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Lost & found guide — Maine

Lost something in Maine? Here's what to do.

Whether it vanished on the Portland waterfront, at a trailhead in Acadia, or somewhere on I-95, the playbook is the same: move fast, contact the right desks, and check the places lost items actually end up. Here's the Maine version of that playbook.

The first 48 hours

Move fast — retrace, call, report, search.

1 Retrace the day while it's fresh. List every place you stopped, in order. Most "lost" items are sitting exactly where you left them.
2 Call the venues on that list. Ask for the front desk or manager and give a specific description. Ask them to note your contact details with the item description.
3 File a police report for valuables. For wallets, phones, and anything with ID, contact the local police department's non-emergency line — found valuables are often handed in to police, and a report creates the paper trail.
4 Search the found-item listings here. Partner businesses log what they find — check MyQRSearch listings and keep checking; items are often logged days after they're found.
Search found items
Where lost items actually end up

The desks worth contacting.

Portland International Jetport (PWM) the state's busiest airport; contact its lost and found for anything lost in the terminal, and your airline directly for items left on the plane. portlandjetport.org
Bangor International Airport (BGR) same split: terminal items to airport lost and found, in-cabin items to the airline. flybangor.com
Amtrak Downeaster for items lost aboard the Boston–Brunswick train, file a lost-item report with Amtrak. amtrakdowneaster.com
Greater Portland METRO buses contact METRO customer service for items left on local buses. gpmetro.org
Concord Coach Lines the main intercity bus operator for Maine; contact the terminal you traveled through. concordcoachlines.com
Local police departments found valuables in Maine are commonly turned in to the town police department or town office; call the non-emergency line where you lost the item.
The law

Maine's finder law, in plain English.

Maine has an old-school but real finder statute: under 33 M.R.S. §1051, a person who finds money or goods worth $3 or more must, within 7 days, give written notice to the clerk of the town where the item was found and post a public notice in town. If the find is worth $10 or more, the finder must also publish notice in a local newspaper within a month. If no owner appears, the statute (33 M.R.S. §§1051–1058) sets out how the finder may eventually keep the property after those notice steps; failing to give notice carries a penalty. In practice: hand valuables to local police or the town office and you've done the right thing.

This is a plain-English summary, not legal advice. See the statute: 33 M.R.S. ch. 21.

How MyQRSearch helps

One search instead of ten phone calls.

MyQRSearch partners are businesses — hotels, gyms, schools, venues — that log the items they find into one searchable directory. The more Maine businesses join, the fewer desks you have to call.

MyQRSearch doesn't have partner locations in Maine yet — early partners get founding-location placement in this directory.

Run a Maine business that finds things? From an Old Port hotel to an Orono gym: log found items in minutes and let owners come to you.

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