Lost property 'never given to staff' - Qantas

Photo / Mark Mitchell

Qantas says passengers' lost property is never given to staff, despite Sydney's Sunday Telegraph reporting that unclaimed items are regularly auctioned off.

The New Zealand Herald reported on the Telegraph story today and readers of nzherald.co.nz had strong reactions to the report.

In a statement to nzherald.co.nz this afternoon, senior communications advisor Sophia Connelly said "Qantas makes every effort to reunite customers with lost items left on aircraft."

She said if the lost item didn't include details that could identify the passenger, it was lodged with Qantas Baggage Services and stored at an airport terminal for between one and three months.

After this time lapsed, any unclaimed lost property was donated to local charities, she said.

"Qantas has provided a variety of goods to charities including books, clothing and glasses," said Ms Connelly. "Charities which have received goods in the past include the Fred Hollows Foundation, RSPCA, Salvation Army, Red Cross and Mission Australia.

"At no stage is lost property given to Qantas staff," said Ms Connelly. "Claims that Qantas employees have kept goods are unfounded and incorrect.

"Qantas invests a significant amount of time to locate the owners of the lost property. We also ensure adequate time is provided for customers to claim goods they may have lost."

But the Sunday Telegraph quoted head of corporate communication Olivia Wirth as saying: "Some of our airports conduct staff auctions one or two times per year for unclaimed items with the money raised being donated to a charity that has been set up for terminally ill Qantas staff that can no longer work, or other charitable causes," Ms Wirth said.

She said Qantas donated hundreds of unclaimed valuables each month to the Salvation Army and Mission Australia in Sydney, but both charities told the paper they hadn't received donations from Qantas in over a year.

Many nzherald.co.nz readers today responded angrily to the earlier story on nzherald.co.nz and our Facebook page.

Adam said: "Qantas seem to be operating on a finders keepers principle which is unprofessional and down right greedy," while David Fraser said: "With an official company policy like that, they are actively breeding dishonesty and distrust."