A passenger travelling misplaced more than SGD 10,000 when he landed back in Singapore (and a whole variety of other unpleasant surprises) within an hour of landing. One of the causes of this unfortunate loss of money was a missing credit card that was stolen from him either on the plane or prior to take-off. The incident occurred so fast from start to finish and the initial reaction of the passenger was disbelief.
Suspicion Was A False Alarm
The passenger, like most other travellers, had his backpack in an overhead locker during his flight but did not take the added precaution of locking it. In the backpack, the passenger had his credit card and wallet. During the course of the flight the passenger had left his seat and gone to the lavatory and during his absence from his seat, there were other passengers who had written down their names to return to their seats but had never returned to the seat beside the passenger.
Within one hour of landing, the phone of the passenger began to vibrate with notifications of fraudulently conducted transactions. The first notification came through very quickly and was followed shortly thereafter by another notification indicating the same fraudulent activity and then by twenty more notifications advising the passenger about the same thing.
No Time To Think
Interestingly, the passenger did not notice anything amiss until after immigration and baggage claim. The passenger initially discovered the fraudulent activity after arriving at the hotel and when the passenger attempted to pay for the ride from the airport to the hotel.
Upon realising that he did not have his credit card, the passenger’s heart began racing. The passenger contacted his bank and requested a cancellation of the credit card but because most of the fraud was conducted with the physical card in his possession, the bank was unable to reverse the transactions.
Who’s Responsible for This?
The passenger felt the response was unfair, so he filed with FIDReC (a government agency that provides dispute resolution services for financial matters in Singapore).
The bank made its case during mediation:
- The passenger did not have the card on them
- The bag was left open without any lock
- The overhead compartment was a shared area
In the end, the bank contended that the passenger’s negligence was the most significant contributor to the loss.
Some Compensation, But Not Enough
Ultimately, the passenger accepted some responsibility and requested leniency. The result was less than definitive.
The bank agreed to refund 20% of the loss, leaving the passenger with the balance of the loss.
While this experience was painful, it does allow for some hope moving forward.
An international flight passenger lost his credit card from theft while in-flight, resulting in an immediate financial crisis upon their arrival home. This situation demonstrates the potential for theft in an aircraft, as well as the shared nature of responsibility between banks and customers regarding the theft.
The Thing Most Travelers Don’t Think About
This isn’t a fear-based story. It’s awareness based.
Overhead bins are handy to use, but they are not personal safes. Airlines are typically busy places, with constant movement and distractions. Having a few good habits could greatly reduce the likelihood of something bad happening to your belongings, such as:
- Always put a lock on your luggage before flying
- Assume that something could happen; because sometimes, the worst part of flying for you will happen after you touch down and you get a phone call from your airline or company/agent letting you know about the issue.
