Taxis Hailed As 'Black Hole' For Lost Cell Phones And PDAs, As Confidential Data Gets Taken For A Ride

Many Happy Returns Not all results of the research were negative, however.

Globally, an average of 80% of all passengers were reunited with their mobile phones and 96% with their Pocket PCs/PDAs and laptops-with the cab drivers themselves, in almost all cases, tracking down the owners.

Worst on the list was Sydney, Australia, where only 46% of Down Under passengers bothered to reclaim their mobiles. Only 18% were ever reunited with their laptops.

Viagra, Cats, and a Prosthetic Leg

When asked what was the strangest item left in their taxis, drivers around the world had no shortage of bizarre replies. Forgotten condoms seemed to top the list; however pets, undergarments, knives, and luggage were also commonplace.

UK taxi drivers admitted to finding a harp, a throne, 100,000 pounds Sterling in diamonds, 37 milk bottles, and a baby. Among the possessions found in Chicago cabs were a violin case, a cat, prescription Viagra, a treasure bond worth $2.5 million, and a prosthetic leg.

In Munich, one taxi driver was shocked when he turned around to find his passenger dead.

Perhaps the best story came from a female London cab driver who discovered her fare, British celebrity socialite Jemima Khan, had left her iPod, mobile phone, and purse in the woman's taxi. When the cabbie got the call to return the items to Khan's friend, she was delighted to discover the friend was actor Hugh Grant.

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