Originally Posted by
PTahCha
Do you think ORD, a major hub for UA, only has a handful of bags for them to stop everything and search for her bag, while a line of customers is forming filing new reports? I can see that in an outstation, but not a major hub. That's why the process takes time. The woman took the matter into her own hands to shortcut the process. Her friend in Chicago could have done the same after he comes back from his vacation, but she could not wait. This does not mean UA failed in their process. The baggage agent has no authority to issue 30,000 miles on the spot - would 5,000 be enough, or is that another failure on UA's part for not being proactive?
I would agree if the staff said something along the lines of "we have done xxx to communicate with Chicago and will let you know if they are able to find it" but from the article:
“I told them I could see it at Terminal 1 baggage reclaim in Chicago, and they said, ‘We have no record of it.’ I asked them to call Chicago, and they said ‘No, we’re not allowed."
The passenger was then able to quickly and easily collect the checked bag herself as one of the passengers in line. While asking the staff to stop everything to search for her bag may not reasonable, asking the staff to check at the start/end of the day / when things are quieter, is not, IMO.