Recovering a loss

שו”ת › Category: Halacha › Recovering a loss

asked 7 years ago

Hello Rabbi,
I study at an academic institution, and in one of the classrooms I found a key that someone had lost among the desks.
I wanted to ask if it is permissible to hang it on a sheet at the entrance to the classroom so that someone can find it, even though someone else might take it? And they will probably throw away the sign with the key after a short time.
Or it would be better to keep it with me, but the problem is that even here, the signs I hang up will likely be taken down after a short time.
Or is it better to leave it where it was (even though it will be hard to find) or “just” improve its location and put it above the table (but it will probably be thrown away after a while here too)?
What is the halacha in such a case? Because each side here has a lot of shortcomings…

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מיכי Staff answered 7 years ago

Simply put, this is a loss with a sign that the key is unique and opens a specific lock. If it’s a key to a regular door, it’s not such a big loss and there’s a chance that the owner has given up, but it’s still better to return it. Since it has no value to anyone else, I think there’s no fear that they’ll take it to steal it. Although if they take down the sign and key, it’s better to hang a sign and keep the key with you. Isn’t there a security department responsible for campus losses? It’s best to bring it to them.

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קובי replied 7 years ago

Thank you very much, I posted. It's not the familiar type of key like a house key, but a small one. Maybe it opens an electric bicycle?
So I wanted to ask what signs I can ask for on a key. If I even need to ask? After all, most keys look the same. And asking to show that it opens the lock sounds unreasonable to me…

מיכי Staff replied 7 years ago

Why is it unlikely?
Beyond that, you can ask about the place of loss (in theory, the place is a sign in certain circumstances), the color and shape of the key, etc.
I think that if necessary, signs can be dispensed with because no one has an interest in taking a key that will not help them.