Lifejackets

[Scott L.]

As part of my usual paranoid routine when boarding an aircraft and getting ready to fly, I noticed there was no lifejacket under the seat. As the seat was empty next to me and there was a lifejacket present under that seat I thought nothing of it. I did however bring it to the attention of the crew during the degustation service this morning. They went a bit panicky and were extremely nervous about the situation.

My questions.

Is it not normal practice to check for these things before each flight? and
Would it necessarily ground an aircraft (for safety reasons) and delay a flight until a replacement had been sourced?

Cheers
Scott.