Avoiding Baggage Problems

Tips on Avoiding Baggage Problems (from Aviation Consumer Protection website airconsumer.ost.dot.gov)

Relatively few bags are damaged or lost. However, your chances of encountering this experience can be reduced even further if you follow the advice set out below.

Packing:

Avoid putting the following in checked baggage:

• Valuables (cash, jewelry). Don't rely on suitcase locks; they are easily defeated.
• Critical items (medicine, keys, passport, tour vouchers, business papers).
• Irreplaceable items (manuscript, heirlooms). 
  
• Fragile items (camera, eyeglasses, glass containers). If these must be checked, wrap them carefully in padding.
• Perishables.

Carry the above items either: 

• on your person, or
• in a small bag that you carry on board.

Even if a bag is not lost, it may be delayed for a day or two. It is wise to put items that you will need during the first 24 hours in a carry-on bag (toiletries, one change of underwear). 

Don't overpack checked bags. This puts pressure on the latches, making it easier for them to spring open. 

Your checked bags may need to be opened for a security inspection out of your presence. If you wish to lock your bags, see www.tsa.gov for information on locks that security personnel can open and then re-lock. If you use an unapproved lock and your bag is selected for inspection, the security staff will break the lock if necessary. 

Put a tag on the outside of your baggage with your name, home address, and home and work phone numbers. The airlines provide free stick-on tags. Most carriers also have "privacy tags" which conceal this information from passersby. 

Put the same information inside each bag, and add an address and telephone number where you can be reached at your destination city. 

Carry-on baggage advice: 

• Check with the airline for any limits it has on the size, weight, or number of carry-on bags. (There is no single federal standard.)
• Inquire about your flight; different airplanes can have different limits.
• If you are using more than one airline for a trip, check on all of them.
• A heavy bag which fits in an overhead bin may still cause the bin to exceed its weight limit.
• Don't assume that the flight has unlimited closet space for garment bags; some may have to be checked.
• Don't pack anything in a carry-on bag that could be considered a weapon (e.g., scissors, knife).