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Connections to US Pre-Clearance at YYZ: No more waiting for bag images!

Connections to US Pre-Clearance at YYZ: No more waiting for bag images!

Old Nov 22, 2015, 1:34 pm
  #1  
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Connections to US Pre-Clearance at YYZ: No more waiting for bag images!

Mods: Not sure if this belongs in the Canada forum or Air Canada, but in this case my post is about connections to US at YYZ which is almost exclusively Air Canada.

I normally hate to transit to the US at YYZ because inevitably I would wait 30-45 minutes in the "holding area" of the pre-clearance zone for my bag to be transferred and the image to be ready for CBP inspection. I've on many occasions nearly missed connections because I was ready to go to the gate, but my bag wasn't processed yet. My last flight was this past summer.

Today I connected to the US in YYZ (YUL-YYZ-USA) and to my surprise, you no longer need to wait for the checked baggage image to appear. I should point out that I'm NEXUS/GE so perhaps this is a benefit for pre-screened travelers only? This makes transiting at YYZ VERY fast and marks a substantial improvement.

Anyone else experience this?
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Old Nov 22, 2015, 2:37 pm
  #2  
 
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Transit AC to AC at YYZ from LHR to MCO about 6-8 weeks ago, I had to wait a fairly short time for my name to show, go to a guy with a monitor, who pointed at an image that he claimed showed my bag but which I couldn't make out any details at all. It seemed very smooth. However, the bag was not there on arrival in MCO and was delivered to my home 3 days later.
The video process gave me a bit of leverage in my complaint since I could insist that it was not the Other Airline that failed to deliver the bag to LHR who was at fault.
Remove the video process puts that excuse back in play.
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Old Nov 22, 2015, 3:29 pm
  #3  
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Originally Posted by flyquiet
Transit AC to AC at YYZ from LHR to MCO about 6-8 weeks ago, I had to wait a fairly short time for my name to show, go to a guy with a monitor, who pointed at an image that he claimed showed my bag but which I couldn't make out any details at all. It seemed very smooth. However, the bag was not there on arrival in MCO and was delivered to my home 3 days later.
The video process gave me a bit of leverage in my complaint since I could insist that it was not the Other Airline that failed to deliver the bag to LHR who was at fault.
Remove the video process puts that excuse back in play.
Under IATA agreements, the final airline on a single reservation takes responsibility for the bags, so...
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Old Nov 22, 2015, 3:31 pm
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YQM-MCO via YYZ last July. Nexus/GE members (both wife and I), our names were already on the "Proceed" screen when we entered the pre-clearance area. Saw a few faces from our YQM-YYZ segment sitting around waiting (presumably non-GE/Nexus).
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Old Nov 22, 2015, 3:47 pm
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Originally Posted by pewpew
Under IATA agreements, the final airline on a single reservation takes responsibility for the bags, so...
Indeed. I think there's a lot of smoke-blowing when they screw up. They make up excuses out of whole cloth.
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Old Nov 22, 2015, 7:41 pm
  #6  
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Originally Posted by YQMYMM
YQM-MCO via YYZ last July. Nexus/GE members (both wife and I), our names were already on the "Proceed" screen when we entered the pre-clearance area. Saw a few faces from our YQM-YYZ segment sitting around waiting (presumably non-GE/Nexus).
Right and my point is that this wait for your name on the board and "proceed" business and looking at an image of your bag no longer exists, or at least not today for GE/Nexus members.
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Old Nov 23, 2015, 7:22 am
  #7  
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Originally Posted by keloutwest
Right and my point is that this wait for your name on the board and "proceed" business and looking at an image of your bag no longer exists, or at least not today for GE/Nexus members.
For what it's worth, it wasn't always mandatory for GE/Nexus users either. Around three times in the last year I've waited for 15-30 mins, got tired, and just walked up through the Nexus line.

Agent scanned my boarding pass, told me that my bags weren't ready yet, and asked if I wanted to risk travelling without my bags. Since I always hope my bags don't show up at a destination, I told them I'd be happy with that, and they let me go through. I think it was a big hit or miss for the pre-clearance waiting agent to let me pass, but the US agents simply asked me for the details of my bags and noted them.

Sadly, my bags did make it.
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Old Nov 23, 2015, 8:01 am
  #8  
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Originally Posted by pewpew
Under IATA agreements, the final airline on a single reservation takes responsibility for the bags, so...
+1 - It doesn't matter. Whoever screwed up and lost or misplaced the bag, it is the final delivering carrier which must arrange for delivery and make compensation to the passenger. That carrier can then settle up with the "screwing" up carrier, but this does not involve the passenger.

The greatest mistake is to pursue two different carriers at the same time. Confusing messages in the system and routinely, the bags take longer. In this case, the carrier handling YYZ-MCO would be responsible.
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Old Nov 23, 2015, 1:04 pm
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Originally Posted by Often1
+1 - It doesn't matter. Whoever screwed up and lost or misplaced the bag, it is the final delivering carrier which must arrange for delivery and make compensation to the passenger. That carrier can then settle up with the "screwing" up carrier, but this does not involve the passenger.

The greatest mistake is to pursue two different carriers at the same time. Confusing messages in the system and routinely, the bags take longer. In this case, the carrier handling YYZ-MCO would be responsible.
Agree 100% - in fact, my heart went out to AC one time when it actually was LH that failed to load my bag, but AC had to do the search and retrieval and delivery, but that's the rule. AC even had to pay me the cost of the items I had to replace due to the fact I needed them before they could deliver the bag.

In this case, it was all on AC.

My snark was not about who was responsible, but about why they would even bother making excuses. It doesn't matter. Blaming SK (who was totally not responsible, clearly, as AC carried the bag from LHR to YYZ long after SK handed it over) is stupid. Not only does it not matter, but given the bag video system at YYZ, their excuse is false on the face of it, and what I mind probably 500% more than the airline losing my bag (since they are going to deliver it and possibly compensate me anyway) is the airline giving me weaselly answers, lying to my face, and blowing smoke about the fate of my bag.
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Old Mar 6, 2016, 10:45 am
  #10  
 
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Maybe a silly question.
What will happen, if my baggage didnt make it to YYZ.
How long do i have to stay in the " holding- area " ?, so that i dont miss connecting flight. Will they tell me, that baggage didnt make it and i can go on to the immigration counter,
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