Is this ok? (Picture: Shutterstock)

After a young woman ended up with a criminal record for keeping £20 she found on a shop floor, a lot of people are nervous.

Imagine you come across a small amount of cash – say, a single note – that’s been accidentally left behind or dropped on the ground.

You look around, but there’s no one in sight.

What do you do? Do you try and track down the owner somehow? Hand it into a police station? Or just pocket it and buy yourself a few G&Ts later?

What would you do? Try and track down the owner yourself

Hand it into a nearby shop or a police station

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It’s because of scenarios like this that keeping small amounts of cash left on the ground is pretty common. Often it’s a huge task to take the money in to the police.

You have to sit and wait, giving up loads of your own time filling in forms.

Then, at the end of it all, the chances of someone coming back to collect anything under around £30 are slim – or so you might assume.

But 23-year-old Nicole Bailey from Stoke-on-Trent found out the hard way that, if you take the ‘finders keepers’ attitude, the courts can come down hard on you.

So what’s the law?

Until now, laws around keeping found cash has been pretty hazy.

Technically, the crime is known as ‘theft by finding’.

This means that if you find a wad of cash on the street and don’t try to return it to its owner – by handing it into the shop, for example, or the police – you’re guilty of theft.

What if there’s no way of knowing where it came from?

You should try and find the owner – even if it’s only £20 (Picture: Getty)

This is where it gets a little bit more complicated…

Daniel Wise, associate solicitor at Slater Heelis LLP, told Metro.co.uk that Nicole’s case was a reminder of what constitutes ‘theft’.

‘This case will no doubt come as a surprise to many people, but it serves as a timely reminder of the definition of “theft” – which has remained largely unchanged for almost 50 years,’ he said.

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‘Under the Theft Act 1968, a person is guilty of theft if they “dishonestly appropriate property [including cash] belonging to another”.

‘Lost property will continue to “belong to another”, unless it has genuinely been abandoned by the owner. The fact that cash has been dropped in the street does not necessarily mean it has been abandoned.’

However, he adds that in the end it’s down to whether you could reasonably believe the owner of the cash was untraceable, or you had already taken reasonable steps to find them – such as by going to the police.

Guy Gosheron, a barrister with Lester Aldridge, also told Metro.co.uk: ‘Presumably [Nicole] realised that the money was someone else’s, but had decided to keep the money for herself.

‘In that event her guilt or innocence depends solely upon her own belief as to whether keeping the money was wrong.

‘If she had formed the impression in her own mind that an ordinary, honest citizen would consider her actions to be dishonest, then she would be guilty of theft. If she was not of such a belief then her actions would not be dishonest and she would not be guilty.’

What if it’s a really small amount of money?

According to Mr Wise: ‘Arguably, the smaller the amount of money, the less likely it is that the original owner would be found (as they would be less likely to be looking for it).

‘For very small sums of money, the person who finds it is more likely therefore to be able to demonstrate that they were not acting dishonestly by keeping it.’

OK… What if I find it in a cashpoint?

According to Mr Gosheron, most cashpoints now retract cash if it’s not removed within a certain amount of time – so it’s wise to leave it for a short while in case it’s reclaimed by the bank, who can then track down the person it belongs to.

‘If the cash is not retracted then take the cash out of the machine and note the time and the amount,’ he added.

Under no circumstances should you keep this cash for yourself – it’s easily traceable.

Banks can trace people who withdraw money (File picture: AFP/Getty Images)

What kind of punishment can you expect if you’re found guilty?

Again, it really depends on the circumstances of the case.

Nicole was given a conditional discharge, but was ordered to pay a hefty £175 in costs and charges.

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However, she did fine the note inside a shop – which Mr Gosheron says made things that bit worse.

Because Nicole found the money in a shop rather than on the street, he said, there was a much greater chance of the original owner coming in to ask after it.

‘Had the money been found outside in the street then it might have been that an honest finder would consider making enquiries as to ownership to be futile,’ he added.]

Being caught on CCTV taking the cash, and later lying about it to police, didn’t really help her case either.

So what should you do if you find money?

IF YOU FIND IT IN A CASHPOINT

‘If the cashpoint is attached to a bank, then the money should be handed in there and then,’ Mr Gosheron said.

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‘If not, then notification should be provided to the police within a very short timeframe.

‘It is sensible to take it straight to a local police station and hand it in.’

Either way, he said, you should make sure there’s a record of your having admitted to having the money at the first opportunity – so there’s no way they can say you intended to keep it for yourself.

IF YOU FIND IT ANYWHERE ELSE

According to Mr Gosheron, the same principle applies here.

‘You need to quickly establish a record of your identifying yourself as having the item with a view to handing it in,’ he told Metro.co.uk.

‘If the item has been found in a location where a third party might be in a position to confirm or otherwise locate the owner – such as, for example, shop staff – then they should be approached.’

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However, if you don’t think leaving it with that person will result in the cash being returned, you should take it to the police yourself.

You can also leave your contact details with the third party, he said, but only if you feel comfortable doing so.