Eight jurisdictions, eight rule books: What to do with guests’ left-behind property

By the Homebound team

Depending on the state and what an item is worth, a hotel may have to hold a guest’s forgotten belongings for anywhere from seven days to more than six months and some items can’t be disposed of at all without a court order.

Most hotel back offices hold the same collection: tubs of phone chargers, reading glasses and single socks, and a safe with a few watches and the odd passport. Ask the duty manager how long it all has to be kept and you will often get a round number, such as 90 days. There is no national rule behind it.

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Each state and territory has its own uncollected-goods Act, with different notice steps, holding periods and dollar thresholds. Under the common law, a hotel holding a departed guest’s goods holds them on the guest’s behalf as a bailee and has to take reasonable care of them. Getting rid of them outside the statutory steps can leave the hotel open to a claim from the owner.

Several of the Acts were written for repairers, dry cleaners and storage businesses, and say little about a jacket left on the back of a room door.

New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland

The NSW Uncollected Goods Act 1995 works in tiers. Goods under $1,000 need notice, verbal or written and 14 days. Goods from $1,000 to $20,000 need written notice and 28 days. Anything over $20,000 needs an order from the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).

In Victoria, Part 4.2 of the Australian Consumer Law and Fair Trading Act 2012 requires written notice and a further 28 days. If written attempts to reach the guest fail, the wait becomes 60 days under $200, 90 days for $200 to $4,999 and 180 days for $5,000 or more. Consumer Affairs Victoria gives a guest who never collects belongings from a hotel’s lost and found as an example of uncollected goods.

Queensland’s Disposal of Uncollected Goods Act 1967 gives the owner six months from written notice to collect, followed by a newspaper notice of intention to sell at least 28 days before a public auction. A court order is needed if the charges claimed are over $110. The Act was written for goods accepted for custody, storage or repair, so whether it covers a forgotten item is a question for a lawyer.

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South Australia, Western Australia and the territories

South Australia’s Unclaimed Goods Act 1987 was amended from August 1, 2026. After notice, goods of $200 or less become the hotel’s after 14 days, and goods from $200 to under $20,000 can be sold after 28 days. Goods of $20,000 or more need 60 days and a court order. Because the Act’s definition of bailment includes involuntary bailment, it probably reaches property a guest leaves behind.

In Western Australia, the Disposal of Uncollected Goods Act 1970 requires at least six months after written notice for goods of $3,500 or less, then a month’s published notice of intention to sell before auction. Above $3,500 a Magistrates Court order is needed. A guest’s forgotten item may fall under the Criminal and Found Property Disposal Act 2006 instead.

Tasmania’s Disposal of Uncollected Goods Act 2020 follows the Victorian pattern: 28 days after notice, or 60, 90 or 180 days if the guest can’t be found, with tiers at $200 and $5,000.

The ACT’s Uncollected Goods Act 1996 starts with a written request to collect within seven days. Goods with a net value of $20 or less can then go after seven days, goods over $20 and under $500 after a month, and goods of $500 or more to public auction after three months.

The Northern Territory’s Uncollected Goods Act 2004 sets 28 days after notice under $200 and two months for $200 to $999. From $1,000 to $6,999 it is three months, with notice to police and in a newspaper, and $7,000
or more needs a court order.

Passports and other documents

In NSW, passports, licences, bank books and personal photographs need 28 days’ written notice, then go back to the issuing body or are destroyed securely. South Australia also requires 28 days’ notice and doesn’t allow them to be sold, and in the ACT they go back to the issuing authority where practicable. In any state, a passport belongs in the safe.

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What the front desk can do

Good records are the hotel’s best protection. Log each item the day it’s found with a photo, a short description, the date, the room and who found it. If your property management system allows it, add a note to the guest’s booking so whoever answers the phone can confirm the item straight away.

Keep a copy of every notice and every attempt to reach the guest. In NSW, if a guest disputes a disposal, the hotel has to show it followed the Act. Most of the Acts also require a disposal record, kept for six years for most items in NSW, Queensland, WA, South Australia and Tasmania and three years in the NT.

Cash, jewellery, passports and electronics go in a locked safe.

When a guest asks for something to be posted, don’t take their card number over the phone. A card number on a notepad is a security risk and sits badly with the card industry’s PCI DSS rules. A secure payment link, where the guest enters their own address and card details, avoids the problem.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws change, and several of these Acts were never drafted with hotels in mind, so check the current Act for your state or ask a lawyer before disposing of anything valuable.

State-by-state guides to these laws are at: usehomebound.com.au/guides/hotel-lost-property-laws-australia.