Q2. How should lost property left on taxi be dealt with?
Lost property found by passengers
Any person who finds any property accidentally left in a taxi shall immediately hand it in the state in which he finds it to the driver or an authorized person, who shall deal with it in accordance with the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374D): see Regulation 53 of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374D).
Search for lost property
Immediately after the termination of every journey or hiring of a taxi, the driver or an authorized person shall carefully search the vehicle to ascertain whether any property has been accidentally left therein and if the vehicle is not searched by the driver or an authorized person at the termination of the journey or hiring it shall be done as soon as is practicable thereafter: see Regulation 54 of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374D).
Disposal of lost property
Under Regulation 55(1) of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374D) :-
- Any driver who finds any property left in a taxi or any person to whom any such property is handed shall, within 6 hours, deposit such property at a police station in the state in which it was found by or handed to him and shall truly state the particulars of such finding:
- Provided that if such property is sooner claimed by the owner thereof and satisfactory proof of ownership is given, it shall be restored to the owner forthwith instead of being deposited at a police station.
Any property deposited in a police station in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 55(1) of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374D) shall be disposed of in accordance with sections 40, 41 and 43 of the Police Force Ordinance (Cap. 232): see Regulation 55(2) of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374D).