Section 71 Indian Contract Act 1872 - Responsibility of Finder of Goods
Section 71 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 deals with a person who finds goods belonging to another person and voluntarily takes those goods into custody. The law places that finder under the same responsibility as a bailee.
Updated: 20 September 2026
Section 71 - Responsibility of Finder of Goods
Section 71 appears in Chapter V of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, which deals with certain relations resembling those created by contract. The obligation therefore does not depend upon an ordinary negotiated contract between the finder and the true owner. Once the finder takes another person's goods into custody, the Act imposes the responsibility applicable to a bailee.
Official Indian Contract Act on India Code
Meaning and Legal Effect of Section 71
A finder of goods is a person who comes across movable goods belonging to someone else and takes possession or custody of them. Section 71 does not make the finder the owner. Instead, it protects the owner's interest by treating the finder, for responsibility purposes, like a bailee.
A bailee is defined in Section 148 in the context of bailment. For a finder of goods, Section 71 creates the relevant responsibility even though the goods were not originally delivered to the finder under a conventional bailment agreement.
Duties of a Finder of Goods as Bailee
Because Section 71 subjects the finder to the same responsibility as a bailee, the provisions governing a bailee's care are particularly important. Under Section 151, a bailee must take as much care of the goods as a person of ordinary prudence would, in similar circumstances, take of his or her own goods of the same bulk, quality and value. Section 152 generally protects a bailee from liability for loss, destruction or deterioration where the level of care required by Section 151 has been taken, subject to any special contract.
| Provision | Relevance to finder of goods |
|---|---|
| Section 71 | Makes a finder who takes goods into custody subject to the same responsibility as a bailee. |
| Section 151 | Sets the ordinary-prudence standard of care for goods held by a bailee. |
| Section 152 | Addresses liability for loss, destruction or deterioration when the required care has been taken. |
| Section 168 | Provides specified rights to a finder, including retention against the owner for certain expenses and a reward in the circumstances stated by the section. |
| Section 169 | Permits sale in the limited statutory circumstances applicable to things commonly on sale. |
Rights of the Finder under Sections 168 and 169
Section 168 deals specifically with the right of a finder of goods. A finder generally cannot sue the owner merely for compensation for trouble and expense voluntarily incurred to preserve the goods and find the owner, but may retain the goods against the owner until receiving such compensation. Where the owner has offered a specific reward for return of the lost goods, the finder may sue for that reward and may retain the goods until it is received.
Section 169 permits a finder to sell a thing commonly on sale only in the circumstances specified by the Act, including where the owner cannot with reasonable diligence be found or refuses on demand to pay the finder's lawful charges, and where the statutory condition concerning perishability/loss of value or the amount of lawful charges is satisfied.
Example
Suppose A finds B's bag containing valuable goods and takes it into custody. A must take reasonable care of the bag and its contents in accordance with the responsibility imposed on a bailee. A should preserve the goods and take reasonable steps to identify or locate B. A cannot simply treat the goods as his own. Any claim to retain the goods for qualifying expenses, claim an offered reward, or sell the goods must satisfy the applicable provisions of the Indian Contract Act.
Key Point
Section 71 creates a legal responsibility from the act of taking found goods into custody. Its practical effect is best understood together with the bailment provisions, particularly Sections 151 and 152, and the finder's specific rights under Sections 168 and 169.