Flyers Earn Hundreds to Deliver Lost Bags With New Delta Service

The Uber of luggage delivery is reconnecting flyers with their lost luggage – sometimes earning hundreds of dollars at a time. Roadie and Delta Air Lines are using regular drivers to deliver misrouted luggage, offering willing travelers payments up to $650 for going far off the beaten path.

Delta Air Lines has enlisted additional help to keep flyers connected with their lost luggage – and some travelers are cashing in on the opportunity. Atlanta-based startup Roadie is working directly with their hometown airline to pay drivers to deliver luggage that gets waylaid during a trip.

Through the new partnership, flyers who arrive at their destination without luggage no longer have to visit the customer service desk to file a claim. Instead, using RFID technology to track luggage, the Fly Delta app will alert passengers when their luggage is lost and help them file a claim online with their claim check.

When luggage is found and delivered to one of 50 U.S. destinations, it then gets handed off to Roadie’s network of flyers and local drivers for delivery. Potential drivers get notified of a delivery need from Delta, then work through the app to link flyers with their personal effects.

How lucrative is Roadie deliveries for some flyers? According to Inc Magazine, the average delivery payment ranges from $8 to $50, depending on where the bags are going and how far from the airport they are. But for final destinations far away from the airport, or oversized bags and sports equipment, the app has offered up to $650 for a successful delivery.

The moves from Delta are the latest to reduce the number of bags lost in transit. In 2017, IATA announced a plan to standardize luggage tracking systems, developed alongside Airlines for America.

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