OR Tambo airport worst for luggage pilfering

BETWEEN 50 and 70 luggage items are tampered with at OR Tambo International Airport every month.

A survey by Travelstart indicates that 26% of the more than 6000 travellers surveyed had been victims of luggage theft and that an astounding 83% of those incidents occurred at OR Tambo International Airport.

"The number of baggage pilferage incidents taking place at OR Tambo is abnormally high compared to other major airports such as Cape Town and Durban where 9% and 4% of respondents reported incidents of theft respectively," Travelstart's Russell Jarvis said.

Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) spokeswoman Unathi Batyashe-Fillis said in response to the survey's alarming findings that the number of luggage items pilfered at present was much lower than the average number of 150 three years ago.

The survey also indicated that travellers were upset about the high parking fees at South Africa's airports, with 72% of South Africans surveyed saying the parking fees irked them more than careless handling of luggage, unclear PA system announcements, lack of Wi-Fi services and surly check-in staff.

However, Batyashe-Fillis said the parking rates at South Africa's airports were lower than those of airports in other countries.

In addition, ACSA offered safe "state-of-the-art parking areas ... with no car theft or attacks having been recorded at any of our airports for many years". - Nivashni Nair