Rule 570-38-4-.08 - Passenger Carrier Customer Baggage(1) Passenger carriers shall not be compelled to carry baggage of passengers, except hand baggage, the character, amount, size, and value of which the passenger carrier may limit by its rules, regulations, or policies, subject to the requirements and limitations of law and these rules.(2) To the extent that a passenger carrier provides a checking service for customer baggage, the carrier shall separately mark and assign a checked bag receipt for each checked bag to any customer using such service. The passenger carrier shall at all times furnish to the drivers or operators of its vehicles an adequate supply of such receipts to accommodate the requirements of this Rule.(3) A passenger that is required to or that does check or surrender physical possession of any piece or pieces of his or her baggage to the passenger carrier for storage in a compartment or area of the passenger carrier's vehicle other than that occupied by the passenger shall not be responsible for loss or damage to said baggage except to the extent required by law.(4) A customer or passenger of a passenger carrier that does not check a particular piece or pieces of baggage but instead retains physical possession of said baggage shall assume full responsibility for his or her own baggage, and the passenger carrier shall not be responsible to the passenger for loss or damage to said baggage except to the extent required by law.(5) A passenger carrier may require that customers or passengers pay in advance of travel for any excess baggage fees the customer or passenger is subject to pursuant to the rules, regulations, and policies of the passenger carrier as authorized by these Rules.(6) In the event that an item or items of baggage are not immediately claimed by the passenger / owner of the baggage upon a passenger carrier reaching a destination, the driver or operator of the vehicle shall:(a) If the destination is a "station" or physical location at which the passenger carrier operates or conducts business and the passenger carrier has the resources to accommodate such baggage, deliver the unclaimed baggage to that location for safekeeping until the item(s) can be claimed by the owner or can reasonably be determined to be abandoned;(b) If the destination is not a "station" or physical location at which the passenger carrier operates or conducts business or the passenger carrier does not have the resources to accommodate such baggage at the location, make reasonable efforts to store and keep safe the baggage until it can be claimed by the owner or until it can reasonably be determined to be abandoned; and(c) In any event, make reasonable efforts to contact the owner of the baggage and inform him or her of the unclaimed baggage if the owner can be readily ascertained from the records of the passenger carrier, from the baggage itself, or from other facts known to the carrier.(7) Baggage containing money, jewelry, negotiable paper, liquids, glassware, or other perishable or fragile articles or articles of unusually high value must not be checked or received for transportation without a declared valuation. To the extent that such declared value exceeds the value provided for in paragraph (8) of this Rule, carriers may assess additional charges for transportation of such articles provided that such charges do not exceed any maximum rates established by the Department by rule, tariff, or order. If such articles or baggage containing such articles are checked or delivered for transportation by a passenger without making manifest of such contents and the value thereof, the carrier shall not be liable therefore in excess of the amount provided for in paragraph (8).(8) Subject to the limitations and conditions set forth herein three pieces of hand baggage, not to exceed a total weight of one hundred pounds nor exceeding two hundred and fifty dollars ($250.00) in value, shall be carried free of charge for each adult passenger. Children travelling on less than adult fare shall be limited on the above basis in the proportion that the child's fare bears to the adult fare. No allowance shall be permitted on tickets purchased for the sole purpose of avoiding the payment of excess baggage.(9) A carrier may reject and refuse to transport any articles or baggage containing any articles described in paragraph (10) of this Rule or any articles or baggage that are reasonably deemed by the passenger carrier or its operator or driver to be too heavy, bulky, fragile, or not in proper condition for transportation.(10) Except to the extent such activity is specifically required to be authorized by law, passenger carriers, their drivers, operators, or agents, shall not knowingly permit, and no person shall offer for transportation, any dangerous substance or material to be loaded in or upon any passenger carrying vehicle or to be stored as baggage in or upon the premises of any passenger carrier's station, terminal, or physical place of business, which shall include but not be limited to the following: (b) Illegal narcotics, dangerous drugs, or controlled substances;(c) Materials of an offensive or disagreeable odor; or(d) Any hazardous material of article prohibited to be transported aboard a passenger carrying vehicle provided for under 49 C.F.R. § 177.870.(11) Paragraph (10) of this Rule shall not apply to the carrying of firearms by law enforcement officers.Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 570-38-4-.08
O.C.G.A. §§ 40-1-154; 40-1-101; 40-1-119; 40-1-120.
Original Rule entitled "Passenger Carrier Customer Baggage" adopted. F. Apr. 21, 2020; eff. May 11, 2020.