Lost and Found Policy

Lost and Found for Kanawha County Public Library

Policy

Kanawha County Public Library is not responsible for the security of personal items brought into any library facility. Unattended items will be collected by Library staff and may be taken into custody at the conclusion of the business day.

Regulations

• The Kanawha County Public Library system is a public venue and personal items are the responsibility of their owners.
• Patrons are strongly encouraged not to leave personal items unattended at any time. Items that are left unattended may be considered lost items and will be subject to the provisions of this Lost and Found Policy.
• Patrons who can satisfactorily identify their items may claim their items from lost and found. Lost items will be returned to original owner, parent/guardian of owner, or approved designee.

Lost & Found Articles

• Lost and Found items will be dated and stored for a period of 14 days.
• Reasonable attempts will be made to contact the owners (to the extent ownership is known) to reclaim their lost items. Items not claimed within 14 days become Library property and may be discarded.
• Library staff do not log or track lost and found items.
• Employees, volunteers, and patrons may not take personal possession of lost and found items.
• Suspicious items or packages are handled appropriately; law enforcement may be contacted to handle them.
• Hazardous and perishable items are discarded immediately.
• Personal belongings which appear to be trash or junk or have insignificant value as reasonably determined by Library staff will be disposed of immediately.
• Due to patron privacy library staff will not access data saved on flash drives or any other digital device to determine ownership.
• After 48 hours, the local police department will be contacted to turn over items of obvious value (e.g. wallets, purses, personal identification, bank cards, phones, tablets, laptops).

Unclaimed Articles

• After 7 days, unclaimed cash, books, movies and music without library or school property labels will be donated to Kanawha County Public Library Friends Group, Kanawha County Public Library Advisory Boards, or the Kanawha County Public Library Book Sale.
• After 14 days, any unclaimed items will be given to local charitable agencies or disposed of as appropriate.
• After 14 days, unclaimed USB drives, which may contain important content, will be physically destroyed or disposed of, as appropriate. Library staff cannot guarantee the destruction of data.
• Documents left in library copy machines and scanners will be shredded at the end of the business day.