Investigation: Hazem Helmy - The Rising Concerns of Theft and Safety for Arab Tourists in Europe

2023-04-20 22:24:07

Investigation: Hazem Helmy

In the Emirates, when a tourist loses something of his personal belongings, all police stations in the country come to his aid and help him recover what he lost from him. The tourist and return it to him at his place of residence. This is what happens with lost and not stolen items, unlike what is happening in most European countries today, in terms of theft incidents that put the lives of Arab and Gulf tourists at stake.

Recently, many videos have spread on social media platforms, in the British capital, London, and a number of famous cities and neighborhoods, which documented an attack with white weapons and sticks, in which the victims were beaten and assaulted, and some were seriously injured, in order to steal their watch, mobile phone, or camera. Photographs in his bag, and others, which increased in price and made it easy to carry and steal quickly, among passers-by.

Georges Al-Ashqar, advisor to the board of directors of Fidelity Insurance Services, insurance brokers, says that there is a type of insurance for jewelry, gold, precious watches, and important personal items owned by the traveler, and it has its own rules and regulations, provided that the coverage on it is in the UAE, and the insurance company has the freedom to extend Coverage to other places, and the traveler must prepare lists of the specifications and the value of the things he wishes to insure, and in the event of loss or theft, the value of the lost items must be established after the exact specifications are given for each lost piece, and the compensation is only after obtaining a detailed report from the police about the lost items.

Many citizens were subjected to theft of their personal belongings, and in the midst of the most important cities in the world, some of them the authorities came to their rescue, and others did not find anyone to return what was stolen from them.

«Gulf» stood on the incident, which has become an obsession for tourists who prefer to spend their vacation in most European countries, and we heard from them about the unfortunate events that happened with them during their travel, and how they dealt with the incident and what lessons were learned from these incidents.

Theft inadvertently

The most prominent of them is the Emirati journalist, Mahira Abdulaziz, whose bag was stolen at Paris Orly Airport, and her passport, phone, bank cards, and wallet were inside.

She explained that she left her bag in the bathroom inadvertently, and when she returned to take it, she found the maid in the place, but she did not find the bag.

Mahira Abdulaziz told Al-Khaleej: “After the theft, and with the cooperation of the Dubai police and the UAE embassy in Paris, I retrieved my bag with my passport and all its contents.”

She explained that, after submitting an official complaint of theft, she was surprised that the French police and airport security did not move, on the grounds that the theft occurred on a holiday and therefore the employees are on vacation, but the movement of the UAE police and the embassy contributed to the French police moving faster to retrieve the stolen items.

Regarding the precautions that must be taken into account when subjected to theft, she says: “You must immediately communicate with the embassy of the country to which the traveler belongs in the event that he does not receive sufficient assistance from the police of the country they are visiting, and resort to social networking sites to communicate the sound faster and in order for the call to be answered. And this is what really happened to me, as I was surprised by the solidarity I received from the followers, until the “trend” and newspaper talk topped the story.

old story

The incidents of theft of Emirati and Arab tourists in the new, old Europe bring to mind the incident that took place at the Cumberland Hotel in Marble Arch, London, on April 6, 2014, when Phillips Spence, a drug addict, sneaked in to steal 3 Emirati sisters, and assaulted them with an iron hammer.

The incident caused a list of medical problems and disabilities for Fatima, Ohoud and Kholoud, from brain damage to a girl confined to a wheelchair after 6 blows to the head, to losing her sense of taste and not being able to breathe through her nose, to suffering from epilepsy and post-traumatic stress.

The importance of travel insurance

Georges Al-Ashqar, advisor to the board of directors of Fidelity Insurance Services, insurance brokers, says: “The demand for health insurance for travelers outside the country has increased recently, for fear that they will be exposed to any disease resulting from “Covid-19,” in addition to it being a requirement by some embassies located in The state, to obtain the necessary visas, and the types of insurance policies differ from one company to another, and the insurance benefit may reach one million dollars in some policies for emergency cases for the insured covered by the insurance, as well as covering cases of death, travel of relatives to accompany the patient, and transportation from one country to another for treatment And other matters related to the disease for the traveler.

He added: «Among other types, insurance for the loss of bags, or even a delay in their arrival to their owner, and for cash, where the compensated amount does not exceed $ 500, and for the credit card when it is lost, and when flights are canceled, as well as civil accidents, such as when the traveler is exposed to a specific situation and assaulted. Through it, it affects a person in a country while he is traveling, which causes him disability or the like, and insurance in these cases covers all these accidents, but with certain limits.

The second Gulf tourist in the world with visitors to Britain

The latest statistics conducted by the British Tourism Authority, in 2019, a year before the pandemic, revealed that more than 1.2 million Gulf tourists visited Britain, spending 2.6 billion pounds sterling.

The statistics showed that the Gulf tourist spends longer periods than others in Britain, amounting to an average of 12 nights, compared to an average of 7 nights for other tourists, and the Gulf tourist comes second in the world after the American tourist in terms of spending. Last June, the British Home Office announced that citizens of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries would be exempted from visas to enter the United Kingdom, starting in 2023.

She said that the six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council will be among the first countries to benefit from the new visa-exemption system, and this decision will facilitate their travel for tourism purposes and for visits, and they will not need to go to the British embassy to issue a visit visa.

Thefts almost cost his life

Emirati traveler Muhannad Suleiman bin Juma’ah al-Yahya’i tells Al-Khaleej about the dangers of theft stories he was exposed to while traveling in Argentina, indicating that the thieves were chasing him and his friend from street to street in order to steal his bag and his personal camera, considering that this situation is one of the most difficult situations he has faced. She passed by him throughout his travels, as there was a direct threat to his personal life, because thieves “according to his expression” were ready to kill him in order to steal him.

Muhannad, who has visited 140 different countries to date, revealed that he was subjected to theft three times, the strangest of which was when he was staying in a hotel in one of the European countries, and left his car in the parking lot inside the hotel, and it contained some of his money and his personal bag, and in the morning he was surprised that someone broke the car’s glass and stole the bag. and money, and filed a complaint with the police and the hotel administration, but to no avail. He added: “My friend and I were attacked by a gang of thieves in a European country with a white weapon that they put on our neck, in order to steal our wallet and what we have of money, and from my experience in dealing with them, I did not resist them, and they took a certain amount from me, and when my friend resisted them, he was injured, as a result of which he was taken to the hospital.” And his condition was stable.”

Muhannad said: “I learned during my travels and travels in European countries that the Arab traveler is primarily targeted for thieves, and I always took care, and we always advise travelers not to wander around with their expensive hours and luxury cars, and they should not leave their belongings even in places they trust, and these are lessons.” We learned it almost cost our lives.”

Difficulty recovering loot

Emirati traveler Rashid Al-Saad says: “My bag with a camera and some personal items was stolen from my room, in a resort in a European country, and when I contacted the hotel management, they lied to me, claiming that the incident could not happen in their hotel, and it was difficult to communicate with the authorities because my trip was After hours”.

The traveler, who toured more than 40 countries around the world, added: “It was not possible for the authorities to return the stolen goods that were in the bag, because the duration of my visit to this country was 3 days, and I did not have enough time to file a complaint, knowing that this country does not provide highways.” process for reporting stolen items.

Rashid Al-Saad explained that this incident, despite his great caution about his luggage when traveling, made him not trust any place he goes to, especially hotels that do not provide a security team and qualified employees to preserve the belongings of their guests, advising him to choose hotels that are in well-known places and have a reputation. Good for travelers, and not to leave valuables in unsafe open places, because they will be easy to steal.

Cards instead of cash

Mahmoud Fawzi, Executive Director of Etqan Travel Agency, says: “Many cases of theft occurred with our clients who traveled for the first time to European countries. After that, we communicate with the hotel management and the concerned authorities in the country, and we work to recover what was stolen from them of their personal effects. He added, “We give many advice to travelers, the most important of which is not to carry a lot of money with them in their pockets, the need to use bank or credit cards, and to put most of their money and valuables such as gold, jewelry and watches in the hotel room safe and close it with the password, and to stay in hotels in the city center, While making sure that there is a 24-hour security system, and making sure that the hotel is not located in an area far from places where thefts are frequent and gangs are spread.

And about obligating travelers to a certain type of insurance to preserve their personal and valuable items during travel, he explained that the traveler is offered the option of insurance to preserve his valuable personal belongings, especially if his tourist destination is a country that is considered relatively unsafe.

Mahmoud Fawzi revealed that theft incidents did not affect the demand for travel to countries where these irresponsible behaviors occur, but we take the necessary precautions and instructions before traveling to maintain a quiet trip away from dangers.

A few weeks ago, Kuwaiti Abdullah Al-Basman was subjected to a frightening incident in broad daylight in central London, after a group of thieves followed him on a motorcycle, smashing the windows of his car, trying to steal a Rolex Daytona wristwatch.

Tips for experience

In talking with many people who have been subjected to theft and threats in some European cities, they extracted many tips from their experiences. The most important of which is not wearing valuables while walking around, not walking alone in empty areas at night, not resisting thieves and giving them what they ask for, using a taxi when moving with something valuable in the city center, not using public transportation, avoiding teenage gatherings if you encounter them, and booking in a safe and reputable hotel. Good, keep copies of important documents, don’t accompany or trust strangers, keep luggage close, and don’t walk around with your passport in your pocket.

Theft incidents alert travelers

For his part, Sherif Al-Farm, Executive Director of Serenity Travel Company, says that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. Also, women should not walk around with their phone in their hand, gold and jewelry in their neck or bag, and with these behaviors they are the target that thieves seek to steal even in broad daylight.

He added: “The Corona pandemic has exposed the work of hotels in Europe after they laid off most of their employees, and after the return of the tourism season again, some of these hotels were replaced by employees working on temporary contracts, who are not trained and unqualified to deal with thieves and theft incidents that occur in front of them, and some of them may have Links to these gangs that rob Arab tourists.

He believes that resorting to the police and insurance companies sometimes to file a complaint against the theft he was subjected to does not work, and there are many thefts that have not been returned to their owners after months and years have passed, with the wisdom of the thieves’ experience in disguise and selling the stolen quickly so that they do not fall into the hands of the police. .

And the media, Mahira Abdulaziz, says: “After I was exposed to the theft incident, I reached the conviction that the Arab tourist is targeted by thieves, and my advice to travelers is to stick to their bags without leaving them in one of the corners of the airport unintentionally, and not to exaggerate their clothing and appearance, by wearing the most expensive brands, jewelry and rare bags.” ».

24,000 thefts in Britain in two years

The figures, according to the British police, are shocking, and clearly indicate a significant increase in the frequency of these crimes, especially in the past few months, coinciding with a bad economic situation and an unprecedented inflation crisis in the country’s history for more than half a century (it reached 10.15%).

And the British police revealed that, during the past two years, it had recorded more than 24,000 theft crimes, in separate parts of the United Kingdom, and there were many weapons used by thieves to intimidate tourists, and according to the report, the thefts varied between watches, money, jewelry, cars, clothes, laptops, cameras and other collectibles.

London police say that most of the thefts are in some crowded streets, by motorcyclists; They can hide in tall buildings and become difficult to track.

10 tips to help you avoid being robbed