1.7 Million Phones, Ozempic, and Live Lobsters: The 50 Wildest Things People Left in Ubers in 2024
Anyone missing their divorce papers?
It can feel like our technology is permanently attached to us as soon as we leave our home. Which makes sense: It’s certainly a lot harder to get around without the maps, ride-hailing apps, and payment systems these devices facilitate (not to mention the pure entertainment aspect, regardless of how easy it is to pine for the days when mindless distraction wasn’t just a swipe away).
Yet for all of that, these devices are also the ones that people leave behind in their Ubers the most. Uber’s latest “Lost and Found Index” is a look into the most commonly forgotten items that people file a report for, and things often considered the most essential also happen to be the most left behind. At the top of the list, Apple was the most lost brand in Uber rides in 2024 — particularly iPhones and Airpods. As a whole, 1.7 million iPhones and Androids were left behind on rides, potentially making tipping for that ride and messaging your driver for some help a little more difficult.
The 10 most commonly forgotten items in Ubers:
- Phone
- Wallet
- Keys
- Luggage
- Headphones
- Glasses
- Clothing
- Passport
- Vape
- Water Bottle
The top 10 most forgetful cities include New York, Miami, and Chicago — no surprise given the number of riders. Forgetfulness peaked on October 26, the Saturday of Halloweekend, with the 11 PM to midnight window earning the dubious honor of the most item losses.
On a more granular level, the Index finds that riders are most likely to forget gloves on Mondays, jackets on Tuesdays, umbrellas on Thursdays and Fridays, and debit cards on Sundays. People reporting lost cowboy hats, naturally, peaks on Saturdays.
Legal papers like court summons and divorce papers also made the list, Disney merch was the most left behind theme park souvenirs, and Eagles fans left behind more gear than any other sports team. Reports of lost pickleball gear, yoga mats, and pilates socks were on the rise in 2024, too. Sometimes you can win on the field but lose everywhere else. Red items would seemingly be easy to keep track of, yet that was the most lost color. And like the prior year, someone managed to leave behind their pet turtle.
Food was also commonly reported as lost. In a year when eggs were a prized commodity and increasingly expensive and limited, one person left 108 eggs in their Uber. Though that was still a less expensive mental slip than the person who left a bottle of Don Julio 1942 or the person who said they forgot their “filet mignon for my dog.”
The 50 most unique items lost in Ubers in 2024
- Mannequin head with human hair
- Viking drinking horn
- Ghostbusters ghost trap
- Chainsaw
- Breast milk
- Fine china
- My turtle
- Urinal
- Club promoter sign reading “Annie’s married” – it belongs to the club
- Sticky boob bra
- Aviation headset
- Shrek ears
- Bermuda shorts
- A pink fan that has two hearts and the word “bimbo”
- DNA testing kit
- Pickleball paddles and ball
- 2 mattresses
- 15 hookahs
- Amethyst crystal
- Aquarium
- Witches broom
- Unicycle
- 100 DVDs
- Bouquet of 100 red roses
- Sea moss
- Traffic cone
- A very large portrait of myself in a brown box
- Yankees bobble head figure
- Plunger
- A photograph of me and my friend at Benihana
- Little cactus
- Peacock feather
- Lady Liberty crown
- Hoverboard and a mini fridge
- Harry potter wand
- Sewing machine
- Orthopedic foot insoles
- Boiled eggs and a candle
- Divorce papers
- Ozempic
- Remy the rat doll
- Blue laminated paper with yellow smiley face
- Cornish hens
- A placard that says “it’s a Philly thing”
- Fake blood
- 10 live lobsters
- Taxidermied rabbit
- Chicken sculpture
- Hannah Montana merchandise
- DJ mixing board
Worried that one of your possessions will make 2025’s list? Thankfully it’s easy to get in touch with your driver, even if that lost possession was the phone you booked the Uber on: Go to the Activity section on the app, select the trip, hit “find lost item” in the help section, and detail what you lost for your driver. Without a phone, head to help.uber.com. 
