Medium Large Transport
Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Communication Breakdown; Time Pressure
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Hazardous Material Violation; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
General None Reported / Taken
Human Factors; Manuals
While boarding the flight; FA (Flight Attendant) A notified me that a passenger stated that he had lithium batteries in his carry-on bag; but that the bag wouldn't fit in the overhead bin; and so the passenger had decided to place the bag on the planeside baggage cart.  The FA was concerned that the passenger was going to place a bag with lithium batteries in the cargo compartment; so she asked me to talk to the passenger.  I approached the passenger and asked him if he had lithium batteries in his bag (which turned out to be a hard-sided case) and he responded that he had lithium batteries installed in cameras inside the case.  He did not want to place the item on the cart because they were expensive.  I asked a nearby ramp agent to request a supervisor.  A man approached and when I asked him if he was a supervisor; he responded yes.  We explained the situation to him; and the supervisor said that as long as the lithium batteries were installed inside a camera; laptop; or phone; and not loose in a bag; that the bag could be checked into a cargo bin.  This was something I was unsure of; but he said this very confidently; and since we have no guidance in our FOM (Operating Manual) about lithium batteries; I complied with what the supervisor said and the ramp placed the bag into the forward cargo bin.  After the flight; FA A said that she had been audited on the flight by inflight management; and when she asked them about the incident; they said that no lithium batteries at all can be in cargo bins. We need to have some kind of guidance on lithium batteries in our FOM to help us in situations like these.  I do not know if the bag should have been in the cargo bin or not.  After the flight; I still could find no guidance on this issue at all on the training app.
While boarding passengers; a flight attendant came up to the cockpit and informed us that their was a passenger with lithium batteries in his carry on and that he was unable to stow it in the cabin. He was unwilling to remove the batteries and tried to place it on the ala cart; though lithium batteries are apparently not allowed in aft baggage. The Captain; discussed with several ramp agents was told that it was fine to stow the bag in forward cargo with the lithium batteries inside. After landing in ZZZ1; we were subsequently informed by an inflight auditor that lithium batteries aren't allowed in forward cargo. There seems to be a definite lack of guidance in our manuals about the carriage of lithium batteries. Add language in the FOM (operating manual) or [safety manual] to clarify when and where lithium batteries can be carried.
Air carrier flight crew reported accepting the Ramp Supervisor's incorrect information regarding Lithium Ion batteries were approved for cargo compartment provided they are installed in a device.Flight crew added that the FOM provides not flight crew guidance.