offer money for people who find your lost wealth… like how much do you think your citizens are assholes to have to give them compensation for not doing something illegal (keeping the cash is stealing)
I find that fascinating. Your perception is such that you just don't notice. You're blind. But then, maybe you notice things I don't? Maybe I'm the blind one… time will tell
My prime objective is to help others so that they may one day, whether now or in a thousand years, help me, or those like me. We both help each other. Symbiosis. I have no time for psychopaths, sociopaths or other degenerates who ultimately suck life in a parasitical manner.
Good deeds, feelings.. these mean nothing to me
Ask yourself, what are your motivations? What do you want?
What has that got to do with my comments?
My prime objective is to help others so that they may one day, whether now or in a thousand years, help me, or those like me. We both help each other
This is the wrong mentality
If you help people for the payback, then you are not in fact helping people but only doing a service for the service to return or paid in the future.
So do you donate money to the poor/needing hoping in one day they will donate money back to you?
Do you help others solely for what others can do for you/pay you?
If you do then you live a sad life my friend
Everythings a circle. You help others so that one day they might help you. If you don't believe that, let me ask you this:
Why are you doing it? Whats the point? Is life for you just a meaningless struggle, helping other people for no reason, life just getting harder and harder as the number of people supported by your labors grows and grows? How is that sustainable?
I don't even think (especially not about benefits to myself) when i choose to return something to someone. It's more of 'this item belongs to you so i will give it back to you; it's not mine to keep". If more and more people start thinking the same way then it's a happy consequence to one day have something you lost be returned to you. same analogy goes with helping people. I don't help to expect something in return, I help because someone wants help
So do you still want a finders fee if you found my 5 cents ?
What about if OP found my credit card… is he then liable for 10% of the debt on the card considering it has -$ on it?
We Australians are a funny lot aren’t we? We are quick in announcing our high moral standings when someone like cameldownunder posts a rather silly comment. At the same time we are quite happy and send our praises to someone who posts a hack how to get to Sydney airport by train without having to pay an access fee knowing quite well it is actually stealing money from the taxpayer. What about the people working in the service industry who expect to receive a tip after you already paid for the service? I think people living in glass houses should be careful when throwing rocks.
George please read what you have written and have another think about it. Not paying the Sydney Airport Access fee = stealing from the taxpayer????
What? We don't tip in Australia. We have proper wages.
thats different. not paying a train fare is like sticking it to the government\private sector, who do not have the citizens best interest in mind. returning money to a private citizen is a completely different matter.
and in australia the wages are quite high, we dont need a tipping system. in america a waiter could be on $4 an hour whereas here a simple local restaurant waiter is on $22 an hour. not sure about you but someone on $22 an hour certainly does not need a "tip" to make ends meet.
I've never paid a finder's fee (always gave sincere thanks though), I hope I haven't upset any good Sumatrans over the years and turned them into finders keepers
Off topic ! This post is about Australia, not Sumatra.
Lol my bad, Samaritans
Just because you found money. You should never expect anything in return you shouldn't be awarded for doing the honest and right thing. It is up to the owner if they decided to award you, but you should never expect anything in return.
the best reward is the one you don't EXPECT.
Must be so painful to do the moral thing without a reward.
There was a situation in Melbourne recently. Where a lady had her life savings in her trolley jeep. The trolley jeep was identical to another ladies jeep. The other lady took the trolley jeep by mistake and went to the butchers shop. Of course the original lady was in a panicking. The lady in the butchers shop soon discovered the money and had the wrong trolley. She gave the money to the butchers shop who kept it in a safe until the owner was found. The butchers saw the story on the news and contacted the Police. As far as i know no award was given or it was refused. The Police took the lady to the bank to open a account.
wtf is a trolley jeep? googling it shows a side car for a ww2 looking jeep.
Haha, I googled too. Try "shopping trolley jeep". I call them grandma trolleys.
Does anyone remember the Backpacker from Holland who was shot in Melbourne trying to help a women. His reward was helping this Women. And in Holland that is the law you must help someone in trouble. People help here too but it isn't the law. The backpackers award was he made some life time friendships in Melbourne for those people who helped him. And the Victorian Government paid for all his medical expenses and his flight home.
i hate to be that guy online correcting you, however when referring to a single female its woman with an A. women with an E refers to multiple females.
i hate to be that guy
Yet you're being that guy anyway.
Grammar Nazi's gunna nazi. Mosquitoes of the internet, doing nothing useful but buzzing around incessantly annoying people.
i would say in this instance my post was much, much more useful than yours :)
@DiscoJango: And like mosquitoes, they keep buzzing around.
It's the internet, normal people (not 'that guy') don't give a damn about minor typos.
You understood the original post, didn't you? You think the rest of us couldn't? Your post, like the buzzing of little irritating insects, contributed nothing but noise and annoyance.
Did the poster you corrected express gratitude that 'that guy' pointed out his spelling was crap? I'd say ESL, but then there's you.
Where's my fly swatter…
But how can one improve without knowing what's wrong?
Fair enough, "women" was only written twice, so it could be a typo. Though two sentences began with "and", that's not a typo. Disco's comment wasn't that bad and rude. Why do corrections have to viewed as personal attacks all the time.
Though two sentences began with "and", that's not a typo
And you started your sentence with 'But', a grammar no-no. Points for using a capital letter though, unlike @DiscoJango for whom they're a foreign concept. And there's a missing question mark.
And I started mine with 'And'… where does it all end?
Well, it ends with a boring lesson on how coordinating conjunctions don't belong at the beginning of sentences, but who wants that?
I often notice errors in my posts after clicking the button, but can't be bothered to fix them if they're minor. I'm not like writing my thesis, y'know. No-one else should care either in a forum such as this.
@DiscoJango was just being a condescending tool aka 'that guy', and didn't much care for the experience when he (it's always a he) was on the receiving end. If there was a lesson being taught, that's it.
The only corrections should be if the post is misleading or unclear, eg: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/5536267/redir. Note who the poster is.
Bloody grammer Nazi's. Do they die off in winter like most irritating insects?
a single female its woman with an A
*it’s
And you do realise that new sentences start with a capital, don’t you?
Ever heard of commas?
i would say in this instance my post was much, much more useful than yours :)
I beg to differ…
Graded: D- (Don’t be “that guy” if you are not good enough to be “that guy”…)
haters gonna hate. now enough arguing online, thats for peasants.
lets be friends
*let’s
You are possibly the worst grammar Nazi ever.
Just remember, you were the one that stated that you didn’t want to be “that guy”. It’s kind of funny now that you are on the receiving end of it. (Multiple times…)
And thanks for the “friendzies” offer, but I like my friends to be a little less conceited and a little bit smarter. ;)
A few years back a friend and I found a top model iPhone at a music festival. On our way home we managed to get it working (it was overheated & had network overload) and called the most recent number on it. A girl picked up and it was her boyfriends so we ended up driving to their hotel and gave it to him. He was very surprised (he had already taken steps to deactivate it) as well as thankful and offered us $50, which we politely refused.
They were visiting from the country so I like to think we gave city folk a good rap that day. :)
we found an iphone on a table at a food court during a lunch break. went through it (no lock code!) and called the last number. turned out to be a work mobile for a guy who worked for peters ice cream. when he came to pick up the phone he also gave us a large box of cornettos\drumstick things! score as it was also a hot day.
I'd expect a thank you, not much more as it's only $150. The finders disappointment at not receiving $15 is as graceless and the owner's lack of gratitude. I'm guessing the owner knows the finder and cant rustle up the humility required to correctly acknowledge the finders actions.
The OP is not only a tight arse but is whinging that things here are not like back home. Total lack of insight, but then that sums up many of the posts on this forum (A200 Mercedes post in mind)
I dropped my wallet in the carpark at Kmart in Kardinya a few years ago. It had about $300 in it at the time. It was handed in to Kmart with all of the money untouched. The Kmart person asked for their contact details which they then gave to me so that I could thank them. I sent them $50 for being an awesome person.
I've also found 2 x wallets/purses with money in them and have returned them. I didn't get any monetary reward with one of them, but that was fine. There was about $300 in cash, the lady teared up and thanked me profusely - she obviously needed that money more than me and I got more satisfaction from that than I did from the one where I got rewarded.
It should be enough to know that YOU did the right thing. You don't know what sort of situation the other person is in. That could be their weekly food budget money. Quite frankly I am appalled and quite disgusted by the OP's attitude.
When I was living in Japan, I lost my mobile phone. Somebody handed it in, and I went to the police station to pick it up. The policeman said "It's okay they said you don't have to leave any money for them" and I thought well I wasn't going to, it just never occurred to me that I should. But that's tradition I guess. I don't think you should have to be rewarded for doing a good deed. I also kinda believe in karma, though I know it's all BS, and karma won't be paid back if you get a little bit of money, it's not worth it, I'd rather have the 'karma points' :D
10% finders fee? you seem like an entitled cvnt. a thank you and a small token like coffee, chocolates is appropriate. nothing more.
Holy shit. OP works in my office.
Was it your $150?
@userid007 is the receptionist
Haha
HI
I feel weird accepting 'rewards' and I only ever accept if my continued refusal is met with insistence, making it even more awkward.
Next time, I hope it's OP's money that goes missing.
Why would you hope that? Why would you hope that something bad happens to a person. It's bad Karma wishing that.
some of these comments sound righteous…. whilst in australia we wouldnt expect a reward, it's not fair to "hate" on another persons culture that does.
shut up, its our right
OP's Porsche GT3 gets stolen and left in the bush, I find it and report to authorities. He transfers me 25k and thanks me for doing my civic duty. All the while I contemplate the current exchange rate to ENE. We both go about the rest of our day with a smile on our faces.
actually according to OP's 10% rule, you should ask for 10% of that gt3 as you found it. i would go for either the gear shift, steering wheel or an actual weel. fair is fair.
No such thing as Karma - morality and is human invention what one person says is right another might feel like it is wrong.
Moral of the story unless you saw the personal lose the money just walk away and take it how do you even know that was shit $150?
The most successful/rich people are not nice by nature
At least you weren’t accused as a thief….
Maybe if 10% was the standard rate for finders fee in Australia more people would hand in lost property? And everyone will be better off?
Lol. Why settle for 10%, when like the OP you realise that you can keep 100%?
Finders keepers!
A guilty conscience and satisfaction of doing something socially constructive are some of the reasons why people normally return things. An extra 10% reward may sway some more people.
Although I know it's illegal and partly immoral, next time I find money in the office, I'm even more tempted to keep it.
So you know something is illegal but you will be tempted to do it coz people didn't compensate/thanks you for doing the right thing this time??
So if you are wondering around a rich suburb and didn't steal anything, are you tempted to become a thief if people don't thank you for not stealing from them?
If you bought a set of new knifes and walking back home, are you tempted to be a murderer if people don't thank you for not murdering them?
I know it sucks that you didn't even get a thank you… but more like next time I see one I will just leave it there and not go to the extent to find the owner, and not "next time i'll just steal the money…"
There's a saying that temptation makes thief.
Also when I read "The Office" and then the post, I thought the OP was the one and only Dwight Schrute.
If I dropped something in the toilet at work, the next block who walks in does not get 10% they would get a simple "Cheers mate" It is your work place I leave shit lying around all the time doesn't mean you get a part of it if you find it. If I found someone's wallet at work and I gave it back to them and they offered me cash, there is no way I would take it at all.
I once found a wallet with at least $800 in it (didn't really count). I walked all the way to the address on the driving license and left it at the front door (I just hoped she has updated the address on her DL).
TS, I know how you feel - completely on your side.
I recently found a car and returned it to the proper owner. He indicated that the wheels were missing and I was like "yeah, that's my 10%". He then called the cops and I had to return the wheels RUDE.
I found a quite new samsung galaxy (whatever number it was) phone half buried in the sand at the beach (happened to see it whilst picking up my dogs poo in the sand! one in a million!).
I spent quite of bit of time going onto the phone, tracking down family members of the person, contacting them back and forward.
In the end the owner came and collected the phone from my house & just said thanks.
I was quite pissed off, spent maybe 1.5 hours, they could of gotten me a $10 bottle of wine or something for my time and finding their $800 phone.
/Rant over
Would you do it again, I mean the tracking down and contacting them, or would you leave the phone in the sand, after your experience?
Or keep the phone or sell the phone or break it for fun or leave it with police etc, lots of other options :>
I might check their gallery for naughty pics next time.
Then after probably drop at the police station.
Met a girl, spent heaps of time and money on her, got friendzoned, girl loved the attention, but she didn't put out, not even a BJ!
Where I come from….
OP, the warm fuzzy feeling you get when you make someone's day is worth more than any amount of money.
He looked at me with a Meh expression. There was no warm fuzzy feeling, nor the feeling of making someone's day. More an annoyed face, that he had to collect it at reception.
When I was a kid, I saw how some other kids stole all the prices for the kid's game at an event. I tracked them down, and found the prices. Took them back to the organizer, and almost got accused of stealing them in the first place. Not always easy.
Well, just remind yourself that virtue is its own reward.
Well if that was my money you found I would definitely treat you to a nice KFC lunch as a thank you.
nice KFC lunch
That’s and oxymoron right there…
I think I would have taken the “disgruntled” look OP received over a KFC lunch…
idk what ur talking about but kfc is hands down the best lunch
must have dropped my keys leaving woolies yesterday and a guy chased me down and handed them over.. should i give him 10% of my car or cash equiv or does the 10% fee only apply to cash found.? your rule intrigues me..
Lost my wife in the shopping centre yesterday and someone found her. I offered them 100% as a reward… Turns out I’m not the only one that doesn’t want her… :D
I laughed out loud after reading the description. Owing 10% of the value. I want to put investment in the lost and found business where you come from. Lost your car forget where you park? 10% easily earning $1000 - $1500. Lost your dog or cat 10 times they are mine now. I wonder what is the 10% of found a kid in the mall. Hmm…. HAHAHA.
I apologise for mocking the description. Putting a case scenario make it sounds really funny. LOL.
When you are doing a good deed don't expect anything in return. Not even a thank you. Knowing in your heart that you have the courage to do a good deed you should be feeling happy and proud.
If you are still not feeling proud enough after doing a good deed. Why don't you take the example for the santa clause. All he did was simply doing a good deed by giving poor children gift on christmas and never expect anything in return. Think about the story of why santa clause deliver the present in the middle of the night while people are a sleep? Because he don't expect even a thank you from any of them. That is why his name has live for generation and more generation to come.
What goes around comes around
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwAYpLVyeFU
Lose your dog once, it gets returned without a leg :/
This kid in NZ has the right attitude he found $1500 and did not expect a $100 reward for his honesty.
.
"Sam hadn't expected his honesty would pay a dividend.
"That was the nicest thing ever to do … giving a $100 to a guy that finds his wallet, [because it] shouldn't deserve $100 at all."
http://www.theage.com.au/world/returning-stack-of-cash-pays-…
WTF! That isn’t 10%! Kid deserved at least $150!…
i've worked with your kind before, always expecting something in return for just doing the right thing. not surprised you didn't get your precious 10% "finder's fee" lol.
Send him an invoice. He should owe you a 10% finders fee and also a 2% service fee for the receptionist plus GST on top of both. Also charge him for the cost of printing the invoice and a delivery fee. GST on top of both of those too of course.
And a 20% fee to cover emotional damages from not getting his 10% fee.
Interest on all of the above at a rate of 4 percent above the cash rate set by the RBA calculated and compounded daily.
I dropped money at coles when pulling out my wallet a few days ago. The lady behind me saw it and returned the money. I didn't know that was a good excuse to ask her out for a coffee :D
Seriously though I didn't know how much I had in my wallet and thought it was a TV show thing like what would you do. I admitted I wasn't sure about how much I had in there but if she saw me drop it I believed her. Now the store staff was like we need to put it in lost and found if someone comes looking for it. The last thing I would have thought of was to offer her 10%.
Now my sister left her purse at dominos in Gold Coast the first day she had moved there. She had $10 in her purse and all her cards ID's etc. She went back to the store and the staff had seen her leave her purse behind. She opened her purse and gave her the $10 she had as a thank you.
Did you get even credit for handing it in? I’m with you, next time I wouldn’t bother.
You were owed no fee and the money never belonged to you. A lot of people would have kept it for selfish reasons, but you handed it in for selfish reasons. You should at least feel good about yourself that you didn't just stuff it in your pocket.
I think OP is/was upset because that guy did not thank him/her. I would have also been annoyed if that happened to me. Why someone isn't careful and losing his/her stuff so that other people should collect after him/her? They don't even return the favour by a thank you?
That person needs a lesson and he/she will take it when the next time someone other than the OP picks the wallet.
My experience in Australia: 1-My brand new Samsung Note 10.3 (still in HN bag) was stolen in Coles check out area. I put the Harvey Norman bag on the ground during check-out and forgot to take it. In return (3 minutes later) cameras showed that a middle-age fat woman conveniently took it.
2- My wallet was lost in a bus, and a man took it to my house and he took $20 out of the wallet for himself in front of me (I just smiled).
So, all kinds of people out there.
Man 2 was from Switzerland?
One of those countries. I actually invited him in for a cup of tea and had a bit of chat. Pretty sure he was a Euro (other than UK and Germany) and had no one here.
From where I come from, if you lose something, and someone else finds it, and returns it, you owe him 10% of the value.
Where do you come from?
Seriously…. ?
It's a nice gesture to say "hey you found my wallet so have a beer/coffee on me"
He doesn't owe you anything though.
I wonder where does op come from :P
From a remove village up in the Swiss mountains, deep into a valley, where in winter we had to heat with wood, and often would be cut from the rest of the world because of snow, avalanche and heavy rain. I had to walk 45 minutes to elementary school, and we had roast chicken on the last Sunday of the month, if there was money left. I did not have a father, and my mother had to work to maintain us. We had to take a 2 hour trip to go to high-school, and when the bus was late, and we arrived late at school late, we got detention. Which in winter was welcome, as we didn't have to wait in the cold, for our mother to finish work. In winter I was wearing gumboots with knitted wool socks. We would go out and find chestnuts to complement our dry bread and cheese dinner.
Thanks op , that helps a lot.
& that justifies your expectation of a reward?
I feel for you man. You've done the right thing and it feels like you've been punished for it.
Try and see it this way though - You have forgone a $15 reward to gain information which might be useful in the future. How people react when you do something nice for them says an enormous amount about them. This is an office setting, so chances are fair that you will deal with this guy again. Now you know what kind of person he is, and how he sees you. That could be very important in the future.
I don't know if this is an Australian thing, or a wealthy thing, or what, but one thing I've learned is that people here are very insecure when it comes to accepting help. They say 'thank you' through clenched teeth, then profess wonder at why the world seems such a dangerous and scary place
In all honesty, I prefer your system