Sex toys and false teeth: The weirdest things left behind in Ubers this year

London was named the most forgetful city in the UK

A handful of the items discovered in Uber cars over the past year (Uber)

Gucci caps, false teeth and a literal set of marbles are just some of the items left behind in Uber vehicles over the past year.

The ridesharing app has revealed its annual Lost and Found Index, detailing some of the weird and wonderful items left behind by passengers in the UK over the past year.

Six Chicken Selects, a micro scooter and a dog buggy are a handful of the other things left behind by forgetful passengers.

Predictably, the most common lost item was a mobile phone, closely followed by wallets and bags.

And highlighting the UK’s shift to a cashless economy, cash has fallen out of the top 10 list.

Passports were also regularly misplaced alongside keys, jewellery and headphones.

There’s also a regional bias, with London named the most forgetful city in the UK, followed by Manchester and Birmingham in second and third place respectively.

And Uber found that the day of the week also had a bearing on items lost, with headphones the most forgotten item on a Monday, compared with wallets on a Saturday.

As one of the biggest and booziest nights’ of the year, it’s no surprise that New Year’s Day 2022 was the busiest day for Uber’s lost and found department over the past year, with absent-minded passengers forgetting more of their items on this day than any other.

Meanwhile, in the US, some of the items reported missing included sex toys, caviar, stuffed sloths and a Billie Eilish ukulele.

Andrew Brem, UK general manager at Uber said: “As the world opens back up and we’re all excited to be out and about a lot more, it can be easy to accidentally leave something behind.

“No matter what the item is, the Uber app makes it easy to contact your driver and arrange for your possessions' quick and safe return.”

Forgetful passengers can retrieve left-behind items by contacting their driver directly or via the 24/7 support team on the Uber app.

The news comes as travellers have criticised the “disgraceful” increase in taxi fares as demand for the services spike in the wake of the nationwide rail strikes.

Uber users in London on Wednesday were hit with a surge in prices, with a three-mile journey from Paddington to King’s Cross estimated to cost £27 at 8.45am.

Uber said it is expecting “significant” demand this week and that it has capped surge prices.

A spokesperson said: “We are expecting significant increases in demand as a result of strike action across the rail network this week.

“As a result of the strike action currently taking place on the National Rail and London Underground network, we have capped the level that prices can surge, and all users are shown the price of their trip before they book.

“We are also working hard to ensure that there are enough drivers out on the road to match demand.”

The 10 most frequently left behind items on Uber journeys in the UK this year

1. Phone

2. Wallet/purse

3. Backpack/bag

4. Keys

5. Headphones

6. Items of clothing

7. Glasses

8. Jewellery

9. Cardholder

10. Passport