Question: Over a year ago my wife found a gift card next the entrance to our building. She put up a sign (then) and no one called. Can she use… Read more »
Category: Returing lost objects
Previous tenant left item
Question: I rented out my basement apartment, and the Jewish tenant bought a new oven. They eventually moved out, leaving the oven. Obviously it’s not like they forgot it there,… Read more »
hashovas aveida
Question: I was on the train and found a wallet that, based on the ID inside it, belongs to a non-Jew. After considering what I should do and consulting with… Read more »
finding lost object
Question: there is a segula to say a certain paragraph (“אמר רבי בנימין etc.”) when one has lost something…in there it has the word אלקא…. when one is actually saying… Read more »
Lost items in Shul
Question: What’s the Eitza in a Shul not to have a problem with lost items and Hashovas Aveida..? Thank you very much! Answer: The eitza is that the shul should… Read more »
“Yiush”
Question: The scenario is if I asked someone if I can keep something, and the owner told me that it was fine that I keep it and that he was… Read more »
Hashavas aveideh
Question: My kids found closed pack of kids prize kind of glasses on my driveway & they wanna have it Left it outside on porch for few weeks to see… Read more »
Online shopping and error
Question: There is a company based in Israel that have an online website, and when I added 4 items to my basket, an additional discount came up which I believe… Read more »
Found money in yeshiva
Question: I found money in a yeshiva. It was a single bill, which I understand does not have a siman. Is it “better” to announce it? I am discussing a… Read more »
found money in shul
Question: Found money in shul without a simin can I keep it or does the shul keep it מדין חצר קונה Answer: It is only considered a חצר if it… Read more »
Sales of sefarim left behind in a yeshiva
Question: Someone was at a sale that a yeshiva made for sefarim left around yeshiva which were unclaimed. The yeshiva could not attempt to return the sefarim even with names… Read more »
Sefarim left behind in yeshiva become hefker
Question: Can a yeshiva decide that any old sefarim which were left around its premises become hefker even if they did not put up a sign? They will put up… Read more »
Follow Up..Checks Found
Question: In this question: http://dinonline.org/2017/07/09/checks-found/ The actual question was around checks found that the org. would have owed others (not charitable). I don’t know if these were paid with other… Read more »
Items left in a rented car
Question: Shalom. Thank you in advance. I rented a car from a frum company many times. This time i didnt get a chance to empty the stuff i had in… Read more »
Calling and repayment for a previously refunded item
Question: I ordered an item on Amazon and I received an email that it was delivered. After contacting Amazon and notifying Amazon that it was never delivered to me they… Read more »
Kiddush Hashem and hashovas aveida
Question: It has bothered me that sometimes, with regard to goyim something is not really wrong according to the torah, like we don’t have to return an aveidah to a… Read more »
Found items
Question: bs’d regarding http://dinonline.org/2017/02/03/hashavas-avaidah-in-bought-car/ for how long does the finder has an obligation as a shomer? starting when after finding the item he is allowed to own it? Answer: If… Read more »
Hashavas Avaidah in bought car
Question: I bought a car from second – hand store, there was a CD inside the player. The car originally was from a Yid, and the store owner is a… Read more »
Money found in house after Power of Sale
Question: While I understand that money found after a regular purchase has to be returned to the vendor, does this halachah change if the money found was in a house… Read more »
Returning articles when it is beneath my dignity.
Question: Why is it that when it comes to the mitzvah of preparing for Shabbos, a talmid chacham or an adam chashuv is not permitted to say, “It is beneath… Read more »
What do I do with a collection of lost items?
Question: We have a small collection of items, (scarf, shirt, umbrella, a bag of tissues, etc. [nothing of nearly significant value]) that have been left by us over the years…. Read more »
Found kamaia (amulet)
Question: hi, I walked into shul and found a kamaia written on a klaf with the text that Reb Shayala Kerestirer ztz”l used to write on many of his kamaias…. Read more »
Rental Car
Question: I found a pen in the car that I rented? Whose is it? Answer: You can keep the pen. We can assume that the owner gave up hope (מתייאש)… Read more »
Found Music CD
I found an mp3 cd in rental car that the non-jewish workers would have thrown out had they found it. The regular price of a blank cd is probably around… Read more »
Envelope Found in House
1. I am selling my house in NY State. I live in Maryland. 2. My real estate agent says that someone visiting my home found an envelope of money in… Read more »
Hashavas Aveidah for Jacket Left in Shul
K’vod haRav, can one pick up a lost item to see if it has a siman (e.g. a name or phone number) without becoming responsible (shomer) for it? And if… Read more »
Saving from Financial Loss
I recently came upon the following problem and I thought I would ask you what you feel is the proper halachik choice. I was hired to fix a malfunctioning front… Read more »
Switched Suit at Cleaners
I left a suit at the cleaners. When I came to retrieve it, the owner gave me a different suit that was not mine. I complained, but the owner insisted… Read more »
Found Keys
We’ve found some keys (a few sets, actually) one in Beitar and one in Yerushalayim. We hung nearby notes and actually advertised in Beitar. We didn’t find the owners. I… Read more »
Copying Found Notes
A student found some well written revision notes that looked very useful to the subject he is studying. Is he allowed to photocopy the notes before attempting to find the… Read more »
Returning Extra Change
I am doing a project on ethical dilemmas for grade 8 Judaic Studies. My ethical dilemma is: If you get too much change from a store/restaurant etc. should you give… Read more »
Toys Returned from Playground
My 3 yr old son went to the playground and returned with a toy car he found in the sandbox. It was definitely an aveidah because there was nobody else… Read more »
Found Ring
I found a ring on the side of the road in Israel in a pile of dirt and garbage by a bus stop… what do i do? it is bent… Read more »
Coin Worth More than Face Value
A coin in the tzedakah box is or may be worth more than face value. May it be exchanged for a coin at face value? Related question: Must an effort… Read more »
Items Left Behind in Camp
We have a bag of things sitting in the house for a few years from a camp I did for kids and no one claimed and we do not whose… Read more »
Positive and Negative Commandment in Same Mitzvah
Using something like HaShovas Aveida as the example, why does the Torah give both positive AND negative commandments to the same mitzvah? I.e. Why tell us that we must return… Read more »
Returning Found Bag
I found a bag in a movie theater one day, i had no idea who’s it was so i was curious and looked inside and saw that there was no… Read more »
Found Coins at Home
Dear Rabbi A few weeks ago I was sleeping on the couch and I noticed some toonies and loonies below the cushion of the couch. As I was sick and… Read more »
Returning Blanket to Airline
Hi, While organizing for Pesach I came across a blanket that someone gave us that has a tag on it which says: “Property of American Airlines Please Do Not Remove… Read more »
Found Squeegee
A member of my family found a roll of new masking tape and a fairly new looking sponga squeeIf nogee rubber attachment on the street. What is the halacha? Can… Read more »
Returning Wayward Package
Recently my dad received a package in the mail he did not order, yet the package contained stuff useful to my dad. My dad decided to keep the package that… Read more »
Returning Found Tallis
Hi Rabbi, We found a talis with a silver atarah on it near a park… It was kind of folded on the stair wall ledge. We had no one to… Read more »
Returning Dropped money
If someone came to my house and had in their pocket $100. When they were in my house the money was lost. After a few moments I find a $100… Read more »
Found Bib Outside Door
Someone left a bag on our door with a bib inside. I’m assuming they found it and assumed it’s ours, but it’s not. I don’t know who left it there…. Read more »
Returning Found Note
My son found 100 shekels on the pavement. Besides the large amount of money there were no simanim. Is there a mitzvah of hashavos aveida? Answer: There is no obligation… Read more »
Find on NY Subway
I was on the NY subway yesterday when I noticed that a woman that had just gone off the train left a bag under her seat. Inside the bag was… Read more »
Property Left in Guest House
1) Some small pieces to a toy were left in our apartment some time ago by a guest that must have stayed by us, but we don’t have any idea… Read more »
Bought Chips for Friend and Lost Them
If I go to a store to buy food and my friend says to me “buy me a bag of chips.” I agree, and buy him the chips. However, on… Read more »
Saving Town at Expense of Farmers
See the news story at this address: http://www.usatoday.com/weather/floods/2011-05-03-mississippi-river-cairo-illinois-levee-floods_n.htm I’d like to know what the shulchan aruch says about this. It seems to me that the army core of engineers did… Read more »
Found Screw Bit
Approximately 2 years ago I found a screw bit (that fits on a battery powered screw driver) on one of the paths in our neighborhood. It is a good quality… Read more »