What to do with the loss of luggage at the airport. What if your hand luggage is missing? What to do if the luggage is returned damaged

A rare passenger travels without luggage. And with luggage, as you know, anything can happen: lost, spoiled, mixed up. Compared to the financial crisis, of course, it's nonsense - but it's still a shame. What to do when misfortune happened to bags and suitcases? Read "i" immediately.

Situation one: lost. You are standing at the airport near the conveyor belt and waiting for your own suitcase to appear. Your companions have already received their belongings, but yours are gone. In an hour or two you will obviously be visited by a hunch that the luggage was lost. And rightly so.

Do not try to search on your own, but immediately go to the representative office of the airline on which you arrived. It is the airline that is responsible for the passenger's baggage, and only it, in which case, compensates for the loss. If you find yourself in some godforsaken country where there is no representative office of your airline, then go to the office of the company that is the national carrier of this country. And it doesn't matter when trouble happened to you - day or night: airline offices work at airports around the clock.

At the office, you will be asked to present a ticket with a baggage coupon pasted on and they will ask you in detail about the color, size and shape of your suitcase, whether it had any special features, and also take an interest in its contents. Draw up an act of loss and start looking. If the airline is decent and values its reputation, then you will be given a small but completely free loan - so that you have something to buy new essentials: a toothbrush, a comb and a pair of fresh socks. Don't count on a large amount, but you will get 50 dollars.

The most reasonable thing is to assume that your luggage was either not loaded onto the plane at the airport of departure, or loaded onto the plane, but not into yours. If this is the case, then it will take one to three weeks to find and return the luggage. Moreover, searches can be greatly facilitated by special baggage tags, which most airlines issue to passengers before check-in for a flight and which are tied or stuck to things. Usually, the tags contain the last name and first name of the owner of the luggage, his home address or contact phone number. Don't skip this offer.

If within 21 days from the date of the loss of baggage its fate is not clarified, the airline is obliged to pay you compensation. Don't flatter yourself though: all airlines pay passengers only $20 per kilogram of weight. lost luggage. Moreover, the air carrier absolutely does not care what your bags were filled with - old linen or expensive evening dresses. For example, for the lost 5 kilograms, you will receive $100 in your hands and not a cent more. So we advise you not to check in cameras, camcorders, gold-diamonds and other valuables - the airline is not obliged to fully compensate for their loss. However, if you still have receipts for purchased items, the airline may partially or even fully pay you money for these items.

But it often happens that the luggage was not lost, but the most valuable items were opened and pulled out. In this case, you also need to contact the airline. Further events will develop according to a similar scenario: you present a ticket with a baggage coupon pasted on and describe in detail what was stolen. As material evidence, you must present a suitcase with broken locks or a cut body. The airline will draw up a theft report and send it to its central office. An investigation will be conducted and a special commission will decide how much to compensate you.

Situation two: spoiled. You are standing at the airport near the conveyor belt and waiting for your own suitcase to appear. The suitcase finally appears, but it is badly disfigured: the locks are damaged, the body is cut up, the handles are missing. Do not spit on this matter, but go to the representative office of the airline whose plane you flew in to sort out. The airline, represented by competent employees, will consult and decide how much damage has been caused. Either they will give you money to buy a new suitcase, or to repair a damaged one.

The amount of compensation depends solely on the decision of the airline, which in most cases is not subject to appeal. But do not think in advance that the airline will pay you clearly less than it should be. Reputable airlines value their reputation and are interested in customers. Therefore, frankly zhmotnichat will not.

Situation three: mixed up. You are standing at the airport near the conveyor belt and waiting for your own suitcase to appear. The suitcase appears, you pick it up and leave. Already at home, having started distributing souvenirs, it turns out that the suitcase is not yours at all, although it looks similar. If you are a decent passenger, then immediately go back to the airport and hand over someone else's suitcase to the representative office of the airline that brought you. There you will either meet face to face with the rightful owner of the suitcase you have taken, or hand over someone else's luggage from hand to hand to the airline staff.

As for your luggage, there are two options. Either he will be waiting for you at the airline office, or someone has taken him by mistake too. In this case, it remains only to tell the representatives of the airline your address or phone number, and they will already start searching.

Mark KUNDIUCHKIN
Based on the materials of the newspaper Foreigner

Lost luggage is one of the nightmares of any tourist. If you have ever been among those lucky ones whose luggage was never received, you understand the bitterness of this situation. If you haven't, you probably wouldn't want to be one of them.

Oddly enough, despite the prevalence of this problem, many who encounter it do not know what to do if the airport has lost luggage: who to contact, what papers to fill out, whether to claim compensation?

Answers below.

To find luggage faster

Ideally, to ensure that your bags are found at the airport as quickly as possible, decorate them in some distinctive way. It is best to hang a card with your contacts on your luggage: name and phone number. Another option: tie a bright, memorable ribbon to your suitcases. According to such features, luggage will be found by airport employees faster.

How to be on flights with transfers

The most dangerous flights for loss of luggage - docking. This, however, does not apply much to flights with transfers if you bought an air ticket, for example, from Moscow to Rome, and connecting flights - with a stop in Greece. Then the luggage moves "automatically" and you have little to worry about. Why practically? Because the options are:

there is no agreement between the partner air carriers. In this case, you will be notified about this, and you will need to receive and recheck your baggage during the docking yourself.
The airport does not provide direct baggage transfer between flights. In this case, you will have to receive and check in luggage in the transfer zone. Again, on your own.
between the countries of your flights there is an agreement on the declaration of prohibited items. Then you will have to collect your luggage at the transit point, and check it in again at the transfer baggage counter.

Special attention you should pay attention to moving luggage if you bought separate tickets: for example, from Moscow first to Athens, and from Athens you have already bought a plane ticket to Rome. In this case, do not forget to collect your luggage in Athens first, so that you can check it on the flight to Rome. If you forget to do this, your luggage will definitely be lost at the airport - your fault.

What to do if your baggage has already been lost

First and foremost, don't be nervous. Find a counter with the inscription Lost & Found at the airport and go to it. Explain the situation to the employee. After that, he will issue you an application, which must be completed in order to draw up an act on the loss of luggage. The information you need is simple: your contacts, the name of the air carrier that did not keep track of the suitcases, and the data from the luggage tag attached to the ticket.

What to do if you did not find the Lost & Found racks. Again the rule applies: don't panic! You probably just didn't notice it. Contact the airport staff for help. They will tell you who and where to approach to search for luggage.

The application you filled out - the claim will be the basis for the search for the missing things to begin. By the way, 21 days are allotted for the search. The process is not fast, alas. Until the expiration of this time, do not worry - the search is on. It remains to be hoped that they will end successfully.

If the luggage is not found after 21 days

If 21 days have passed and you still haven't found your luggage, take action. Claim compensation. You have the right to file a claim for damages within 18 months from the date of loss. Do not forget to attach scans of all supporting documents: passport, boarding pass with a tag, check for baggage payment, etc. If the airline ignores your application, go to court.

What compensation awaits you for lost luggage?

you have lost your luggage in Russia. In this case, make the calculation based on the cost of 600 rubles per 1 kg of baggage.
you lost your luggage in the west. Calculation - 20 dollars per 1 kg of your things.

Some air carriers immediately pay their "happy" passengers for essentials: a razor, socks, a toothbrush, etc. When filing a missing person's report, check to see if the company can provide you with these items.

On all 4 sides wishes you pleasant flights and always receive your luggage on time!

According to statistics, 70 thousand suitcases are lost daily at airports around the world, 97 percent of which are found in the first week of searching. For those who are going to fly to other cities and countries, Inde journalist Dinara Valeeva compiled a small manual in case you were left on a trip without luggage.

What do the statistics say?

Luggage is lost not by airlines, but by airports. However, it is the carriers who are responsible to the passengers. In the hat-list of tourists - Parisian Charles de Gaulle, London's Heathrow and New York's La Guardia. Oddly enough, the safest in this regard is Moscow's Domodedovo Airport: it has the lowest baggage loss rate in the world - 0.6 units per 1000 luggage places.

Every hour, 3,000 pieces of luggage are lost at the world's airports, and these figures reach 25 million a year. 61 percent of them are the baggage of passengers on connecting flights. By the way, in 97 percent of cases it would be more accurate to talk about a delay, and not a loss of a suitcase: according to statistics, airlines find luggage within one to five days. And only three percent of the luggage is missing forever.

Why is this happening?

Insufficient time to load suitcases between transit flights. The minimum docking time should be at least 1–1.5 hours.
Overbooking. Some airlines allow purchase more tickets for a flight than the plane can accommodate. If you are left without a seat on a flight, you can be transferred to another plane, and your luggage can be delivered on the originally intended flight.
Overload In addition to free luggage places, there are extra paid places. In the event of an aircraft overload, the transportation of such baggage for the airline may become a higher priority for commercial reasons.
Baggage sorting system error. Before getting into cargo compartment aircraft, suitcases go through the tapes through the scanners. The task of the system is to use the barcode on the luggage tag (it is pasted at the check-in counter) to determine where to send your suitcase. If, in addition to the new sticker, it has leftovers from previous flights, it is likely that the suitcase will fly to another city.
Human factor. For example, the negligence of porters who may forget to load your luggage on the plane during connecting flights or lose your suitcase on the way to loading. If the baggage carts of passengers on a flight are overcrowded, there is a chance that the suitcase will fall out and remain on the runway.

What should I do to avoid losing my luggage?

Follow a few simple rules:

Be sure to tear off all the tags left on the suitcase from previous trips. They can be confusing automatic systems sort your luggage and send your suitcase to another airport.
Use details that would distinguish your luggage on the endless belt from other nondescript suitcases - for example, tie a bright ribbon to the handle or a toy keychain. This will help reduce the risk of your suitcase being carried away by mistake by other passengers on the flight who have the same or very similar suitcases.
If you have connecting flights, be sure to specify the route of your luggage. You may have to pick up your suitcase at one of the airports and hand it over again at the check-in desk.
Attach a tag with personal details - address, email and phone numbers.
Pay attention to the tag that is stuck on the baggage at the check-in desk: it should indicate the code of the city you are flying to. Are you going to Moscow? SVO, DME or VKO. Saint Petersburg? LED. Fly home to Kazan - KZN.
Insure your baggage in advance if it contains valuables.

15 city airports - popular destinations among residents of Russia in 2015:

Sochi - AER
Kaliningrad - KGD
Vladivostok - VVO
Riga – RIX
Helsinki - HEL / HEM
Prague-PRG
Budapest-BUD
Paris - CDG (Charles de Gaulle) / ORY (Orly)
Berlin - TXL (Tegel) / SXF (Schönefeld)
Vienna - VIE
Rome - F.C.O.
Barcelona - BCN
Tel Aviv - TLV
Dubai - DXB
Phuket - HKT

I arrived. My suitcase is not on the pickup belt. What to do?

Look around. Someone flying on the same flight as you could take your suitcase for their own and take it off the tape.
If you are waiting for oversized luggage ( musical instrument, pram, porcelain statue, cage with an animal), go to a special stand - Bulky Baggage.
Go to the representatives of the airline (in the case of a transit flight - to the last carrier), to the Lost & Found counter, and write a statement. Keep your passport and baggage tag with you - it is glued to the document or boarding pass. Indicate in the application all known data: route, appearance, the contents of the luggage (up to the indication of brands and colors of clothing), leave permanent and temporary contact information. The more you do this, the more chances find luggage. After submitting the application, you will receive a code with which you can track the status of lost baggage searches on the Internet, on the WorldTracer website.

According to Sita (a multinational information organization in the aviation industry) last year, airlines lost 22 million pieces of baggage from their customers. That is, the loss of luggage at the airport is, although not frequent, but quite common.

So, standing at the luggage conveyor and waiting for the continuous flow of bags on the conveyor to slow down to a minimum and stop, you do not find your suitcases, do not panic.

Usually airlines have many ways to track down lost luggage and the vast majority are found eventually.

If your suitcases are on the next flight, you will be able to receive them within a few hours.

If they were sent to another airport, it may take several days. In this case, fill in lost luggage receipt and leave the hotel address or home address, as well as a telephone number for contacting you.

Usually, the search for luggage lasts 21 days, but it can take up to 45 days to clarify more detailed circumstances.

Delivery of lost luggage

Airlines usually bring your luggage to you when it is. But in some cases You must return to the airport to pick it up. In addition, many airlines will reimburse any unexpected expenses caused by lost or delayed baggage (keep your receipts!).

But be careful - the airline will try to reduce any compensation for lost luggage.

Before you leave the airport, ask how you can control the status of your baggage. Some airlines have online system, while others will provide you with a phone number where you can call and receive information.

If the airline has lost your bags, fill out a written claim for lost luggage. This can be done at the airport or mailed.

You may have to provide checks to prove the value of your things that were in your suitcase. If you have them, include copies of receipts in the documentation that will be sent to the airline.

Keep in mind that you will only the residual value of your belongings is reimbursed- because the airline will not give you as much as 10,000 rubles for a suit that you bought two years ago.

Typical baggage incidents that happen while traveling

Stolen Bags

After arrival, go to the baggage compartment as soon as possible to collect your belongings in order to minimize the potential risk of your bag being stolen. Many airlines scan bags as they are unloaded at baggage claim and keep records, especially at larger airports.

If your luggage is lost after being unloaded to the baggage claim area, your claims will no longer be with the airline, but with the police.

As soon as you have taken the suitcases from the transporter, immediately check them for presence of damage or other signs of mistreatment. Report any damage to your luggage before leaving the airport; The airline's customer service may wish to inspect the bag. Keep in mind that most airlines won't cover minor damage and you'll have to pay your own expense.

Most likely you will be asked to provide a receipt for the repair service or you will be offered to use the services of specialized services at the airport itself. Check with an employee luggage compartment detailed information so as not to end up in a situation where the repair costs will not be covered.

How to prevent lost baggage

And finally, if it does happen that your luggage is lost, do not panic, go to the office Lost luggage search(for abroad it sounds Lost and Founded) and complete the application form. Then wait until your luggage is found. In the event that your baggage is not found within 45 days, claim compensation from the airline for lost baggage.

If the value of the contents of the suitcase is not proven by checks, photographs, or a customs declaration that was filled out upon departure, airlines often charge an average price per kilogram of lost cargo, for example, $ 20 per kg.

Any vacation or trip can be overshadowed if suddenly, upon arrival at your destination, you suddenly do not find your suitcase on the baggage claim belt. As a rule, there are things, gifts, souvenirs, clothes. And it is extremely unpleasant to be left without all this!

I decided to write an article on what to do if the airline has lost your baggage. Having studied the legal sphere of this issue, as well as the experience of many travelers, own experience and advice from airline employees, I managed to create a whole instruction in which I will describe the actions. In addition, the material will be regularly updated and replenished (like all my articles on this blog), and as a visual aid, you will have access to a “cheat sheet” in the form of infographics, which just download it to your tablet or computer and in case of loss of things, you can easily get the nuances of behavior step by step.

So. Let's imagine that when you arrived at your destination or at the airport where the transfer is scheduled. Gone passport control, go to the baggage claim. A signal sounds, the belt starts to move and carries bag after bag ... 5 minutes, 10 minutes pass ... But your luggage is still missing. What to do?

1. Stay calm. You are not the first, you are not the last.

Luggage is lost regularly. This is especially a common problem in connecting flights, especially if the flight consists of many "shoulders" (for example - Moscow - Ankara - Istanbul - Bangkok). So relax and don't panic. Remember - the law is on your side only as long as you yourself behave within the law. Yes, it is difficult to contain emotions. But you shouldn’t behave the way the “heroes” of many YouTube videos do (squeal, hysteria, scream, rush at the staff). Your task is to return the baggage.

Calmness and confidence will add to your solidity and allow you to quickly move on to a constructive dialogue, standing out from the crowd of other unfortunate people who were also left without luggage. Very often, luggage is lost immediately for many people from a flight.

2. Contact the Lost & Found counter

After making sure that your luggage is really missing on the tape, without wasting time, you need to go to the Lost & Found counter. As a rule, it is in the field of view, without departing far from the place of baggage claim. If for some reason you cannot find a baggage tracing service, ask the airport staff for directions. If this does not help, feel free to go to the representative office of the airline (which lost your luggage) at this airport.

You must report the loss or damage to your baggage as soon as possible, but no later than 7 days from the date of receipt or arrival of the flight at the final destination.

Lost luggage by airlines is a very common occurrence.

Here you are required to make a claim for the fact of missing luggage in writing. This is done in free form, although some companies will ask you to use a specific format or even provide a blank where it will be enough to fill in the fields.

Your task is to describe the lost piece of luggage as accurately as possible so that it is easy to identify them. Specify:

The flight that was flown
Number of pieces of missing baggage
Appearance (color, model, signs) of a bag or suitcase
Be sure to indicate if the luggage would have been wrapped in cellophane or had an additional tag on it

Yes, before I forget. About tags. Luggage is often lost due to a loose luggage tag. Therefore, do not be lazy and make your own tag for the suitcase, on which indicate your IFO and contact information (phone, E-mail). This will allow you to quickly find you if the luggage is found without a tag.

Don't be lazy and make your own luggage contact tag. This can help you get things back much faster!

Also try to briefly describe the things that were inside. For example: there were a lot of clothes inside, incl. a large winter jacket and military boots size 46, an old Helios 44 lens and a book.

At the end of the application, indicate your first name, last name, passport series and number, and contact details. Please note that in addition to the phone and email, you should write the address where your things will be delivered if they are found. The address must be within the city where you are at the airport.

When applying, you will be asked to present your passport and a tear-off baggage tag (usually affixed to the boarding pass or passport cover). Please note that the original of this coupon must remain with you, it will be useful to you in case you have to go to court.

The act is drawn up in two copies. One of them remains at the counter and will be sent to the airline, and you receive the second. The date and time of its compilation must be affixed to the act, and in most cases - also a number for checking luggage through World Tracer.

3. Now you just have to wait

Ideally, of course. if your luggage is found. but you will have to call. But it's all on the conscience of the company. so it is better to monitor yourself. To do this, you need to call the baggage search department, the number of which will be indicated on the loss report.

Although now, almost any decent airline transmits its data on lost baggage to the international World Tracer system. If so, it will be enough to enter the act number (indicated on your copy) and last name, after which you can find out if your things were found.

4. If the baggage was not found, we demand compensation

According to the law, baggage search is carried out within 21 days, that is, 3 weeks. Most often, luggage is found much earlier - they just didn’t have time to reload it at a transfer or sent it on the wrong plane. But if, nevertheless, in 21 days the search did not give results, then the luggage is considered lost. And you should be compensated for it.

How much money will you be paid for lost luggage? Depends on the country in which the airline is registered.

It's all about that. that such issues are regulated by two acts: the Warsaw Convention of 1929 and a more modern version - the Montreal Convention of 1999. Already more than 100 countries of the world have switched to work according to the Montreal version (including Ukraine), but Belarus, Russia and a number of other states have not become a party to this agreement. Hence the payout difference.

If your airline is registered in a member country Montreal Convention(including Ukraine, Turkey, all EU countries, Australia, USA, Canada, Georgia, UAE, Britain and hundreds of others), then compensation will be 1000 SDR per person, regardless of the weight and pieces of luggage. As of November 5, 2014, this is $1,470.

If you made a flight with an airline of one of such countries as Russia, Belarus, Thailand, etc., then the compensation will be no more than 20 dollars for each kilogram of baggage.

Little cheat sheet. To download a large image, click on it with the left mouse button.

What to do if your luggage is lost? Step-by-step instruction- cheat sheet

Answers to frequently asked questions:

Is there compensation for lost hand luggage?

Yes, it is about 400 dollars.

How can you reduce the risk of lost baggage?

I adhere to some rules that, in theory, reduce the risk factor. I can recommend them to you too:

In total, I make an additional tag with contact information on the luggage
Since I personally wrap the luggage in film, it has a characteristic appearance, plus this reduces the risk that one of the movers wants to steal things from the bag
I always check in luggage before destination destination and check that the airport I need is on the baggage tag
I avoid flights with transfers of the order of 1 - 2 hours, so that I would have time to reload all things

I don’t know if it was or not, but something helped me and so far, thank God, my luggage has not been lost even once.

Can luggage be insured?

Yes it is possible. But keep in mind that most of the insurance that airlines offer is a simple scam, as they cost 10-30 dollars per flight. When buying travel insurance, I just choose the one that will cover luggage as well. Thus, for the same $ 20, they give me full insurance for a year, and not a “stump”, which is simply created in order to cash in on you.

I was told that airline rules do not oblige them to pay compensation

Their rules have nothing to do with reality. They must follow international law and the laws of the country where the airline is registered.

If the company refuses to compensate for the loss of luggage or offers too little price - what to do?

You have the right to go to court.

You write about damage to luggage. That is, you can claim compensation for a broken suitcase?

Yes. And for a broken suitcase, and for a thing stolen from it. The main thing is evidence.

For example, if I buy a suitcase for flights, I do not throw away the check in order to indicate its value later. I wrap things in plastic to indicate immediately if the package has been opened.

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