​ሕግንና ደንብን በተመለከተ እርዳታ ማግኘት ይፈልጋሉን? - Amharic | هل تحتاج لمساعدة قانونية؟ - Arabic | ܤܢܝܼܩܵܐ ܝ݇ܘ̤ܬ ܠܗܲܝܵܪܬܵܐ ܩܵܢܘܿܢܵܝܬܵܐ؟ - Assyrian | Need Legal Help? - Auslan | Treba li vam pravna pomoc? - Bosnian | Burmese â Need Legal Help? | 需要法律帮助吗? - Chinese Simplified | 需要法律幫助嗎? - Chinese Traditional | Trebate li pravnu pomoć? - Croatian | ضرورت به کمک قانونی دارید؟ - Dari | Wïc Kuɔɔny në Wɛ̈t Löŋ? - Dinka | آیا به کمک حقوقی نیاز دارید؟ - Farsi | Gadreva na Veivuke Vakalawa? - Fijian | Kailangan ninyo ba ng tulong na panglegal? - Filipino | Besoin d’aide juridique ? - French | Χρειάζεστε βοήθεια σε νομικά ζητήματα - Greek | क्या आपको कानूनी सलाह चाहिए? - Hindi | Butuhkan Bantuan dalam Masalah Hukum? - Indonesian | Hai bisogno di assistenza legale? - Italian | ត្រូវការជំនួយលើបញ្ហាផ្លូវច្បាប់ឬទេ? - Khmer | 법적인 도움이 필요하십니까? - Korean | Ви треба ли помош со правни работи? - Macedonian | कानूनी सहयोग चाहिएको छ? - Nepalese | Necessita de ajuda com questões jurídicas? - Portuguese | Вам нужна юридическая помощь? - Russian | E Manaomia Fesoasoani i Mea Tau Tulafono? - Samoan | а ли вам треба помоћ у правним питањима? - Serbian | Ma u baahan tahay Caawimmad xagga sharciga ah?- Somali | ¿Necesita ayuda con cuestiones jurídicas? - Spanish | சட்ட உதவி தேவையா? - Tamil | ท่านต้องการความช่วยเหลือทางด้านกฎหมายไหม? - Thai | Fiema’u ha tokoni Fakalao? - Tongan | Yasal Danışmaya İhtiyacınız mı var? - Turkish | Cần Được Giúp Đỡ Về Luật Pháp? - Vietnamese |

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Uncollected goods 

This topic explains what you can do if you have a dispute about goods left behind. 

You might have a dispute about ​goods because ​you left goods with someone and they won't give them back or ​someone left their goods with you and they want them back.

    ​​​Types of goods

    You can use the information in this topic to help you resolve a dispute about:

    • personal property – such as cars, jewellery or furniture
    • pets
    • goods left behind in a tenancy, or
    • goods left with a business for repairs.

    Different laws apply to situations such as:

    • property attached to land
    • ​liens 
    • goods left in a storage facility
    • Property Recovery Orders in an Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) case
    • disputes about property after a marriage or de facto relationship has ended
    • goods left with a pawnbroker
    • animals left on a property to graze (known as 'agistment')
    • stolen goods.

    For more information, see Types of goods. 

    Giving notice before disposing the goods

    Depending on the type of goods and their value, the person who has the goods in their possession must give notice to the owner before they are allowed to dispose of them.

    For more information, see Giving notice before disposing the goods​

    If you left your goods with someone

    If someone has your goods and won't return them, you can make a claim asking them to return the goods to you or pay you the monetary value of the goods. 

    You can contact them by phone, email, sms or letter. A common way to make a claim is to send a letter of demand.

    For more information, see If you left your goods with someone.

    If someone has left their goods with you

    If someone is trying to get goods back from you, they might phone you, email you, send you an sms or send you a letter of demand.

    There are different ways that you can respond to their claim, including writing a response to their letter of demand.

    For more information, see If someone has left their goods with you.

    Resolving your dispute

    If you have a dispute with someone about goods, it is really important to try to resolve that dispute without starting a case. Talk to the other person, negotiate with them, or try mediation.​

    For more information, see Resolving your dispute.

    Going to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal 

    If you can't resolve your dispute, you may end up in the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT). 

    If you are trying to get your goods back, you will need to decide whether to start a case.

    If someone is trying to get goods back from you and they start a case against you, you will need to decide how to respond to the case. 

    It is a good idea to try to avoid going to NCAT by resolving your dispute by agreement, if possible. 

    For more information, see Going to NCAT.

    Going to the Local Court

    If you are trying to recover your goods and the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) is unable to hear your matter because it doesn't fall under the Uncollected Goods Act 1995, you may be able to start a case in the Local Court.

    For more information, see Going to the Local Court.

    Flowcharts​

    This section gives you a visual overview of how to make or respond to a claim for goods.

    For more information, see Flowcharts.

    Forms

    This section has sample forms and letters.

    For more information, see Forms.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    This section has answers to common questions that you may have about disputes over goods.

    For more information, see Frequently Asked Questions​.


    Last updated: September 2021

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    COVID-19 Update

    If you need to file documents with the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT), you should contact them directly to see what options are available to you. You may be required to file the documents online, by post or in-person. 

    If you need to appear at NCAT, you should contact them directly to see what options are available to you. You may be required to appear in person, by phone or Audio Visual Link (AVL).

    For more information, see COVID-19 (coronavirus) on the Local Court NSW website.