Originally Posted by
Peregrine415
I do that flight (albeit from US) arriving LHR at around 6 am and leaving for HEL at 10. In the few occasions that my checked bag did not make it, it usually involves more than one carrier (AA>AY or BA>AY) and both point the finger to the other. If I was you, I'd check my bag to LHR, pick it up when you arrive and recheck it with AY. Of course, this will shorten your time spent at CX lounge.
Once you get to HEL, per IATA rules, AY is always responsible for finding your bag and/or dealing with any compensation required for baggage delays. Pointing you to AA or BA is at best incompetence, and at worst a malicious attempt to avoid providing you the relevant compensation.
I haven't had an interline bag get delayed/lost in 100+ connections in the past few years, including a BA-AY connection at LHR a few years ago. The key is to
always show your baggage tag to the gate agent before boarding and have them verify that the tag number is correctly in the system. The automation usually works, so the tag number is typically there, but it's important because it provides a cue to the agent that "oh, I need to make sure someone goes to the transfer bag location to get the bag"