My wife and I were returning late one night from an out-of-town trip. We were able to catch a commercial shuttle van from the local airport to our home. But when we arrived at our home, the driver informed us that we needed to pay cash. In our efforts to come up with the right amount of cash between us, I neglected to check to see that all of our luggage was removed from the van and taken into our house. I also failed to get a receipt for the fare.
It was not until the next morning that we noticed that one bag was missing. It was a briefcase that had some expensive equipment in it.
Our first reaction was to take the human footsteps of calling the shuttle company to check with their lost and found. Not only had nothing been turned in, but they had no record of the trip and fare. It appeared that the driver had pocketed the cash and not reported the trip. The company manager stated that the company could not be held liable, since each driver owned the vehicle that he drove, and he pointed out that there was a sign posted in each van stating that the company was not responsible for personal articles left.
