"Lost watch shows flaw in airport security"

Saturday, August 9, 2003

Lost watch shows flaw in airport security
Business traveler says federal agency should be liable
By C. Kalimah Redd
The Boston (MA) Globe


Like many business travelers, Peter Higgins had accepted the inconveniences
of a post-Sept. 11 world, including taking off his shoes, belt, and jewelry
before passing through metal detectors at airport checkpoints.  

But on a recent business trip to Texas, Higgins's $500 watch disappeared
after he placed it in a plastic tray for screening. Less than a minute after
he walked away, Higgins returned to the checkpoint, but his watch was gone.
Whether it was taken on purpose or by mistake, Higgins soon learned that the
missing watch was his problem -- and only his problem.

''The fact that you give them your possessions, you go through their system
and then you lose something,'' Higgins said. ''It just seems that they are
responsible at that point.''

The Transportation Security Administration, which oversees all airport
screening, has offered Higgins a claim form and a shrug. Ann Davis, the New
England regional spokeswoman for TSA said she regrets the loss of Higgins's
property, but notes that screeners do their best to keep track of
passengers' belongings. However, security is their top priority, not
watching travelers' belongings, she said.

''We ask the passengers to work with us to keep track of their belongings,''
said Davis. ''The screeners are busy looking for prohibited items and
explosives. If an individual puts their jewelry in a bin, the screeners have
no way of knowing if it belongs to person A or B.''

Higgins's experience highlights the potentially thorny issue of liability
for an item that disappears during the screening process. Davis said
passengers must prove negligence by TSA caused damage or loss of their
property. But Higgins said the security agency should be responsible if
something turns up missing in the screening process.

That Sunday evening, Higgins had arrived at the airport an hour before his
6:20 p.m. flight. Grabbing his belt, shoes, and laptop from the security
bins, Higgins said, he walked about 30 feet before he realized he was
missing his Seiko watch. Higgins returned to the checkpoint, and officials
searched without success.

Higgins said he was brought to an area where TSA officials retrieved
photographs of the surveillance videotape. He was given the pictures, which
were inconclusive, and a claim form. No one mentioned filing a police
report, he said.

All stolen items are supposed to be reported to Massport officials. If not,
the passenger bears the responsibility for reporting the theft to TSA and
the police. Otherwise, no formal claim is issued, said Davis.

Higgins said he wasn't told he could file a police report until a few days
after his wife called the TSA customer service representative. But upon his
return trip, Higgins said, he was told that it was too late to file a
report.

''It's not so much the issue of money,'' said his wife, Carolina. ''The
whole point is that my husband lost his watch under their very eyes and now
they are just trying to sweep it under the rug.''

Davis said reports of property loss at security checkpoints are rare. Of 400
million baggage items processed by the TSA each year, she said, only 7,500
claims are filed about missing or damaged property at checkpoints.

David Johnston, a security consultant who used to head security at the
University of Massachusetts-Amherst, said that theft of passenger belongings
was far more common prior to TSA's takeover of airport security checkpoints.
Background checks of employees and keeping supervisors on the premises have
greatly reduced the problem, he said.

But Johnston said TSA should be held accountable for lost items,
particularly because passengers are separated from their property during the
screening process.

''You are complying with these rather stringent regulations, and there may
be someone before you so you can reclaim your goods after people have gone
through,'' he said. ''You could very easily have your items picked [up] by
another passenger or security people.'' Unless TSA assigns a screener to
focus solely on reuniting passengers with their belongings, the problem will
continue, Johnston said.

Davis acknowledged that there is more confusion at checkpoints than there
used to be. ''Several times, I've personally witnessed screeners call out to
a passenger who's walking off without something,'' she said.


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