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Stranded with no money and no phone: how to get home safely

Updated 28 September 2026 · What to do, in the order that keeps you safe

It usually happens all at once: a phone snatched along with the wallet, a bag left in a taxi, a battery that dies while your cards are at home. You can still get home without your own phone or a bank card. This is the order to do it in.

If you are hurt or in danger, get help first. Call 10111 for the police, or 112 from any mobile phone, even one with no airtime. Ask anyone nearby to dial for you.

Do these in this order

  1. Get somewhere safe and staffed

    Go where there are lights and people who work there: a 24-hour petrol station, a police station, a hospital's emergency unit, or a shopping centre with security guards. Wait inside if you can.

    Do not wait alone at a quiet roadside or an empty taxi rank after dark, and do not accept a lift from someone you do not know, however kind the offer.

  2. Borrow a phone, or ask someone to call for you

    Ask staff rather than passers-by: a cashier, a security guard, a nurse or a police officer. Keep the call short, say exactly where you are, and ask the person you reach to call you back on that phone.

    If the owner has no airtime, they can send a call-back request, often called a "Please Call Me", to someone who will phone back. On MTN the code is *121* followed by the number and #. Other networks have their own codes, which the owner will know.

  3. If your phone was stolen, block the SIM

    While you have a borrowed phone in your hand, call your network and ask for a hard lock on your SIM. It takes a few minutes and it stops your bank's one-time PINs reaching whoever has your phone. If your battery simply died, skip this step. Our first-hour checklist has the numbers.

  4. Get money sent to you, without a card

    Someone at home can send you cash with a bank "cash send" service. You collect it at an ATM or a till with two numbers: no card, no bank account and no phone of your own needed at the ATM. Two examples, from the banks' own pages:

    Absa CashSend: a 10-digit withdrawal number, sent by SMS, and a 6-digit PIN from the sender. Collect at an Absa ATM, Pick n Pay or Boxer, up to R5 000 a day.

    Standard Bank Instant Money: a 10-digit voucher number, sent by SMS, and a 4-digit PIN from the sender. Collect at a Standard Bank ATM or a partner store, including Shoprite, Checkers, Pick n Pay, SPAR, PEP and Boxer.

    The SMS goes to whatever cellphone number the sender enters, so it can go to the phone you borrowed. Get the PIN from the sender directly when you speak. Other banks have similar services, and the sender can use whichever one they bank with.

  5. Get home

    With cash in hand, take a metered taxi or a minibus taxi you know. Or someone at home can book you an Uber using its request a ride for someone else option, paid from their account. The trip details go by SMS to the number they enter, so give them the number of a phone that will be with you.

    If someone you trust is fetching you, tell them exactly where you are and wait inside with the staff until they arrive.

  6. Tell someone when you are home

    The person who helped you will be worried. Then, if anything was stolen, report it at a police station: you need the case number for insurance.

Keep the PIN to yourself. Key it in yourself, cover the keypad, and never hand the withdrawal number and PIN to someone who offers to collect the money for you. Anyone who has both can take the cash.

If you cannot reach anyone

Go to the nearest police station. It is a safe place to wait, and if anything was stolen you need to report it there anyway. Explain that you cannot get home and ask what help they can give. If you are hurt, go to a hospital's emergency unit, or call 10177 for an ambulance.

Ten minutes now that make this easier

Do these while nothing is wrong. They cost nothing.

Questions people ask

Can I call for help without airtime?

Yes, in an emergency. 112 works from any mobile phone, even one with no airtime. For an ordinary call, borrow a phone, or ask its owner to send a call-back request to someone who will phone you back.

How can my family send me money if I have no phone and no card?

With a bank cash-send service such as Absa CashSend or Standard Bank Instant Money. The withdrawal number is sent by SMS to the number they enter, which can be a phone you have borrowed, and they give you the PIN when you speak. You collect the cash at an ATM or a till without a card or a bank account.

Where is safe to wait?

Somewhere lit, with people who work there: a 24-hour petrol station, a police station, a hospital's emergency unit or a shopping centre with security guards. Wait inside if you can, and do not accept lifts from strangers.

Can someone book an Uber for me?

Yes. In the Uber app they can request a ride for someone else and pay for it from their account. The trip details go by SMS to the number they enter, so give them the number of a phone that will be with you.

Should I report it to the police?

If anything was stolen, yes. You need the case number for an insurance claim, and a police station is a safe place to wait while you arrange a way home.

South African emergency numbers
  • 10111 — SAPS, for crime in progress or a threat to your safety
  • 10177 — ambulance and fire
  • 112 — from any mobile, routed to an emergency call centre; works with no airtime

More guides

Why we wrote this guide

Everything above depends on someone else: a stranger's phone, a relative who picks up, a bank transfer they know how to make. Most nights that works. Some nights nobody answers.

That gap is what we are building SOS Wallet for — money set aside in advance that you can reach at a till with nothing but a mobile number and a four-digit PIN. It is in development and not yet open to the public.

Read about SOS Wallet →