man returns a strangers wallet and is rewarded...would you reward?

[lapoker17]

what is correct depends entirely on the age and apparent status of the preson who returns the wallet.

[lastchance]

I love the Christmas gift idea. Very psychologically rewarding.

[bwana devil]

i was downtown and found someone's driver's license on the street. the next day i mailed it to the address w/ a note that said "thought you might need this." i put a return address on the envelope in case they didnt live there but no name because i didnt want any recognition.

about a month goes by and i got a postcard in the mail from the woman in san franciso thanking me. she said she was leaving on a long trip the next week and she would need to rent cars and it would have been extremely difficult w/out that license.

i thought that postcard was way cooler than me mailing that license.

bwana

Yes I'd give about 20% of what I "routinely carry" in my wallet. This is about $15-$20 bucks. I think a minimum of $10 is necessary though.

[RandBriscoe]

It seems odd to me that anyone would suggest that they shouldn't offer money. This person is providing you a (presumably) very valuable service. I would start at $10 and increase commensurate with how much trouble it was to get it to me...

[DrSavage]

I would always offer a reward and accept anything offered.

[Oski]

[ QUOTE ]

3 weeks later (around christmas time) i sent their family a honeybaked ham and a christmas card that read: "since you saved me so much trouble i figured i would save you a day of trouble from the kitchen, so here's a ham. thank you for your kindess."

[/ QUOTE ]

Very classy. The world needs more like you.

I lost my wallet about 8 years ago in San Fran. Some lady mailed it to me. I called her up and thanked her and offered her a reward for being so kind (and I wanted to pay her back for the mail charges).

Well, she declined, but asked if I could make a donation to a specific charity in her name.

I shined that on, as I thought that was offensive. She was supposed to do what she did, yet I still figured it was the right thing to reward her good behavior. However, I felt she was out of line asking me to make the donation in her name. This just felt wrong to me.

I shined her on.

For the record, I have returned the two wallets I have found in the past by mailing them to the address found on the driver's license inside. However, before I did that, I called the person to 1) check to see if the address was still correct; 2) to let them know the wallet was found and that they would not have to cancel anything.

[gumpzilla]

I like this, I think this style of reward makes everybody feel good and seems a little less mercenary than cash. I agree it would be silly to get offended if somebody offered cash, and if I were returning somebody's wallet I wouldn't expect a reward.

[Duke]

It depends on the age of the returner. I'd give a little kid a lot more than I'd give an adult, as an attempt at showing them that they did the right thing and I thank them for it.

An adult would get a token offer out of appreciation.

~D