"How to handle airport theft"

Sunday, December 4, 2005

How to handle airport theft
By Dave Lieber
The Fort Worth (TX) Star-Telegram


Mary Ann Long intended to carry her black duffel bag on her flight to New
York City, but she couldn't find the ATA airline counter at Dallas/Fort
Worth Airport. When she finally found it, in a rush to make her plane, she
checked the bag with her other luggage.

The bag contained a DVD player she won as the best salesperson at her
company and several pieces of jewelry that were precious to her.

She never saw those items again.

Somewhere on her summer trip, the Arlington woman's valuables were stolen.

It could have happened at D/FW Airport.

It could have happened at Chicago's Midway International Airport, where she
switched planes.

Or it could have happened at LaGuardia in New York City.

When she returned home to Arlington, she filed a claim with the airline, but
ATA told her that those items weren't covered under conditions imposed when
she purchased her ticket.

She contacted her insurance agent, but he said that her homeowners
deductible was too high for the claim to make financial sense. Besides, he
said, her insurance costs could go up.

She offers this message to all those who handle baggage:

"You know, you guys are supposed to be protecting us. It doesn't give you
the right to go through my stuff and take what you decided to take."

But there are several steps that Long could have taken, both before and
after, to prevent the theft and also to get reimbursed for her loss.

It's not too late. She can still file a claim with the Transportation
Security Administration, which accepts claims from passengers whose items
are stolen. Often, those claims are paid by the agency that provides airport
security screeners, a TSA spokeswoman says.

Long did not know that.

She also didn't know that she can file a theft report with the LaGuardia
Airport police and the Midway Airport police. It's not too late to do that
either. She already filed one with D/FW Airport police.

She read the small print on her ticket envelope. The language on the ticket,
called "contract of carriage," is common in the airline industry.

It's worth sharing every word:

"Do not pack valuables or irreplaceable articles such as camera/electronic,
video equipment and/or accessories, computers, compact discs, cellular
phones, jewelry, currency, keys, medication or prescription eyeglasses,
contacts, securities, legal and/or business documents, samples, furs,
artwork, high-value and/or fragile items, books, etc., in any checked
baggage. ATA assumes no liability for these items on domestic flights."

So what is left?

Socks and underwear, I guess.

Michelle Foley, an ATA spokeswoman, told me: "While we sympathize with Ms.
Long's situation, the items were not part of our contract of carriage and
therefore we are unable to offer replacement or reimbursement."

TSA spokeswoman Andrea McCauley said the airline should have informed Long
about filing a TSA claim.

In the past two years, 583 claims for missing items or broken luggage locks
were filed with TSA at D/FW. Almost all of them were paid, in part or in
full, McCauley said.

"We research every claim," she said. "We go back and review tapes and look
through our logs. We've got a zero-tolerance policy. People have lost their
job for taking something as little as a can of WD-40."

The phone number to filed a TSA claim is (866) 289-9673. Forms can also be
downloaded at the agency's Web site, www.tsa.gov.

D/FW is not on the top 10 list of airports with the most theft claims made
to TSA. The list comprises airports in Los Angeles, Chicago, Newark, Miami,
Seattle-Tacoma, Phoenix, Orlando, Philadelphia and two in New York.

Chicago officials - despite their claim that theirs is "the city that works"
- did not respond to The Watchdog's numerous phone calls and e-mails.

At LaGuardia, Tony Ciavolella, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New
York & New Jersey, joked that he wanted to dispel the rumor that New Yorkers
are not kind to Southerners. He arranged for police officials to call Long
last week and take a police report over the phone.

He said the trend, as shown by crime statistics, shows that luggage theft is
dropping in New York area airports.

So what can Long and other passengers do in the future?

First, don't pack valuables in checked luggage. Put them in your carry-on
bag.

Second, consider purchasing a Travel Sentry lock, which is the only kind of
luggage lock allowed under new security rules. The TSA-approved locks can be
opened by screeners. The locks won't necessarily prevent theft, but they do
add an extra level of protection.

Third, if you are the victim of theft, contact: the airline, the police at
each airport, and the TSA. File claims and reports with each agency.

Long knows that the chances of recovering her items are almost nonexistent.

"It's not that I'm trying to recover anything because, obviously, I can't,"
she says. Her purpose for going public with her frustration is this:

"It's just to let other people be aware."

Attached Photo:

Mary Ann Long's valuables were stolen while she flew ATA Airlines.

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