shop lost (?) item on their care

TheRover

Would probably need your advice on the following:

Two weeks ago, my wife lost a small wallet at a store in Galway. When she returned there, she was told the item had been found, but the employees on site couldn't retrieve it for her. "It's probably on the safe and the manager is on holidays" she was told.
Hi
When she returned to the shop and finally met the manager, the wallet was nowhere to be seen. The employees on site that day, manager included, searched the shop and were very apologetical as they knew the item but couldn't find it.

This week, allegedly while searching the security tapes, the conclusion given to my wife was: "the employee who found the item threw it on the trash".

We're a bit skeptical about this information, particularly knowing we were told that "the employee who found the item no longer works here".

What should be our next action? Should we take legal action? Should we get The Garda involved?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Pat Mustard

I'd begin with a written complaint to management, and take it from there.

How much was in the wallet?

Peregrinus

Legally, when you find property belonging to someone else you are a "bailee" of that property, and you are required to take "due care" of it. Exactly what that means depends on the circumstances, but in this case the shop never sought to acquire possession of the wallet, weren't benefitting in any way from possessing it, etc, etc. There are some older cases which suggest that the standard of care required of a gratuitous bailee such as a finder is simply not to be grossly negligent.

Still, throwing out a wallet which you found in the shop, and which you know or should know that the owner has been enquiring for, looks pretty grossly negligent to me.