Lost property office collects 6,000 items a week

This huge stuffed dalmatian was somehow forgotten

The amount of unclaimed lost property from London's public transport is growing as their owners don't believe anyone will hand them in, Transport for London (TfL) has said.

TfL says it receives around 6,000 items every week.

Lost property manager Diana Quaye said: "It's a very small success rate of people claiming the items."

It has urged people to be more vigilant about their personal property.

Diana Quaye has urged people to get in touch if they have lost something on public transport

"Unfortunately, a lot of people feel if they lose an item, nobody will hand it in," Ms Quaye added.

Last month TfL moved its lost property office containing around 62,000 items to a bus garage in West Ham.

It is the largest of its kind in Europe and aims to improve processing times.

The lost items on the network have changed as fashions and technology have evolved since 1933.

Where once umbrellas and bowler hats filled shelves, now the latest phones, e-cigarettes and designer handbags can be found.

Wallets and bags are now among the most common products returned to customers, with TfL returning more than 4,400 wallets and 3,500 bags between 2020 and 2021.

This giant octopus may have taken up whole carriage seat but was still missed by its owner

Children forgetting their favourite cuddly toy is sadly a common occurrence

Mobile phones are another popular lost item with more than 1,300 returned to customers in the past financial year.

Recent examples of more unusual objects include a giant octopus soft toy and a homemade costume inspired by sci-fi television series Doctor Who.

Ms Quaye said: "We had a Dalek costume the other day. Everybody was saying 'how would you lose that?'."

The office had enough handbags to fill large shop, including this unique wooden clutch

She has urged people to check online if they have lost anything travelling on public transport in London as they will be contacted if it is recovered.

She said: "There's a large amount of items that we have within the lost property office, so we do advise that if you lose any type of item please go online and see if you can reclaim it."

Items handed in are stored for up to three months.

After that period, anything unclaimed is donated to charity, recycled, disposed of or sold.

Cash is held for up to a year.

Iphones are packaged up and dated

A little library's worth of Tube reads goes amiss

..and many lost umbrellas which would have resulted in lots of disgruntled soggy passengers

Another load of lost bags comes into foster care