Thanks all for your reply. premEx, Yes it was United Express. I suppose that seems to be the problem here. I did read Rudi's post and it put rather well.
J, I agree with what you said. I was suprised they didnt have any cover for the bags. I expect them to get wet during transfer, but not to sit there. Anyway, I wrote United with a brief description of what happened as you all sugested. I'll let you know how it turns out. Thanks for the thoughts!