ABC News: Looted & Lost From Luggage: Check YOUR Airport!
Dec 14, 2007, 9:31 pm
#1
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ABC News: Looted & Lost From Luggage: Check YOUR Airport!
LINK
"Click here?" Ehh. I'm afraid to look. 
The Transportation Security Administration tracks all passenger complaints of missing valuables — personal items that disappear from checked baggage, or at a TSA security checkpoint.
"20/20," with the help of the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting, looked at almost 45,000 complaints where passengers claim to be missing valuable items — from Rolex watches, to cameras, to diamond earrings, to laptops and more.
"20/20" and NICAR analyzed all the passenger theft and loss complaints filed with TSA from January 2003 through April 2006 — the most recent data available. TSA did not provide a final disposition on these passenger claims. CLICK HERE TO CHECK YOUR OWN AIRPORT and find out what valuables have gone missing.
Also, you can determine how your airport ranks — compared to other airports of a similar size — in theft and loss claims per passenger.
"20/20" spoke to managers at airports with the highest rates of passenger complaints about theft and loss. CLICK HERE to read their responses.
Plus, CLICK HERE for a slide show of more important information that may influence what valuables you decide to pack — or not pack — for your next trip.
"20/20," with the help of the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting, looked at almost 45,000 complaints where passengers claim to be missing valuable items — from Rolex watches, to cameras, to diamond earrings, to laptops and more.
"20/20" and NICAR analyzed all the passenger theft and loss complaints filed with TSA from January 2003 through April 2006 — the most recent data available. TSA did not provide a final disposition on these passenger claims. CLICK HERE TO CHECK YOUR OWN AIRPORT and find out what valuables have gone missing.
Also, you can determine how your airport ranks — compared to other airports of a similar size — in theft and loss claims per passenger.
"20/20" spoke to managers at airports with the highest rates of passenger complaints about theft and loss. CLICK HERE to read their responses.
Plus, CLICK HERE for a slide show of more important information that may influence what valuables you decide to pack — or not pack — for your next trip.
Dec 15, 2007, 10:43 am
#5
Join Date: Aug 2007
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Same with some of the AK airports...who would check some of those items? They are clearly showing as marked lost from checked baggage. I thought not checking such valuable items such as laptops etc. would be common sense.
I had to chuckle about many of the losses of Fish & Game from luggage in ANC during the summer.
I had to chuckle about many of the losses of Fish & Game from luggage in ANC during the summer.
Dec 27, 2007, 8:35 pm
#7
Join Date: Jan 2005
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I am certainly no fan of the TSA but.......
....they are substantially better paid, and also for all the failings on this point, there is a higher level of background checking than for many other classes of airport employee.
Doubtless there are cases of TSA employees thieving, but in general they have more to lose than many other airport employees, and so I'd be very surprised if on a per employee basis, TSA were anywhere other than near the bottom of the list.
That said, the TSA's arrogance in the way it basically refuses to acknowledge that some of it's employees are thieves is very typical of an all-powerful government agency.
....they are substantially better paid, and also for all the failings on this point, there is a higher level of background checking than for many other classes of airport employee.
Doubtless there are cases of TSA employees thieving, but in general they have more to lose than many other airport employees, and so I'd be very surprised if on a per employee basis, TSA were anywhere other than near the bottom of the list.
That said, the TSA's arrogance in the way it basically refuses to acknowledge that some of it's employees are thieves is very typical of an all-powerful government agency.
Dec 29, 2007, 1:31 am
#8
Join Date: Nov 2005
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I just looked at my airport claims, and all that I can say is you must be a damn fool to put some of these things in your checked baggage. I don't travel as much as I use to, but I'll be damned to put my laptop in checked baggage; I'm not that lazy to not have it with me. In regards to fine jewelry, currency, and cameras use your brain. I remember over the summer my TM and I were joking around saying that it must be national leave your laptop behind day; people were leaving them on the checkpoint left and right.
Last edited by StySho168; Jun 19, 2008 at 10:25 am
Dec 29, 2007, 1:40 am
#9
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And certainly anything that disappears going through a checkpoint has to be laid at TSA's doorstep.
Dec 29, 2007, 8:58 am
#10
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It is, however, TSA's fault that I can no longer lock my luggage. Prior to the 'leave your luggage unlocked/use the disposable one-use TSA locks', I never had anything stolen/'disappeared'. If I can't secure my luggage because of TSA and it gets rifled, it's somewhat immaterial who did the rifling.
And certainly anything that disappears going through a checkpoint has to be laid at TSA's doorstep.
And certainly anything that disappears going through a checkpoint has to be laid at TSA's doorstep.
Dec 29, 2007, 9:10 am
#11
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They are supposed to be re-usable....I think one manufacturer (Eagle Creek?) guarantees free replacement now because so many of them do prove to be 'first use=last use'.
I'm sure this is airport/screener dependent (meaning it is more likely to happen on certain airport equipment or with certain screeners), but only one of my TSA locks survived a single trip. That one 'disappeared' the next time around. The bag wasn't even actually locked; I just left it on the zipper pull so I wouldn't misplace it. Bag showed up, TSA notice inside, lock gone.
I reiterate: I never had anything stolen (and my locked luggage was never broken into) before the TSA 'bags unlocked' policy.
I'm sure this is airport/screener dependent (meaning it is more likely to happen on certain airport equipment or with certain screeners), but only one of my TSA locks survived a single trip. That one 'disappeared' the next time around. The bag wasn't even actually locked; I just left it on the zipper pull so I wouldn't misplace it. Bag showed up, TSA notice inside, lock gone.
I reiterate: I never had anything stolen (and my locked luggage was never broken into) before the TSA 'bags unlocked' policy.
Jan 10, 2008, 9:25 pm
#12
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 12
I don't fly often, but recently took a JetBlue flight from JFK to visit my brother in Charlotte, NC for Thanksgiving. When I finally got to his place, I opened my bag to find the contents scattered about, the internal zippers open AND my $300 camera missing. Now, for those of you who have flown, please don't knock me for putting my camera in there. The point of this post is that it should not have been stolen, regardless of my foolish and trusting nature. By the way, the TSA left no note, but there was a TSA seal sticker placed on my baggage label.
It is evident that the TSA would be the only ones able to know the contents of the bag, because in order to see it, you would have had to either thoroughly searched the bag or put it through a scanning device.
My issue is that if the TSA has employees debase enough to steal from citizens when we're basically paying their salary, then who's to say they wouldn't do something else. The purpose of the TSA is to protect us, yet they apparently do not screen these people, because some of them (not all of them) are thieves. Could that mean they could hire someone sketchy enough to place something IN the bag?
Regardless, it's a security issue either way and I was considering the possibility of looking into raising awareness, be it through the media, politically or through a class action suit.
I went through the trouble of putting together a 10 page claim, which received a photocopied letter that stated there was no “wrongful act of [TSA] employees”. I don't know about you, but I consider theft a wrongful act.
So my purpose of this post is to get a feeling about what others have experienced in terms of stolen belongings as a result of the TSA. Many of you have probably seen the reports on the news where they've caught TSA employees stealing belongings out of checked baggage. Well, I don't feel like I should have to worry about my stuff when it's supposed to be securely checked in! Why the heck do they bother telling you not to leave your bags out of your sight?
It is evident that the TSA would be the only ones able to know the contents of the bag, because in order to see it, you would have had to either thoroughly searched the bag or put it through a scanning device.
My issue is that if the TSA has employees debase enough to steal from citizens when we're basically paying their salary, then who's to say they wouldn't do something else. The purpose of the TSA is to protect us, yet they apparently do not screen these people, because some of them (not all of them) are thieves. Could that mean they could hire someone sketchy enough to place something IN the bag?
Regardless, it's a security issue either way and I was considering the possibility of looking into raising awareness, be it through the media, politically or through a class action suit.
I went through the trouble of putting together a 10 page claim, which received a photocopied letter that stated there was no “wrongful act of [TSA] employees”. I don't know about you, but I consider theft a wrongful act.
So my purpose of this post is to get a feeling about what others have experienced in terms of stolen belongings as a result of the TSA. Many of you have probably seen the reports on the news where they've caught TSA employees stealing belongings out of checked baggage. Well, I don't feel like I should have to worry about my stuff when it's supposed to be securely checked in! Why the heck do they bother telling you not to leave your bags out of your sight?
