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Laptop broken by airline inspector
Shawnasee
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
and I want to know if anyone else has had a similar experience and what was the result?
My wife went on a trip and put her gaming laptop in her suitcase. She had her netbook as carry on.
There were two notifications in her suitcase when she returned home saying they had opened it for inspection. Presumably for security reasons.
The things was obviously dropped. A piece of the laptop casing is broken off at the corner, the clips (to keep it shut when you close it) were snapped off and the screen is a pretty rainbow color. There are also some dents in the side.
This thing was dropped from a pretty good height.
So where should I start?
I know this is going to be a huge hassle so I was hoping that someone with experience might have some tips for me.
My wife went on a trip and put her gaming laptop in her suitcase. She had her netbook as carry on.
There were two notifications in her suitcase when she returned home saying they had opened it for inspection. Presumably for security reasons.
The things was obviously dropped. A piece of the laptop casing is broken off at the corner, the clips (to keep it shut when you close it) were snapped off and the screen is a pretty rainbow color. There are also some dents in the side.
This thing was dropped from a pretty good height.
So where should I start?
I know this is going to be a huge hassle so I was hoping that someone with experience might have some tips for me.
Shawnasee on
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Posts
Then call the TSA, and begin the loooooooooong, arduous process of held calls, muzak, and bitchy service reps.
it sounds like direct trauma to me. I don't think it would have all that bruising if it just took bumps while padded inside a bag.
Often times they specifically say they WILL NOT cover damage to expensive electronics, laptops, jewelry, etc. That's why you are highly encouraged to get insurance.
So, on that front, many credit cards will help in situations like this. Call the credit card company that you used to buy her ticket and talk to them. At the very least, they may have some ideas/information on what to do.
IANAL, etc.. But the legality of these notices is questionable. Unless she signed away any liability, it doesn't matter that the airline says they are not responsible; its the same thing as hotels trying to claim they aren't responsible for stolen goods (they are if it was one of their employees who did it).
I also saw a TSA page where they say please don't put your laptop in your checked bag, it's unsafe due to "pressure and altitude"- i.e we're not responsible if we fucking break it.
The only time I've even heard of someone getting compensated for any damages was when a musician had his guitars broken by united and then wrote a song and made a viral video.
After that, the airline caved to save face.
And unless you flew blowjob class or something I doubt the airfare covers the cost of the computer.
The only real hope you have is if you bought it with a credit card and your card has insurance you might be able to claim it off that.
Your wife did a silly thing I'm afraid.
Edit:
Here is an example with a 360
http://gizmodo.com/5452938/us-airways-saves-flight-from-dangerous-xbox-360-threat
Satans..... hints.....
Sure they are... assuming you can prove it.
And the burden for doing so is on you.
So the OP is in a similar boat: Can (s)he PROVE the laptop worked, insert into bag, then presto-chango it no longer works?
that article is stupid
i think the real issue is that with electronics such as these, they are easily big enough to house a bomb, and x-raying them to see what's inside will show a shitload of electric components, which COULD be a bomb, or it could be the regular workings of the device
i'm not even sure if xraying something like this would ruin the electronics
they have to open it to find out. Seeing as though they don't have hours and hours to open it carefully and check it out, they have to open it forcibly
they have a warning not to bring electronics in your luggage, unfortunately, I think the OP is out of luck on this one
simply put: fedex this sort of thing
LOL. So you're suggesting that the inspector drops everything that looks suspicious on the ground to check if it is a bomb or not?
As to the OP - if there is a warning not to bring electronics and it is visible and comprehensible, you might struggle to get anything out of the bastard. Still, as there is a written note in your wife's bag, it can work as evidence. I agree with Faggins. Also take the photo of the note and file a claim with the company. At least fray the bastards' nerves!!!
you're likely not fraying anyone's nerves but your own. the airlines and the TSA are likely not going to be kerfluffled by one lone traveler ranting about a laptop.
i think the OP's best bet is insurance or possible credit card damage coverage.
steam | Dokkan: 868846562
And on the ground.
Watch the Dirty Jobs episode where Mike is a baggage handler. There is an unspoken assumption made when performing that job: that there's nothing breakable in the baggage.
If you're carrying a laptop on a plane you should put it in your carry-on. They will not deny it if it boots up during inspection.
I'd imagine the TSA guideline might cover damage to the laptop that is the result of normal baggage handling and inspection, but dropping a laptop to the ground doesn't really qualify for normal. Since dropping inspected items to the ground is in no way normal or foreseeable damage, I think you might have a decent chance of getting damages(at the courts, at least).
Yes, that makes sense.
TSA GOON 1: Hey, this xbox might be a bomb!
TSA GOON 2: Stand back.
TSA GOON 2 hits xbox with hammer.
TSA GOON 1: Thank god you disarmed it with that mallet!!
Most airlines have a baggage liability per ticket holder based on international/domestic traveling. For instance, American Air insures damages to baggage up to $3300 per ticket for domestic travels.
and there's still the simple fact that passengers are instructed in very plain language NOT TO CHECK LAPTOPS
Yes, all domestic US airlines are required to do so, but if you actually read the Contract of Carriage posted on any of their websites it says
On second thought, this was done pre 9-11...
My father spent the better part of the 90's flying two, sometimes four times a week for business. This is pre-9/11 and the ramp-up of security in the US. Recently, about two years ago, he opened his luggage after a flight and found the case of his brand new Vaio mangled. His response was that "there's nothing I can do". This is from a man who saw countless broken and damaged goods in his checked luggage for the better part of 10 years.
I have spent the last two years traveling round trip to Chicago every other month, or so, and I can say that lugging an old Inspiron 6000 around in my carry-ons along with everything else I actually want on my person is a stretch. I always check my laptop and I never had an issue on the 20+ flights I was on.
In the end, there's probably little to be done. US law isn't friendly to small-claims, and the airline has every reason to deny a claim because even if it was their fault, the cost to recoup $500-$1000 is simply not worthwhile to a consumer.
That said, in the larger picture, "We said not to check laptops!" isn't a valid defense for why an airline or TSA agent broke an item. Open a ticket for damages, take timestamped photos, etc. as has been advised in the thread. Your only recourse is to be such a polite nuisance that the airline just pushes a claim through to be rid of you.
This has been done ad nasueum. Just because they say they're not liable for the damage doesn't mean they're not liable for the damage.
If the item was damaged, it doesn't mean it was damaged by the inspection crew, it could've been damaged in flight. And that's what the baggage liability is there for. If it were $1000 in designer shoes versus a laptop is beside the point.
Basically you just said quoted something that says "Hey we're liable for damage for mishandling or otherwise, but we're not liable for damaged to goods such as: EVERYTHING that's worth more than $20 in clothes from wal-mart even though we cover goods up to $3300."
IANAL but the wording on that is probably not legal or enforceable.
I believe the disconnect there is that they aren't saying they're not liable for such things, they're saying they're prohibited from being checked all together. They could make the argument that they're not liable for the damages of such items because they're prohibited from being checked, and you were violating policy by placing them in checked baggage in the first place.
Even if you do manage to get the damage claim through and get some kind of compensation for this, the lesson is still the same: don't check your fragile expensive items. Just the possibility of having them broken like this isn't worth the hassle. A laptop weighs an extra 5 pounds, carry it with you.
I've done this multiple times post 9/11. Throw them in (clean) socks and surround them with clothes.
Unfortunately that doesn't work so well for laptops. Despite the fact that bottle of alcohol probably look like some sort of bomb with tubular explosives, I've never had one of those pieces of luggage thoroughly searched (to the point that the bottles weren't cushioned anymore, anyway). They're more likely to check laptops; they look much more like bombs during screening. Jars/bottles of dirt also look pique suspicions (and in general should be claimed on your customs form...but TSA doesn't get to see your customs form).
I could see why you'd want to check it (carrying around one heavy laptop can be a pain; two would be worse (although why is she bringing two?)). What kind of luggage was this in? And how full was the bag? Those sorts of dings and breakage may happen with soft luggage, but I wouldn't expect that kind of severity in a padded piece of hard-cased luggage. If it's soft it may well have gotten beat up in-flight or from handlers.
This.
Caveat emptor seems to apply here, in a way.
You've be warned... ignore said warning at your own risk.
I'm taking pics now, gonna give them a call and see what's what. I will update this thread with their response.
The laptop was in it's carry on case inside the luggage bag...knowing my wife, she had a metric shit ton of clothes and they were all wrapped around it.
This was not damage that took place during rough handling. It's soft luggage but with the reinforced rim siding. The laptop casing was hit/dropped so hard it left it jagged. The lining should have ripped but there are no signs of tearing anywhere on the bag. That's my expert theory anyway
Regardless, we'll see what happens...
What I want to know is where they expect me to put my antique, silver, work of art box-cutters.
PSN - sumowot
It doesn't. You can run electronics, including hard drives and most film (who owns a film camera?)
In the early days of airport x-ray machines magnetic media (mostly floppies, less likely for HD, might have been at risk. Not from the x-rays, but from the magnetic fields created by the beam power supply and focusing magnets. The sensitivity of modern machines is so much better (and some thought put into the idea of not scrambling the stuff you're examining) that there's hardly any risk worth mentioning.
While it's technically possible to damage things with X-rays, not at the levels you see in contemporary airport scanners. If they were turned up that high, there'd be other serious issues that would make your nonfunctional Xbox or laptop kinda moot.
I seriously doubt the laptop was damaged during the luggage inspection. It was most likely damaged during baggage handling. Absent a very strong rigid case, padding is worthless. Laptops can't withstand pressure and crushing damage. Just put your finger on the back of any laptop and press lightly. Watch the screen warp. Now imagine your laptop is at the bottom of a pile with several hundred pounds of luggage on top. Even if it's wrapped in the finest goose-down pillows, it's still got that many pound of pressure on the lid. Now watch the pile shift and it'll transfer shear force through all that to the laptop case, the lid slides independent of the base, damages the latch and cracks the corner.
I think absent some sort of insurance (homeowner's insurance may cover it, but the deductable and consequences of making a claim make that a questionable option) or purchase protection on the laptop, the OP is SOL.
I do and I travel with it quite frequently, as long as you're not using 800+ speed film the scanning doesn't affect it.