Lost and Found

Preventing Loss and Theft

  • Please do not leave personal items, materials checked out to you, or private information lying unattended in the Libraries.
  • Mark possessions with your name and phone number in case of loss.
  • If you believe your possessions were stolen, contact the UT Arlington Police Department at: 817-272-3381.

For questions, comments, or other help, contact Central Library Service Desk at AskUs@uta.edu or by phone at 817-272-3395.

Finding a Lost Item

  1. Contact the service desk of the library where you lost the item, to see if the item is still there.
  2. The libraries turn in their lost and found items to the UT Arlington Police Department daily, so it is likely that your item may no longer be at the Libraries.
  3. Fill out the Lost & Found form at the UT Arlington Police Department to determine if they have your item.

Lost and Found Policy

The Libraries receive a plethora of lost items on a daily basis and as a result, adopted the following policies to maintain both the sanitary and storage capabilities of our Lost and Founds. These policies are informed and supported by our experience with the UTA Police Department, and as such, any property not taken by the UTA Police Department is considered abandoned and subject to disposal after the holding period has elapsed. Each item turned into a Lost and Found is logged with the date it was turned in for tracking and disposal purposes. Students seeking lost items should ensure that said property is picked up in a timely manner to avoid potential disposal. Item lists for each classification are not exhaustive. Below are the descriptions and pickup periods for various item classifications. 

High Value Items

Holding Period: 30 minutes – 1 hour

High Value Items are defined as lost property that contains sensitive information and/or has significant monetary value. After the holding period has elapsed, suspected High Value Items are then submitted to the UTA Campus Police for further safe keeping. Suspected High Value Items that are not taken by the police are subject to reclassification as Low Value Items and will be disposed after the holding period for Low Value Items has elapsed. Examples of High Value Items include:

  • Wallets
  • Purses
  • Money/Checks
  • Drivers Licenses, State IDs, Passports, etc.
  • Important Documents
  • Cell Phones
  • Car Keys
  • Laptops/Tablets

Sanitary Risks

Holding Period: 1 day

Sanitary Risks are items held for a significantly shorter period of time due to the fact that continued storage of said items could be potentially unsanitary. As such, these items are disposed of on a daily basis regardless of their monetary value. If one suspects that a lost item qualifying as a Sanitary Risk may be in our possession, you may contact us to confirm its location and inform us of when you will be retrieving said item. If you do not retrieve the item within the set time and the Holding Period has elapsed, it will be considered abandoned and subject to disposal. Dates set to pick up items cannot exceed a week from when the call was placed due to limited storage capacity. Examples of Sanitary Risks include:

  • Reusable water bottles, tumblers, cups
  • Food, perishable items
  • Food containers/lunch bags

Clothing and Umbrellas

Holding Period: ~3 days (disposed Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays)

While Clothing and Umbrellas do not pose as great a sanitary risk as other items, these items tend to be bulky and reduce our storage capacity for lost property. Therefore, these items are held for at least 3 days and disposed of on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays unless they are claimed over the phone (see Sanitary Risks above).  

MavID Cards

Holding Period: ~1 week (inventory cleared every Thursday)

All MavIDs (Student ID Cards, Faculty/Staff ID cards) in our possession are sent to the MavExpress office every Thursday regardless of whether an ID card was picked up the day before. This is done in order to ensure campus safety, as well as to clear the limited space we have in our inventory for said items. MavIDs must be claimed in-person by the person on the ID. 

Low Value Items

Holding Period: 1 week (7 days)

Low Value Items are defined as items that have low monetary value and/or items that have not and will not be stored by UTA Campus Police. These items can be claimed over the phone, however if the owner does not pick up their item at the time stated and the Holding Period for the item has elapsed, the item will be considered abandoned and subject to disposal. Dates set to pick up items cannot exceed a week from when the call was placed due to limited storage capacity.  Examples of Low Value Items include:

  • Phone Chargers
  • Apple Airpods
  • Laptop Chargers
  • Wall Adapters
  • Calculators
  • Flash Drives
  • Books
  • Binders
  • Notebooks
  • Backpacks (unless containing high value items)