Vinted buyer solves lost wedding ring mystery

3 hours ago

Will JeffordLeicester

When Katie Howett ordered a ski jacket for her daughter from the online second-hand retailer Vinted, she got a little more than she bargained for.

The 35-year-old, from Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, said she was shocked to find a gold wedding ring on her living room floor on Monday, a day after opening the parcel.

Howett considered if the ring could have come from a member of her family, or a decorator who had been in her house the week before.

Then it dawned on her the ring could have been in the box with her Vinted order. She checked with the sender, who confirmed the ring had been missing for more than a month, and it has now been returned.

"Me and my partner had just got engaged, so to find a wedding ring in the centre of our living room just after we'd got engaged was quite odd," she said.

"We honestly didn't know where it had come from, and we spent a good few hours trying to figure out who'd been to the house.

"We were just sat eating dinner and I glanced over at the ski equipment I ordered and I wondered if it'd come out of the Vinted parcel as I've opened it."

'Above and beyond'

Howett contacted the seller in Bedfordshire, who said the ring had been lost for more than a month, having fallen off as she was getting into bed.

"She just said 'oh my gosh, I can't believe that you have it'," she said.

"She said she'd been looking for it for over a month, because obviously you don't use your ski equipment that much.

"She's obviously put the jacket away in a cupboard and listed it on Vinted, and she's packaged it all up with the ring inside without knowing."

Having spoken to the ring's owner, who wished to remain anonymous, Howett posted it back. Reflecting on the fortuitous find, she said the fortune behind her discovery was not lost on her.

"It was really lucky that it fell out like it did," she said.

"I was about to throw the box in the recycling - it could have stayed in the box and she would have never known and it would have been gone forever."

Euan Steedman, UK communications lead at Vinted, thanked Howett for going "above and beyond" to return the ring.

"This heartwarming story is a testament to the kindness of our members and the strong sense of community that exists on Vinted," he added.

More on this story