Unclaimed Articles Act

c t UNCLAIMED ARTICLES ACT PLEASE NOTE This document, prepared by the Legislative Counsel Office, is an office consolidation of this Act, current to May 16, 2025. It is intended for information and reference purposes only. This document is not the official version of the Act. The Act and the amendments as printed under the authority of the King’s Printer for the province should be consulted to determine the authoritative statement of the law. For more information concerning the history of this Act, please see the Table of Public Acts on the Prince Edward Island Government web site (www.princeedwardisland.ca). If you find any errors or omissions in this consolidation, please contact: Legislative Counsel Office Tel: (902) 368-4292 Email: legislation@gov.pe.ca Unclaimed Articles Act Section 1 c UNCLAIMED ARTICLES ACT CHAPTER U-1 1. Application of Act This Act applies in the case of (a) any article of clothing or household goods (i) that is deposited with a person for cleaning, pressing, dyeing, glazing, washing or repairing, and (ii) that, through no fault of the person with whom it is deposited, remains in the person’s possession for a period of not less than six months, in respect of which the agreed or reasonable charges for the services mentioned in subclause (i) are unpaid; (b) any article of clothing or household goods (i) that is deposited with a person for storage, whether or not it is also deposited for cleaning, pressing, dyeing, glazing, washing, or repairing, and (ii) that, through no fault of the person with whom it is deposited, remains in the person’s possession for a period of not less than two years, in respect of which the agreed or reasonable charges for storage are unpaid for any period of not less than twelve months; and (c) any article (i) that is deposited with a jeweller or watchmaker for repair or other treatment, and (ii) that, through no fault of the person with whom it is deposited, remains in the person’s possession for a period of not less than one year, in respect of which the agreed or reasonable charges for the services rendered are unpaid. R.S.P.E.I. 1974, Cap. U-1, s.1; 2025,c.11,s.26(2). 2. Notice to owner (1) Upon the expiration of the period mentioned in subclause 1(a)(ii), 1(b)(ii), or 1(c)(ii), as the case may be, the person with whom an article is deposited may cause a notice to be served by registered mail upon the owner of the article or the person who deposited the article addressed to the person at the person’s last known address stating (a) the amount of the agreed or reasonable charges in respect of the article; and (b) that, if such charges are not paid within thirty days of the date of the service of the notice, the article will be disposed of. Limitation on number of articles (2) Any notice under this section may be in respect of not more than one article belonging to or deposited by the same person. R.S.P.E.I. 1974, Cap. U-1, s.2; 2025,c.11,s.26(3). c t Current to: May 16, 2025 Page 3 Section 3 Unclaimed Articles Act 3. Disposition of articles Where the whereabouts of the owner of and the person depositing an article cannot be ascertained and after all reasonable inquiries it is found that section 2 cannot be complied with, the person with whom the article is deposited may, without effecting service of notice as required by section 2, dispose of the article in the manner prescribed by section 4. R.S.P.E.I. 1974, Cap. U-1, s.3; 2025,c.11,s.26(4). 4. Idem (1) Upon the expiration of the thirty-day period mentioned in subsection 2(1), the person with whom the article is deposited may dispose of it (a) by giving it to a charitable organization or by giving it to any organization in order that it may be used for charitable purposes; or (b) in the case of an article (i) that has been declared by the owner or person depositing it to have a value of not more than $100, or (ii) in the absence of such a declaration, having a reasonable market value of not more than $100, by selling it. Record of articles disposed of (2) Every person who disposes of articles under this section shall maintain a record of the articles disposed of and the persons or organizations to whom they are disposed. Distribution of proceeds of sale (3) Where an article is sold under subsection (1), the person selling it shall apply the proceeds of the sale in payment of the person’s charges and shall, on application, pay over the surplus to the person entitled to the surplus. R.S.P.E.I. 1974, Cap. U-1, s.4; 2025,c.11,s.26(5). 5. Prima facie evidence of compliance with Act Where an article has been disposed of under this Act, prima facie evidence of compliance with this Act or of the existence of any fact or the doing of any act may be given in any court by the affidavit of a person having actual knowledge of it. R.S.P.E.I. 1974, Cap. U-1, s.5; 2025,c.11,s.26(6). 6. Relinquishment of claims Where an article has been disposed of under this Act, the person who disposed of it shall thereby relinquish all claims against the owner or person depositing it for unpaid charges for services upon or storage of the article. R.S.P.E.I. 1974, Cap. U-1, s.6. 7. Application of Act This Act does not affect the right of any person to proceed in the manner prescribed by the Warehousemen’s Lien Act R.S.P.E.I. 1988, Cap. W-1 or by the Mechanics’ Lien Act R.S.P.E.I. 1988, Cap. M-4. R.S.P.E.I. 1974, Cap. U-1, s.7. Page 4 Current to: May 16, 2025 t c