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Is it permissible to benefit from neglected items, such as broken-down cars and abandoned buildings, that have been left for more than two years?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If it is known that the owner of an item has abandoned it out of asceticism and a sense of being self-sufficient without it, then there is no harm in taking it and benefiting from it. This is similar to the case of broken-down cars and the contents of abandoned buildings, where it is known that their owners have relinquished them and will not return to claim them. This is tantamount to permitting others to take them. However, if there is a possibility that the owners still desire them, or that they might return to claim them, then it is not permissible to take them without their permission.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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