You may submit a Lost and Found inquiry using our online form or by calling OCTA customer service at (714) 560-5934. When reporting a lost item, please provide as much detail as possible. This will assist us in our search for the item.

OCTA customers may submit a Lost and Found inquiry as soon as they realize that they lost the article on OCTA property. The inquiry will be entered into the Lost and Found database and will be researched as soon as that day’s found articles arrive at the Lost and Found office.

The Lost and Found office normally receives found articles from the OC Bus bases on the next business day, Monday through Friday. For example, an item found on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday would normally reach Lost and Found on Monday, unless the Monday is a holiday.

You will normally be notified of the outcome of your inquiry within one business day. Customers are notified by telephone or email. If you do not answer, we will leave a voicemail message. If your article was found, we will provide an item tag number and instructions for pickup. You will also be notified if your item was not found.

Lost and Found staff will make three notification attempts over a period of three business days. If staff are unable to speak with you or leave a voicemail message, or if the telephone number is no longer operational, we will document the results whether the item was found or not and the inquiry will be closed as unable to contact. Customers who have heard back from Lost and Found after several business days may contact Lost and Found at (714) 560-5934 to inquire about the status of their inquiry.

If you don’t have a telephone number or email address and cannot provide a telephone number or email address for a friend or relative who may relay a message from Lost and Found, you may call Lost and Found to check the status of your inquiry. Lost and Found staff will document investigation results in the Lost and Found database whether the item was found or not. You may contact Lost and Found at (714) 560-5934 after waiting at least one full business day to inquire about the status of their inquiry.

OCTA follows guidelines established by the California Government Code and California Civil Code related to found property, which requires that articles be stored for 90 days. Articles are stored free of charge for the first 14 days. After 14 days (days 15 through 90), a $0.25 per day storage fee will be charged. Articles that are perishable, trash, waste, or that pose a potential threat to the safety of Lost and Found staff will be immediately disposed of and will not be held for 90 days.

Articles left at Lost and Found longer than 14 days are considered to be stored and a $0.25 per day storage fee will be applied starting from the day that the article was found. Customers who have left their article at Lost and Found longer than 14 days may be granted a one-time fee exception by completing a fee-waiver request at the Lost and Found office. Only one exception will be granted per customer.

If you are notified that your item was found, Lost and Found staff will provide an item tag number. After receiving an item tag number, you must come to the Lost and Found facility at 11903 Woodbury Road, Garden Grove, CA 92843. Business hours are Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.. Friday pickups are available by appointment only. All found items are stored for 90 days from the date found. Please see "how long does OCTA keep found articles" for additional information related to the storage of found articles and storage fees for items stored longer than 14 days.

To claim property from Lost and Found, you must obtain a found item tag number from the Lost and Found Office. An item tag number may be obtained by submitting a Lost and Found inquiry using our online form or by calling OCTA customer service at 714-560-5934. Lost and Found staff will contact you and let you know if your item was found. You must reasonably establish ownership of the item to claim the property. This may include, but is not limited to, presenting photo identification (driver license, ID card, passport, school ID, employer ID, etc.) and/or sufficient specific knowledge of the found article (phone unlock code, bicycle lock combination, item contents, etc.).

If you are unable to come or send a designated representative to the Lost and Found office to pick up your found article, Lost and Found staff may be able to provide an alternative:

• If ownership may be reasonably determined without requiring an in-person pickup, you may provide postage-paid packaging and a signed release that would allow Lost and Found staff to mail your item to you through the US Postal Service.

Articles found on OCTA property, including OCTA buses, that are not claimed and picked up within 90 days will be repurposed or sold at public auction. Articles valued at $250 or more will be sold at public auction. Unclaimed articles that are valued at less than $250 or are considered inappropriate or impractical for public auction are donated to qualified charitable organizations or recycled. Such items include, but are not limited to, clothing, wallets, purses, backpacks, cell phones, etc. Unclaimed cell phones and other electronic items that may contain personally identifiable information will only be donated to qualified charitable organizations or recycled through qualified recyclers who are certified in electronic data removal and wiping to ensure that any personally identifiable information is cleared from the device. Articles that are considered to have no retained value will be discarded.

Your 501(c)(3) charitable organization may email lostandfound@octa.net to request donatable unclaimed articles from OCTA Lost and Found. Once verified, your organization may be added to the list of organizations that will be offered donatable unclaimed items.

OCTA surplus inventory items that are considered to have some retained value, including retired office equipment, retired vehicles, and unclaimed found property and bicycles valued at $250 or more, are made available to interested parties through public auction. Interested parties not directly involved in the processing of the surplus inventory may purchase the inventory through public auction. OCTA currently uses two principal methods for the public auction of surplus inventory, including unclaimed found articles:

• General Auction Company (GAC) - Located in Buena Park California, CAG conducts monthly live auctions primarily consisting of large and bulk items from a variety of public and private sources. Interested parties should contact GAC directly for information about GAC auctions, auction dates, how to register as a buyer, or any other information. Additional information is available at https://generalauction.com
• Public Surplus.com –This online auction environment provides for the disposal of public agency surplus (retired) inventory. Interested parties may register as a buyer and obtain additional information at www.PublicSurplus.com. Bidders are required to provide a physical address, email address, and telephone number to become validated as an online bidder. Once registered, users may establish an interest list for daily or weekly email notifications. Selecting Sporting Goods -> Bicycles, California, and within 10 miles of zip code 92843, for example, should narrow your interest criteria, if only listed in Surplus Bicycle Sales in Central Orange County California. Interested partied may obtain additional information and register as a bidder at www.PublicSurplus.com.