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I debated this, but I think it's askable. I just flew transit through Beijing. Did NOT enter the country. You still have to go through security though, but whatever, it just takes time. Until I got called aside for questioning about my Anker Power Charger (this model).

The conversation:

Security: "What is this? It has no label"
Me: "It's a USB charger, for charging my phone, for example"
Security: "It has no labels showing how much power, it's not allowed into China"
Me: "It's not going into China, I'm only in transit! Also, where, anywhere, is there a sign saying it must be labelled?" (It had been, but was worn off)
Security: "We can keep it for you, one month"
Me: "What use is that if after a month you still won't let me take it on a flight?"
Security: "Sorry, It's not allowed into China"
Me: "It was MADE in China!"

Anyway, despite my protests, it was removed from me, as well as similar items from other passengers (I got to see a lot of them while having this discussion).

Essentially, however, I had no leg to stand on. They could have claimed my laptop computer for all I knew, and I couldn't see any way to protest, get a claim, or anything like that.

So I guess my question is - is there a way to get documentation of the event, and claim for it later, or a way to officially protest, say from the airport OR the airline, given nobody warned me they'd be looking at and confiscating power banks with worn off labels?

Mark Mayo
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4 Answers4

40

Did you get some sort of receipt? Do you know exactly which kind of "security" official confiscated your item? If not, you'll have a very hard time proving anything even happened, although you can try your luck with the airport's complaints line at +86-10-96158.

In any case, the airline is not responsible. Security rules are laid out by the Civil Aviation Administration of China and enforced by airport security, which can be border police (边防部队), public security (公安部), random non-police rent-a-cops, etc. You presumably ran into somebody who's taking a rather over-zealous interpretation of whatever "smash the terrorists" campaign is currently in progress.

And yes, they could take your laptop if they wanted to, or arrest you and sentence you to ten years of re-education through labor camp for that matter -- you're a foreigner at the mercy of a communist dictatorship, after all, and yes, the transit area is still very much legally a part of China. But I'm still pretty sure you could raise a stink if somebody confiscated an obviously valuable item like a laptop, and the guards know well that there's so much CCTV at any airport security checkpoint that they won't get away with outright stealing anything for their own use.

Community
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lambshaanxy
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22

They are required to check power banks and lithium batteries for the labels and to not allow ones that fall outside of the guidelines. This is a safety issue. I fully support taking dodgy unmarked batteries or power banks off of travelers (and out of checked luggage) and disposing of them as hazardous waste. Every flight I have taken recently in China they pull out the power bank and check the label and hand it back to me. No problem, safety first.

It's only a matter of time before this kind of thing takes down an airliner full of people. This is a serious issue. There are too many bad and poorly protected batteries floating about with more than enough energy in them to start a fire.

Spehro 'speff' Pefhany
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6

While it has been suggested that they were trying to shake you down that's not the case. This is simply some pretty stupid handling of lithium battery rules.

You're not allowed to carry on lithium batteries that exceed 100 watt-hours. Where the stupidity comes in is that they are seizing anything that lacks a label as to what it's capacity is (even if it's simply because the writing has become worn off with time--put some clear tape over the capacity numbers of any power bank you might be taking to China) even if it's obviously far smaller than 100 watt-hours.

Note that checking it is not an option--they don't belong in the hold at all. The issue is the fire danger they pose.

Loren Pechtel
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I experienced similar things happening to me while I was traveling in China. In both of my cases, the security guard and hotel manager both asked for cash to make some unpleasant circumstances, which they had created, go away. While you're looking for a bureaucratic solution, a bribe might have done the trick.

From the comments, "on the spot fine" seems like a better term than "bribe".

djv
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