Provided it wasnt Brut (by Faberge - does this stuff still exisist?) you get a bit of sympathy from me on that score because you wouldn't in all probability have got that through security (liquid) anyway. What happens to all the kit that (still) gets confiscated? Do the boys and girls get to divvy up the spoils at the end of the shift? I know that all the baccy and booze that gets confiscated at customs used to be destroyed due to some sort of technicality.

Is the credit card avenue a complete dead end? It probably wouldn't be my first port of call either but isn't there some protection for 90 days or something like that?

Good luck getting any compensation here but in any event that should be a lesson learnt.