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Fernanda Ardiles was angry at London City airport’s seeming indifference to the theft of her laptop. Photograph: Fernanda Ardiles
Fernanda Ardiles was angry at London City airport’s seeming indifference to the theft of her laptop. Photograph: Fernanda Ardiles

Student who had laptop stolen at airport will now get refund

This article is more than 5 years old
London City vows to reform its security processes after outcry raised by Guardian article

An economics student who had her £1,000 laptop stolen as she went through London City airport’s security has been told she will now be refunded, and that the airport has changed the way it will deal with future thefts.

Last week Guardian Money featured the case of Fernanda Ardiles whose MacBook Air was stolen from a tray as she waited to go through security – and her anger over the staff’s indifference.

Ardiles was shocked that London City staff failed to look at the CCTV footage at the time, and several days later, said they would only get involved if she contacted the police herself. The airport told Money its staff had done nothing wrong, and refused to refund her.

However, after the story ran hot on the Guardian website – prompting more than 1,000 mostly negative comments – London City airport had an about-turn. It has refunded the £500 her insurance had not covered, offered her further compensation, and says it is reviewing its security procedures. In future it will instruct staff to call in the police immediately following such a theft.

The story clearly hit a chord with readers, who claimed that similar flawed procedures exist at all the major UK airports.

Airports require that passengers remove laptops and tablets from bags, meaning they are left unattended if the passenger sets off the buzzer and is then patted down.

A reader with the online ID of Iceandindigo said they were not surprised by the Ardiles case. “I have travelled through many airports all over the world and the security staff at London City are by far the rudest and most unprofessional I’ve encountered. They are the only airport that has ever asked me to take my MacBook out of its sleeve – even though their x-ray machines can see through a suitcase.”

Another reader said they had £100 in cash taken from their wallet as it went through London City security. “It was a foolish mistake to leave it on display and I won’t do it again.”

Meanwhile, LadyShoreham described having her laptop stolen while going through security at Heathrow. “I sent my belongings through, and was then stopped to let a wheelchair user pass. Every single part of the wheelchair had to be checked, while my stuff laid uncollected for about five minutes. I was watching it like a hawk and the security guy was watching me – he must have seen the look on my face as I saw a woman shoving my laptop into her bag. He did not stop her, but shouted at his colleague to let me through so I could chase after her. Her bag was full of laptops, and I quietly retrieved mine,” she wrote.

Another described a similar incident at Barcelona airport but without the happy ending. His insurer refused to pay out.

Some readers said they now ignore the rules and leave laptops in bags. “For my last three flights I’ve played dumb and left my MacBook in my case. I get stopped, but I play the “oops, sorry!” card. Until airports take more responsibility, I’ll continue with this game.”

Several posters complained that security staff, are often indifferent to their plight. “My beady eyed boyfriend prevented the theft of my iPhone at Gatwick last month. I was separated from my belongings in the security queue. I beeped, was sent through for a physical screening (bra wiring). Meanwhile my possessions were left unattended as somebody tried to pounce on my phone. When we notified a member of staff the response was a shrug of the shoulders and ‘nothing I can do’,” said PepapepaJosie.

Several readers highlighted how worried about theft they felt while going through security at Manchester airport. Last week Manchester told Money it was up to passengers to call police if a theft took place.

Meanwhile, aAnother reader, Pete Burrows suggested we should look abroad for a better solution. “In Schiphol [Amersterdam] there is no need to take anything out of one’s bag at security. The process is consequently much quicker. In Singapore they do the security screen at the gate. If you put a laptop in the tray you are given a numbered card and you don’t get the tray back until you hand over the card.”

Several airports in India have adopted this approach, said Matt Pennington and others.

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