Prosecutors turned to the long forgotten

As Kommersant found out, the prosecutor’s office joined the dispute between carriers and airports about who should pay for the storage of things forgotten on board. The reason was the complaint of airlines to the Ministry of Transport at Pulkovo, where, after a warning from Rostransnadzor, they continued to issue invoices for this service. A number of airports have introduced a tariff for the storage of left hand luggage. Against this background, airlines began to store things at home more often, which, according to experts, brings the market closer to international standards, where things are stored for free, but not for long – and handed over to the police or to charity.

As it became known to Kommersant, the North-Western Transport Prosecutor’s Office (NWTP) is studying the carriers’ complaints about the demand for payment for the storage of passengers’ things forgotten on the plane in Pulkovo. In July 2022, Rostransnadzor issued a warning to the airport operator, the Air Gates of the Northern Capital, for imposing such a service. The airport did not cancel the tariff, but on January 1 it raised it to 250 rubles. for registration and 50 rubles. per day for storage.

At the end of November, Utair sent a letter to the Association of Air Transport Operators (AEVT) (Kommersant has it) with a complaint that Pulkovo continues to “force the conclusion of an additional agreement on the provision of services”, refusing to accept passengers’ things without payment. A Kommersant source in the Ministry of Transport said that they received an appeal there and “instructed Rostransnadzor to take action.” He, according to the interlocutor of Kommersant, sent materials to the NWTP “for taking measures as part of the prosecutor’s response.” A source in Rostransnadzor confirmed that “the prosecutor’s office is analyzing the materials with the involvement of the FAS.” The service and the Ministry of Transport refused to answer, NWTP could not promptly provide a comment. The FAS told Kommersant that “the issue is regulated by the Ministry of Transport.”

Airlines have begun to store forgotten things more often. So, “Ural Airlines”, which estimated the annual cost of this at “millions of rubles”, refused the service to Pulkovo. They switched to self-storage in Rossiya, whose passengers leave up to 2.5 thousand items upon arrival at Pulkovo a year. Aeroflot has previously kept hand luggage from the aircraft at home.

Kommersant’s interlocutors in a number of companies noted that in 2022, the storage tariff appeared at other airports. So, the airport of Simferopol, closed since February 24, 2022, sent letters to carriers in December with an additional agreement, offering to pay 157 rubles. for registration and 219 rubles for storage from the third day. The airport emphasized that carriers have the right to refuse the service. In Khrabrovo (Kaliningrad) storage will cost 32 rubles. from the third day. In Domodedovo, a tariff of $ 18 has appeared for the delivery of things forgotten on the plane to the unclaimed baggage room. Further, the passenger pays for storage 90 rubles. per day. In Sheremetyevo – 150 rubles. per day, in Vnukovo – 132 rubles. At the same time, at large airports, they told Kommersant that if the passenger does not return for the loss, then the carrier bears the costs. Carriers estimated costs at 35-40 million rubles. on the example of MASH.

In Pulkovo, Kommersant was reminded that the airport’s lost property takes up to 20 thousand items a year for six-month storage, of which the owners take only a third. All this time, the airport provides “the maintenance of the premises, the work of employees, equipment and video surveillance systems.” The press service emphasized that the service is provided “in compliance with all applicable aviation rules and requirements.”

According to FAP-82, things forgotten at the airport and airplanes must be stored for six months, but the payment procedure is not specified in the rules. Kommersant’s interlocutors in the airport community note that in international practice, storage periods are usually shorter, and carriers themselves are more often responsible for things. So, on the website of Charles de Gaulle Airport it is indicated that things forgotten on the plane are stored by the airline, which after 15 days passes everything to the police. She keeps them for several months, and immediately donates forgotten items of clothing (scarves, gloves, etc.) to charity. At New York airports, passengers are asked to contact airline offices and are warned that they will only have to pay for the delivery of forgotten items.

Another common option is when the airport’s handling service keeps the items free of charge for a month, if the low-cost carrier does not have its own office there, says Alexander Lanetsky, CEO of Friendly Avia Support. Typically, items are required to be stored for no longer than three months, “since most of the forgotten things are either picked up by passengers on the first two days, or never.”

Aigul Abdullina