Lost something in China? Here are the calls that actually work.

Short answer: Call the place that has the item first — the hotel, the shop, the taxi company, the station — while someone who was on that shift is still working. A police report comes after, and only because insurance or a replacement passport usually needs one. Most items are found or they aren’t, in the first day. China On-Call makes those calls in Mandarin and tells you in English what came back, including when the answer is “nothing was handed in”.

Lost property in China is handled by whoever holds the item, not by a central office. Every hotel has a 失物招领 (lost and found) shelf, every railway station has a lost-property counter, and every taxi company and ride-hailing app can contact the driver who had your trip. The problem is that all of those conversations happen in Chinese, and shift changes erase the memory of who saw what.

Need us to make the call?

Emergency Rescue — $59. One stuck call, made in Chinese, reported back to you in English.

Pay $59 with PayPal

Not sure it fits what you need? Message me on WeChat 13368344745 first and describe the problem. I'll tell you honestly if I can help.

What I can do on the phone

Hotels — housekeeping, the 失物招领 shelf, and rooms that have already been re-let
Taxis and ride-hailing — getting the driver contacted, through the app or through the dispatch company
Trains — the lost-property counter at the station, and the 12306 lost-item route for something left on board
Airlines and airports — baggage left at the gate, in a lounge, or on a bus
Metro, buses and attractions — the station office that keeps found items
Restaurants, shops and malls — CCTV questions, and who is allowed to look at it
What a police loss report (报案证明) is for, and when an insurer or an embassy will ask for one

What this doesn't cover

I can’t promise the item comes back. I find out whether it was handed in, who has it and what happens next. I won’t tell you it’s fine when I don’t know.
I don’t pay for shipping and I don’t forward money or accept a courier fee on your behalf. If an item is held for you, you arrange and pay for its return.
I can’t file insurance claims or make a company compensate you.
I can’t look at CCTV myself — footage is usually released only to the police, which is one of the reasons the report matters.

How it works

Tell me what was lost, when, and everywhere it could have been — with a photo or a description of the item in English and, if you have it, Chinese.
I call the places in order of how likely they are to still have it, and ask the specific questions: was anything handed in, which shift, is there a logbook entry, how long is footage kept.
You get it straight in English: what exists, what doesn’t, which office to go to, and what to bring to collect it.

Questions people ask before paying

Is a police report worth it for a lost item?

If your insurer, your employer or your embassy will ask for one, yes — and in China a loss report normally has to be filed at the station covering the place where it happened. If nothing depends on it, the call to the place holding the item matters more.

How long do hotels and stations keep found items?

It varies by property and by item, and I won’t pretend otherwise. The useful question is how long they keep footage, since that usually expires long before the item does.

Can you describe my item to them in Chinese?

Yes — that’s most of the job. I’ll take your description and make it specific enough to check against a shelf.

Send me the details and I'll make the call

WeChat 13368344745 — tell me what's stuck and I'll confirm what I need to fix it.