BA, Thieving B@st&rds
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Let's face the facts, some baggage handlers at Heathrow were caught a while ago pillaging luggage on CCTV during a police operation, so it does happen. I don't recall whether it was a BA or non BA baggage operation.
However, in 28 years of travelling heavily, I have never suffered a theft from checked baggage.
Last year I did have a bag forcibly opened and written off, when it was wrongly delivered to a carousel at Mulhouse aiport, instead of transiting through Basel to Palma.
No doubt that was someone's (FR or UK) customs forces having a look, since none of the contents were taken.
So I agree with the earlier that it is very unfair to label baggage handlers as thieves, but equally I do sympathise with the FA whose loss Chandler's Dad reports, since the data is there to show that some thieving happens.
Purely as an anecdotal aside, I read some time ago that white collar/executive crime is far more frequent than people realise, because it is kept low profile.
However, in 28 years of travelling heavily, I have never suffered a theft from checked baggage.
Last year I did have a bag forcibly opened and written off, when it was wrongly delivered to a carousel at Mulhouse aiport, instead of transiting through Basel to Palma.
No doubt that was someone's (FR or UK) customs forces having a look, since none of the contents were taken.
So I agree with the earlier that it is very unfair to label baggage handlers as thieves, but equally I do sympathise with the FA whose loss Chandler's Dad reports, since the data is there to show that some thieving happens.
Purely as an anecdotal aside, I read some time ago that white collar/executive crime is far more frequent than people realise, because it is kept low profile.
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British Airways has provided CCTV's at ALL areas at LHR and LGW where baggage is handled and on many of our aircraft CCTV's are installed in the holds themselves. I suggest anyone who accuses BA's men of theft is either lying to make a fraudulent insurance claim (whoever would do such
a thing!), the bags have gone astray or labels gone missing.[/quote]
Bealine
I take it from your post/quote above that you either work or have worked for BA. I worked at LHR for 4 yrs back in the mid 90's and had a stint as a BFO. I can catergorically tell you that I have seen not only BA staff (ramp handlers & ground staff), but many others from various airlines, having a good root around & pilfering from a number of lost luggage offices.
One example I remember vividly, was a BA member of staff walking out of Term 1 international arrivals @ LHR with 3 sets of brand new skis, & 2 guitars. I would estimate that lot probably put some poor punter out of pocket to the tune of nearlly GBP3000 - 4000.
It was also pretty rife at the interline shed, where it was & probably still is so easy to take a bag of the line, into one of the offices & strip it to pieces.
Yes, we have also been guilty of nabbing the odd carton of fags or a bottle of scotch, but pls do not say that BA staff catergorically do not steal from the airport when clearly they did, & I know that they still do. By the way, this last part of the sentence is continually clarified to me by a number of people that I still keep in touch with at LHR, and many of them work for BA!!
All the best
HPC
a thing!), the bags have gone astray or labels gone missing.[/quote]
Bealine
I take it from your post/quote above that you either work or have worked for BA. I worked at LHR for 4 yrs back in the mid 90's and had a stint as a BFO. I can catergorically tell you that I have seen not only BA staff (ramp handlers & ground staff), but many others from various airlines, having a good root around & pilfering from a number of lost luggage offices.
One example I remember vividly, was a BA member of staff walking out of Term 1 international arrivals @ LHR with 3 sets of brand new skis, & 2 guitars. I would estimate that lot probably put some poor punter out of pocket to the tune of nearlly GBP3000 - 4000.
It was also pretty rife at the interline shed, where it was & probably still is so easy to take a bag of the line, into one of the offices & strip it to pieces.
Yes, we have also been guilty of nabbing the odd carton of fags or a bottle of scotch, but pls do not say that BA staff catergorically do not steal from the airport when clearly they did, & I know that they still do. By the way, this last part of the sentence is continually clarified to me by a number of people that I still keep in touch with at LHR, and many of them work for BA!!
All the best
HPC
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bealine, the thread subject referred to the airline, not the people who work within.
One knows the head Customs fellow at a reasonably large airport and he says some of the handlers make an extra £100k a year from the stuff they steal. His solution would be for the airlines to take more responsibility for the baggage entrusted into their care, but nobody seems to care enough to do much about it. Would cost them too much and their liability is limited by law/treaty , and that suiits them just fine.
One knows the head Customs fellow at a reasonably large airport and he says some of the handlers make an extra £100k a year from the stuff they steal. His solution would be for the airlines to take more responsibility for the baggage entrusted into their care, but nobody seems to care enough to do much about it. Would cost them too much and their liability is limited by law/treaty , and that suiits them just fine.
I have never had anything stolen. But on two separate occasions my baggage was delivered onto the belt at EGLL with its combination lock turned to 000. This is the default number the manufacturer sets, if you have not changed it then this will open the case. So someone had had a quick go. And it has been say 1 in 25 occasions of arriving there.
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The problem with this thread (apart from the emotion) is that the evidence cited appears to be anecdotal or personal. There is no doubt that some baggage contents are stolen, regardless of the airport or airline: Travel enough and it will happen to you eventually.
What we are missing are facts. Facts would enable us to ascertain if BA has a greater problem than other carriers at LHR, and also if LHR has a greater problem than other airports: Facts would also demonstrate whether BA & LHR have improved in this respect over the past decade or two.
I anyone has facts, please share them.
What we are missing are facts. Facts would enable us to ascertain if BA has a greater problem than other carriers at LHR, and also if LHR has a greater problem than other airports: Facts would also demonstrate whether BA & LHR have improved in this respect over the past decade or two.
I anyone has facts, please share them.
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bealine,
I didn't meant we expected an apology from you for the things missing when you are an employee of an airline. Actually, you don't owe one in no case.
From your posts it emerges that you are a loyal and dedicated contributor with high ethic values. The mere fact that you spend time outside your work to come here and talk about your work again, is something worth to mention.
The reality is that unfortunately these things happens and even if someone is in denial we have plenty of others that can tell they got stuff stolen. No BA or other airline/airport employee should feel embarassed about that, beside uneffective managers supposed to be in charge of security.
The ones that should apologize are the people that on this forum are insinuating that the loss of valuable and sometime unreplaceable items is an invention or an attempt to fraud. But this won't come, because sturdiness and wrong believing often go together.
I didn't meant we expected an apology from you for the things missing when you are an employee of an airline. Actually, you don't owe one in no case.
From your posts it emerges that you are a loyal and dedicated contributor with high ethic values. The mere fact that you spend time outside your work to come here and talk about your work again, is something worth to mention.
The reality is that unfortunately these things happens and even if someone is in denial we have plenty of others that can tell they got stuff stolen. No BA or other airline/airport employee should feel embarassed about that, beside uneffective managers supposed to be in charge of security.
The ones that should apologize are the people that on this forum are insinuating that the loss of valuable and sometime unreplaceable items is an invention or an attempt to fraud. But this won't come, because sturdiness and wrong believing often go together.
Too mean to buy a long personal title
And there I was, innocently thinking that the "thieving" referred to in the OP was the charge for the second bag, which would normally have been carried as cabin baggage but was required by new regulations to be put into the hold.
For BA to charge extra in those circumstances is a bit rich. I'm not sure that I would quite call it "thieving", myself, but I understand where the OP is coming from. I wish that BA had made the leniency/concession clearer at the time.
For BA to charge extra in those circumstances is a bit rich. I'm not sure that I would quite call it "thieving", myself, but I understand where the OP is coming from. I wish that BA had made the leniency/concession clearer at the time.
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HANG ON A SECOND....Am I completely missing something from the origional thread????
The new baggage policy does not come into effect for another few months, this must be a wind up BA BASHING thread with absolutely no proof behind it!
Not to mention that I was working in the terminals yesterday (im actually Cabin Crew who volunteered) and they are not charging people excess under the circumstances unless they are really taking the P.I.S.S!!!
Im sure I missed something completely!
The new baggage policy does not come into effect for another few months, this must be a wind up BA BASHING thread with absolutely no proof behind it!
Not to mention that I was working in the terminals yesterday (im actually Cabin Crew who volunteered) and they are not charging people excess under the circumstances unless they are really taking the P.I.S.S!!!
Im sure I missed something completely!
