Captain Nowhere Lost Bag

Well, look at this. You made it to your destination on time for
once, but your luggage did not. What do you do now that your
luggage missed the flight? Well, first look for the bag receipt the
airline agent gave you for your bag when you checked it. On it,
there should be some vital information such as your name and the
bag's routing. Now, that routing information should match your
own. So, if you flew from Seattle to Cincinnati and connected
through Salt Lake City then, your bag shouldn't have a routing
saying it is going to CDG (which would be Paris). If that is the case
then you have part of the problem figured out. What is the
solution? Well it's not going to find the baggage service agent and
blowing your top at them for every bad experience you've ever
had flying. The agent you are about to scream at didn't lose your
bag and he or she is the best tool you have for recovering it as
soon as possible. Airline agents are far more likely to help a
passenger who is calm and understanding about a situation. If you
throw in a little respect and humor they may just go that extra
mile to get your bag returned. Yes, it is frustrating to have the
airline misplace or miss route your luggage. I believe that the fee
we pay to check bags should act as a guarantee that our bag will
make it with us and if it doesn't, it should be refunded. I doubt
that we will ever see that but, most airline agents would like to
help you find your bag and have you leave happy rather than
upset.
When you meet the agent give them your bag tag receipt and
answer their questions. These will be things like: What does your
bag look like?, Where would you like it delivered?, and so forth.
Then the agent will look to see what happened with your luggage.
Bags usually get scanned at every point along their transport so,
usually they will be able to tell you where it's at or likely to be.
Then they will create a lost bag file and set up the bag for
delivery when it arrives. If you need it urgently you may consider
having them hold it for pick up that way you can come to the
airport and get it when it arrives. The reason for this is that the
airlines use delivery companies to send bags out to passengers and
these can add several hours to the time it takes for you to get you
luggage back. Don't expect much in the way of compensation for a
delayed bag, most airlines policies allow them a time buffer to
return your bag with no compensation. If you are going to be
without essentials such as toothpaste, a razor, or a clean shirt ask
about an overnight kit. Usually they will give you a small bag with
the necessities to get you by until your bag arrives. Overall just try
to remember that these kinds of things happen and it's nothing
personal. Hundreds of thousands of bags make transport every day
a few are bound to get lost along the way.

Travel Safe, Travel Smart . . . Get Somewhere!