Many items of luggage never make it to the carousel.
Travelling to Australia on holiday this year? Well when you do just make sure that you arrive with all of your luggage intact as a report claims that airlines lose 25 million items of luggage each year.
The 2010 Air Transport Industry Baggage Report has just been released which revealed that over 25 million items of luggage were mishandled in 2009. Remarkably this figure is actually down by nearly 24% from 2008 and down by 40% from 2007!
Reasons for the decrease in mishandled bags include fewer passengers travelling, fewer bags being checked-in to save on fees, oh and improved baggage handling systems of course. Well it would be improved if they have less baggage to handle wouldn’t it?
It was discovered that most bags go missing upon transfer. So for instance if you are flying to Australia and getting a transfer in Dubai, you are more likely to suffer from missing luggage. Around 16% of luggage isn’t loaded onto the flight in the first place and a further 13% of luggage goes missing because of poor labelling or bag switching by passengers.
Given these high figures it makes sense to ensure that if you are planning an Australia holiday this year that you make sure your luggage is covered in your travel insurance. Many airlines, especially the budget ones, may not offer compensation for lost, stolen or damaged luggage.
Thorough labelling can also ensure that your bags are returned safely to you should they go missing. Ensure that you have several labels detailing your flight number, the airport you set off from and your destination airport as well as the airline you are travelling with. Also include your name and contact number. Fasten one label to the handle of your luggage; another should be secured to the front of your bags and another inside your bags. This should minimise the risk of loss through mis-labelling.
It may also be worth making your luggage stand out so that it is easily noticeable and less likely to end up travelling with the wrong passenger. Just attaching a brightly coloured ribbon or painting a pattern on the front can often be enough.
But most of all do check your travel insurance details and make sure that your luggage is covered against loss and damage. Then you can relax and enjoy your holiday in Australia!
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