Uber’s Lost & Found Reveals The Weird Things We Leave In Rideshare Vehicles

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Lost & founds can be fascinating. You’ll see the most conventional things, like a set of keys or a cherished teddy bear, and then you’ll see items that make you wonder why somebody had them on their person in the first place. With Uber rides, of course, you never know where somebody might be going or what they might be going there for, and so they might well be carrying some very unusual items.

Weird things get left behind in Ubers often enough that an exhibition was held at New York’s Oculus World Trade Center on June 2, 2026, marking the 10th Annual Uber Lost & Found Index. For one day only, it displayed a small selection of curious artifacts that had been left behind by riders. Some of this year’s lost property included, according to NYC For Free, “pelvis implants,” as well as “dentures, a package of live butterflies, [and] a 75-gallon fish tank.” 

Now, if you’ve inadvertently left something behind during a ride, Uber notes that it has no liability for that property, but that directly contacting the driver (who can’t be held responsible either per the company) is your best chance to retrieve it. This can be done through the Find Lost Item menu in the Activity tab of the Uber app. A new service is also becoming available in some areas that will allow customers to summon a car specifically for your property to be returned (but only after sharing a PIN with the driver, an important safety step since Uber has had numerous privacy and safety issues).

If you’re more interested in the oddities that your fellow riders have left behind, though, let’s take a closer look at the good work the Uber Lost & Found Index has been doing for a decade.

Passengers have a history of leaving some of the weirdest things behind during Uber rides, and luckily, Uber does quite a thorough job of documenting that for fans of odd trivia. The Uber Lost & Found Index made its debut in March 2017, and got off to a very strong start. 

Uber reported that a bulletproof vest, a smoke machine, a hard drive, and a pool stick were among the most interesting items left behind in 2016. Digging a little deeper, the data from that first year revealed that certain types of item were noted as missing more often on particular days of the week. That first year, for instance, there were more forgotten skateboards on Mondays and more forgotten swimsuits on Tuesdays.

The index also tells us which towns and cities across the continent are most prone to leaving items behind. Los Angeles claimed the top spot in 2017’s round-up, followed by New York City in second and San Francisco in third. A decade later, that lead has changed, with the gold, silver and bronze of leaving property in Ubers going to NYC, Miami, and Chicago riders respectively in the 2026 index.

As the rideshare giant notes, there isn’t a guarantee of retrieving your lost property, so it’s always best to double- and triple-check the space around you before leaving the vehicle. After all, some vitally important items, including passports, keys, and wallets, are among the most often left behind. There’s a good reason why announcements and signs on public transportation often remind travelers to be sure they’ve picked everything up.