Recovered & Returned

Remuera, Auckland · 21 January 2021

I was contacted by an agency working on behalf of a well-known insurance firm to see if I could locate an earring lost somewhere in a kitchen. The earrings were a birthday gift from the clients husband, I decided to take on the challenge even though it was likely to be a difficult search. When I arrived at her house Barbara showed me the bench where she had been cleaning her jewellery and next to it was a waste disposal unit. I hoped it hadn't gone down there as it likely would be long gone. She said she had been cleaning the earring before she dropped it. I started by using a very bright torch to check under the fridge and in the cupboards. It soon became apparent that the earring wasn't where she had thought it had landed. I had also come prepared with an endoscopic inspection camera. After looking more closely around the cupboards Barbara suggested the gap under the dishwasher behind the cabinetry. After 5 minutes of dragging the camera tubing back and forth I came across a very reflective object. The picture was not great but I was pretty confident it was the earring. We both decided a tradesman would need to safely remove it and 3 weeks later they did!!

Recovered by Ian Scott

Bombay, Auckland · 9 March 2021

I was asked by an accident investigator to search for a tractor drive shaft that broke and caused the tractor to get written off and the driver to get injured, all that happened 2 months ago. Search efforts were held up by lockdown. Yesterday I visited the two search areas. I had been told it was knee high grass by the road side and that the driver had seen it fly off to the left before the tractor lost control, but it was a steep bank covered in weed, blackberry and every other noxious weed known to man. To make matters more difficult cars were shooting passed well over the speed limit even with our cones and warning lights on. Below the bank was a chicken farm, the hens were nesting on the bank and were not happy about me flattening their nesting areas and then there were the bush rats. So basically I didn't find it, because it was a needle in a haystack and they really didn't know where it had gone. This happens all too often. I imagine it was lodged up in a tree somewhere. Some guy stopped to ask if we were fixing the road..Some people eh? Anyway I hope you enjoyed the story.

Recovered by Ian Scott

Remuera, Auckland · 13 April 2019

Wednesday afternoon I was contacted by a lady who had been pruning the hedge when she felt her ring slip off her finger. She spent time shaking the bushes and feeling around the roots, after realizing she needed something else like a metal detector, she decided to call me. This morning I went to a suburb in Auckland to a residential address and met the lady who showed me the area in the garden she had been working. I started using my metal detector from the footpath as the garden was directly below it and then I used the pinpointer to get into the crevices. I could hear the pinpointer buzzing before I saw the rows of diamonds. She was relieved to get her $250,000 platinum ring back on her finger. I was even more relieved to find it after she told me how much it was worth!

Recovered by Ian Scott

Muriwai beach · 2020

I was contacted by Jackson whose fiancé Joleigh lost her engagement ring while swimming in the shallows at Muriwai beach, West Auckland. The ring is an 18crt white gold diamond ring with greenstone. It is a special ring as it was crafted especially for her. Muriwai beach is an iron sand beach that make most metal detectors almost useless, but after advice from another member of our group I was able to get past some of the problems and start a search in the shallows by the rocks. After 10 minutes and only a bottle cap, Jackson and Joleigh arrived and redirected me to a spot further up the beach. I marked out the area to search and as I walked I heard almost nothing. Then I heard a familiar sound so I beckoned them to come over and take look. I dumped a scoop of sand out I bent down and worked my pinpointer through the sand hearing it beep, Jackson pointed and said I think I see it. It was so good to see it for the first time, finding a ring like this on an iron sand beach is quite an accomplishment. They were really happy to get it back.

Recovered by Ian Scott

Maraetai Beach · 6 February 2024

I was walking along the beach scanning the sand just out for a hunt. A man called Riaan came up to me and said you are just what I am looking for, I lost my wedding ring in the water. It is gold and palladium which he said wasn’t worth that much, but I have heard that before. It is actually worth a lot and has a lot of sentimental value. He pointed out the area, but the tide was in so we would have to wait till the tide was out far enough (2 hours later). I started the search 1 hour from low tide, but as the sun went down and I went deeper in the water the sea lice started biting. I went back to the car and put on my waders, with in 10 minutes in the water and 3 false targets I pulled a ring out of the scoop, it had to be it and luckily for me it was, as I was about to go home. At 1030pm I dropped Riaan’s ring off to him, he was so relieved to get it back.

Recovered by Ian Scott

West Auckland · 16 February 2024

In the middle of January Areej was at her parent’s house showing friends around the garden when her gold ring flicked off her finger as she waved her hand towards the foliage. The story of this ring is that it has been custom made for her daughter shortly after she was born as a keepsake to give her when she is older. It says there is no love like the love of my mother, in Arabic. A ring finder was sent to the property but after 2 hours they could not find it. The ring sat for another month where it had landed less than a metre from where she had been standing, there were many visits to the garden. Areej even bought a cheap metal detector but she also couldn’t find it. I arrived at the residence, after knocking on the door and introducing myself her father took me to where she had been standing, he said they had removed boards from the board walk to see if it was there and gestured that it could have dropped 2 metres from the retaining wall. It turned up 2 metres away in the bushes🏆

Recovered by Ian Scott

Kohimarama Beach · 19 December 2024

I was just working on some ring finder admin when the phone rang, it was a lady called Helen who had been sitting on Kohimarama Beach enjoying the sunshine and shade of a big Pohutukawa tree. It was a birthday party and a beautiful day for it. The problem was she had lost her yellow diamond white gold ring that her husband had given to her, everyone had been looking for it, but in desperation she had turned to the internet and reached out to New Zealand Ring Finder. It turned out to be the right decision. I arrived on the beach to see a small group standing around some big holes with desperate faces. Helen marked out an area and I started swinging, I came to a signal with a low hum from the metal detector which can mean a pull tab or gold. I ran my finger around in the sand and felt something solid hitting it…which is a good sign! I usually let the owner pick them up but I didn’t want her to be disappointed so grabbed at it and pulled a beautiful white gold diamond crusted ring out!

Recovered by Ian Scott

On the top of the sand · 12 March 2025

The Lost Ring Under the Boardwalk One evening, I received a text from a friend asking for help. He'd been contacted by a young lady who had lost a very sentimental gold ring. She'd reached out to him, but he was tied up with work and asked if I could assist her. I didn’t hesitate to agree. I gave her a call. She explained that she thought the ring might be somewhere under the boardwalk at her local beach. The boardwalk was about 40 cm above the sand and stretched roughly 15 to 20 meters long. From her description, it sounded like a tough task, but I was up for the challenge. That night, after dinner, I grabbed my gear and headed to the beach. It was getting dark by the time I arrived, and the air was crisp. I started at one end of the boardwalk, shovelling sand away to get enough space to reach underneath with my pinpointer. For nearly an hour, I sifted through the sand, but eventually I found it on the top of the sand..what a relief!

Recovered by Ian Scott

Beachlands, Auckland · 21 September 2025

Early morning ring return, Rebecca went for a dip in the sea yesterday losing her silver ring. In just 2 minutes it was found. #happydays❤️

Recovered by Ian Scott

Auckland · 10 October 2025

Got a text message from Sammy — she was hoping that I could help her find a gold bangle her 3-year-old had lost in the garden during a birthday party more than a year ago. She also lost a black pearl bracelet, but unfortunately, that one wasn't metal. I met her at the house and we headed to the backyard, where the party had been. She pointed out a small patch of grass where the bouncy castle had been set up. Honestly, I told her the chances were low. The area wasn’t huge, but still — a piece of jewelry like that could be anywhere. I fired up the detector, swept over the grass — and suddenly, a loud, booming tone rang out. Could it really be? I dug up a small patch, broke it apart gently, and there it was — the gold bangle! Sammy was over the moon. I was just as surprised. Moments like that remind me why I do this — not just for the finds, but for the stories and the smiles. Ian

Recovered by Ian Scott

Maraetai Beach · 4 November 2025

I was at home when I got a referral from another metal detecting page saying that Emerson had been swimming and had just lost her gold diamond ring — a ring she’d had since she was 13. I gave her a quick call and was able to meet her at the beach straight away since it was just down the road. The tide wasn’t in our favour, so I explained I’d need to come back once it dropped. A few hours later I returned to the same spot. Emerson had said they weren’t far out when the ring slipped off, and that they were close to the swimmers still in the water. I started the search just below the wet sand, picking up the usual junk… then a crisp, promising tone — but it turned out to be just a sinker. As the tide caught up to me, I grabbed my waders. About 20 minutes in, a friend arrived to help. While he was getting changed, I was feeling a bit frustrated because I’d already covered the main area. I decided to crisscross the section I’d just searched, and soon enough I hit another sinker-like signal.

Recovered by Ian Scott