Luggage Theft From Phuket Airport

[Damaz6052]

Again I read on the Phuket Gazette online of another theft from luggage at Phuket Airport I had my camera stolen last year.

When's management going to do something about this......

[Ricardo]

Action is scheduled for 31st April. TiT.

If you weren't a rich farang tourist, you wouldn't be able to afford to fly or have things worth stealing, so it wouldn't happen to you, it's really all the farangs' fault.

[noahvail]

Again I read on the Phuket Gazette online of another theft from luggage at Phuket Airport I had my camera stolen last year.

When's management going to do something about this......

I think it's reasonable to expect that management won't. You have to be proactive and take as hand luggage anything of value, leaving only clothes and toiletries, which won't get stolen. Sad, but TIT - and JFK, and LAX, and.......

[H2oDunc]

Theft from luggage happens in ever airport in the world not just Thailand. You can however take certain precautions like locking your luggage and not putting valuable items in checked luggage. I do agree that more COULD be done to stop it like more cameras in the luggage area. God bless travel insurance!

[khunjake]

the lesson in all of this is quite simple. Never pack anything in checked luggage that you couldn't afford to lose.

[keestha]

Theft from luggage happens in ever airport in the world not just Thailand.

Seconded. A few years ago I read a newspaper article about Frankfurt airport being notorious for thefts, and a few weeks later I became a victim myself.

[Carmine6]

Never felt good about the security in Phuket airport. They need more security cameras in general at Thai airports in luggage areas.

I can't remember the last airport that checked my claim tickets for the luggage I was taking, but cameras are the only way to work out thefts.

[Belle]

Theft from luggage happens in ever airport in the world not just Thailand. You can however take certain precautions like locking your luggage and not putting valuable items in checked luggage. I do agree that more COULD be done to stop it like more cameras in the luggage area. God bless travel insurance!

Yes god bless travel insurance, but make sure you get from a reputable with good track record company.

There was once, my husband lost his luggage at Bangkok don muang airport while his was in toilet someone just took away his luggage. He reported to the airport police and they were reluctant to entertain him. To cut story short after all the commotion, he was told that they will investigate after viewing the security camera which my husband wonder since when they've been so "advance" installing hidden camera in toilet? He was then told to leave down his phone number but never hear from them there after. While returning back home, the insurance company actually processed his claim even without a police report. But never try this (claim without a report) as my husband was told that just a case to case and a 1 time off (benefit of doubt).

So travel insurance is a MUST especially in this uncertain period in thailand

[Aachen]

So travel insurance is a MUST especially in this uncertain period in thailand

- Yes, travel insurance is very important. They pay for everything, you keep firmly in your hands and do not loose, but which becomes lost anyway if you have proof and can explain, why you could not keep your property.

- Many cameras in the luggage area is a wonderful thing! But who looks at the screens?

[chiangmaibruce]

We were robbed travelling from Krabi to Chiang Mai. They stole clothing and our childs teddy bear - so not packing valuables was no protection was it? Yes thefts occur from most airports but I doubt that in most airports the people robbed would face the UTTER lack of any dam_n by those responsible for ensuring the safety and security of travellers and their belongings.

This includes the airlines, Airport of Thailand, the Police, the TAT and the Ministry of Tourism. You are hard-pressed to even obtain contact details for some of these folks - AOT being the classic case - let alone get a response to a call or email.

This issue isn't a niggling problem here - it's an INDUSTRY.

Yes they have security cameras at BKK airport, but the thieves know which areas are not covered - for example in the elevators or holds of the planes. So where do they get into the cases? This is open knowledge - Air Asia told us - but does anyone think "hey, let's put a camera there too?". Air Asia told us who probably stole out gear - the name of the contractors who move the luggage but said AOT employed them and was responsible for follow-up. AOT would not even give us contact details for this organisation, let alone take action. Telephones not answered. Messages not returned, and on it goes. Mai pen rai - claim it on insurance. <Push our premiums up and take pressure off those who should be doing something>

We only discovered the theft on arrival in Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai police said it probably didn't happen here, so you have to return to BKK to lodge a police report there. I could go on, but what's the point?

law and order LOS-style

[Mousehound]

You think Thailand is bad this is an extract from the travel section of a magazine.

As if you need another excuse to pack light, I offer Exhibit A: Heathrow's new Terminal 5, where somewhere between 20,000 and 28,000 pieces of checked luggage vanished into a black hole in its first month. Things are so bad at the moment that travelers are being denied insurance for lost luggage if they pass through Terminal 5.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?...8#ixzz0YuPcfJLk

[londonthai]

come on, you bumped thread from april by linking to a commercial article from may 2008 with one paragraph about a newly opened airport in the other part of the world

Edited December 6, 2009 by londonthai

[ozsamurai]

A few months back arriving at Phuket, a Thai couple tried to take off with my wife's bag from the carousel, I spotted it, she over and fronted them, oops, sorry and they vanished. They were inside how is this not a security problem?? It ended up just being the start of a rip-off vacation, never going back.. its a hole..

Oz

[robblok]

A few months back arriving at Phuket, a Thai couple tried to take off with my wife's bag from the carousel, I spotted it, she over and fronted them, oops, sorry and they vanished. They were inside how is this not a security problem?? It ended up just being the start of a rip-off vacation, never going back.. its a hole..

Oz

Just a few days ago i took the luggage of someone else off too by accident. They spotted me and i was a bit confused.. the bags were identical and a few minutes later mine came. Things can be a mix-up at times its not always foul play.

[wtk]

most of these thefts can be avoided just using a little bit sense

1. dont check-in anything expensive

2. since there is always enough time to be waiting for your luggage when it shows up on the carousel WAIT there until you get your packs and go to toilet/book hotels/taxis etc AFTER

and not only for airports but never leave your stuff anywhere without someone taking care of them (and the kind of care you approve of)

as for the one guy mentioning a thai couple getting his luggage and then just vanishing after he noticed it is another story and should have not let them out but i can understand confusion at that point and not realizing what had just happened fast enough

[yabaaaa]

We were robbed travelling from Krabi to Chiang Mai. They stole clothing and our childs teddy bear - so not packing valuables was no protection was it? Yes thefts occur from most airports but I doubt that in most airports the people robbed would face the UTTER lack of any dam_n by those responsible for ensuring the safety and security of travellers and their belongings.

This includes the airlines, Airport of Thailand, the Police, the TAT and the Ministry of Tourism. You are hard-pressed to even obtain contact details for some of these folks - AOT being the classic case - let alone get a response to a call or email.

This issue isn't a niggling problem here - it's an INDUSTRY.

Yes they have security cameras at BKK airport, but the thieves know which areas are not covered - for example in the elevators or holds of the planes. So where do they get into the cases? This is open knowledge - Air Asia told us - but does anyone think "hey, let's put a camera there too?". Air Asia told us who probably stole out gear - the name of the contractors who move the luggage but said AOT employed them and was responsible for follow-up. AOT would not even give us contact details for this organisation, let alone take action. Telephones not answered. Messages not returned, and on it goes. Mai pen rai - claim it on insurance. <Push our premiums up and take pressure off those who should be doing something>

We only discovered the theft on arrival in Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai police said it probably didn't happen here, so you have to return to BKK to lodge a police report there. I could go on, but what's the point?

law and order LOS-style

Yes, you are right . Theft is a serious issues at airport and so many times airline luggage get stolen. Airport security should be tighten to avoid such crimes.

Worryingly if they can take stuff out they can put it in so when they find the semtex or drugs on your bag then what???

[Nio]

First of all I understand all the posts and concerns about airport theft, it just plain sucks in general.

However, all posters are looking at this from a western point of view and this is Thailand

You take baggage handlers and pay them 4,000 to 5,000 thb per month and this is what you get.

They are not stupid and they know one good camera or laptop theft will bring in 3+ times their monthly salary

The reasons there are no cameras in the theft areas is simple as well.

This racket is not confined to just the workers, but supervisors and managers taking a cut of the stolen bounty.

AOT is not the airlines, they are not the ones losing passengers or dealing with customer service issues for stolen luggage

All one has to do is review AOT and who is actually behind it. A bunch of rich people that make a measly govt salary but somehow managed to make themselves millionaires

Are they concerned with Joe Farang getting his luggage stolen? My answer is NO. Go talk to this desk and that desk and this person and then you give up and go quietly away.

If anyone should tighten the security is should be the Airlines as they are the ones tasked with moving the luggage from point a to b.

Having it stolen in transport to the conveyor belt gives the airlines a reason it is not their fault but then again it is never anyones fault in Thailand

My office use to be right next door to the Air Asia lost luggage complaints.

Those buggers would have customers pounding on the door all day long and never even open it to address customers problems with lost luggage.

Every once in a while I would go out and see what was going on. People with legitimate complaints just be totally ignored.

Baggage theft has been a big problem in Thailand for years and years.

However the people behind the thefts have come to realize this is big business and not much of a risk they will ever get caught

There simply is no mechanism in place to encourage the authorities into action

To be honest it would take someone super, super famous to have their luggage stolen for the govt to even make an attempt to solve it

When former US President Jimmy Carter came to Thailand a few weeks back, you can bet if his luggage was stolen it would have made the international news and the Thais would have made an arrest within hours

But for the rest of us I would surmise there is no chance

What can you do to prevent luggage theft?

1. Don't buy an expensive suit case that could be a give away of expensive things inside

2. As others said only pack what you can afford to lose

[scorecard]

We were robbed travelling from Krabi to Chiang Mai. They stole clothing and our childs teddy bear - so not packing valuables was no protection was it? Yes thefts occur from most airports but I doubt that in most airports the people robbed would face the UTTER lack of any dam_n by those responsible for ensuring the safety and security of travellers and their belongings.

This includes the airlines, Airport of Thailand, the Police, the TAT and the Ministry of Tourism. You are hard-pressed to even obtain contact details for some of these folks - AOT being the classic case - let alone get a response to a call or email.

This issue isn't a niggling problem here - it's an INDUSTRY.

Yes they have security cameras at BKK airport, but the thieves know which areas are not covered - for example in the elevators or holds of the planes. So where do they get into the cases? This is open knowledge - Air Asia told us - but does anyone think "hey, let's put a camera there too?". Air Asia told us who probably stole out gear - the name of the contractors who move the luggage but said AOT employed them and was responsible for follow-up. AOT would not even give us contact details for this organisation, let alone take action. Telephones not answered. Messages not returned, and on it goes. Mai pen rai - claim it on insurance. <Push our premiums up and take pressure off those who should be doing something>

We only discovered the theft on arrival in Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai police said it probably didn't happen here, so you have to return to BKK to lodge a police report there. I could go on, but what's the point?

law and order LOS-style

Yes, you are right . Theft is a serious issues at airport and so many times airline luggage get stolen. Airport security should be tighten to avoid such crimes.

If you do take travel insurance check first the amount you have to absorb yourself before the insurance company will give you any compensation.

[gerrymac]

Arrived at my hotel in Bangkok after landing at "Swampy" to find that my suitcase padlock had been filled with superglue ! Baggage - handlers annoyed that they couldn't get into it ?

Hotel staff cut padlock off with bolt cutters. At least nothing was missing.

[geriatrickid]

Considering the large gangs that operate at many of the large western airports, don't be so quick to blame the Thais. The valuables are often pilfered long before the aircraft has left the originating airport. Every so often the gangs get busted at YYZ, CDG, LAX, JFK, FRA etc. It makes me wonder about all the great security at those airports. And then there are the special cases, like that couple in Phoenix that had stolen bags hidden on their land and 14 rooms filled from floor to ceiling with all the goodies. My favourite are the wackos at LAX that try and grab stuff as you wait on the curb. Take your eyes off the bag for a second and someone is going to try and grab it.

[Scott]

I am guessing that most thefts occur in Thailand because I think most flights arriving and leaving originate in Thailand. Maybe somebody knows the precise figures.