ARCHIVE: Lost baggage /luggage delay, loss, damage - advice, etc. (pre-2018)
 

Here is the situation:

I had booked tickets for a family of 6 to travel from DFW to LAX and also separately purchased Cruise tickets for the entire family departing from Long Beach. On the day of departure the outbound flight was listed to be on time when I checked in at the ticket counter at DFW. Since, I am the only one with status (Platinum) I decided to check in 2 big bags (50lbs each) under my name which contained all of our belongings (clothes, shoes, toiletries etc.). When we reached the gate, the airline started posting delays 30 mins at a time (due to weather conditions at DFW) and we finally departed 2.5 hours late and arrived at 2:30 PM instead of the scheduled Noon arrival time. However, none of our checked bags made the flight. I filed a report at the baggage service desk at LAX and they promised to deliver the bags the next day at the first port where the cruise ship would dock and also authorized $250 in expenses for incidentals until the bags arrived. I left LAX for the port and made it just in time to board the ship before the 5:30PM departure from Long Beach.

From the cruise ship I made numerous calls to the baggage service dept each day but they could not locate my bags for 4 days. On the 2nd day after it was clear I won’t get the bags delivered to the port on time I asked for additional authorization. First couple of times they refused to increase the authorization but on the last try the agent spoke with the supervisor and told me the supervisor wants to hold-off for now on increasing the authorization but that I should go ahead and make additional purchases as necessary and keep all the receipts.

When I reached back at Long Beach on the last day I called baggage service and they told me that the bags had been found and waiting for pickup at LAX airport. When I picked up my bags I spoke with the baggage service agent and she was ready to cut a check for $250 if I produced the receipts but my receipts totaled over $500 so I asked them to leave the case open and that I would settle it with the central office upon my return to DFW.

I am now back home but have not yet contacted AA baggage service because I want to first figure out what is the right compensation I should ask for. I believe, I am definitely entitled to the reimbursement of actual expenses but not sure what additional compensation they should provide for all the inconvenience and agony they caused throughout the trip for all 6 of us, spending hours on the phone with customer service, not having the right attire and spending too much time trying to find the right stuff to buy to survive on the ship (very limited selection and exorbitantly priced). This was our first ever cruise and they completely spoiled our vacation.

Any tips you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

IMO,none. They should reimburse the charges as agreed (in excess of the $250 as there was verbal agreement). The cost of the phone calls would also be reasonable. Beyond that, I don't think the "pain and suffering" thing should/will get reimbursed.

We had BA lose bags on a trip to AMS for 4 days, arriving the evening we were leaving. We got expenses covered for clothing purchases and the cost of the calls. I felt that was reasonable.

Cheers.

I have nothing to offer concerning compensation. However, as to cruising I recommend two things to make it much easier and less stressful. First, ship the bags directly to the ship in care of the port agent the line uses using whatever shipping service the cruise line has an arrangement with. Second, fly into the port the day before the cruise. If you fly in the day before, you can save some by shipping the bags to the hotel using a regular shipping service. Yes, I know all of this costs more. It will save you in the long run.

"agony" :rolleyes: C'mon!

You hadn't mentioned - did you purchase travel insurance?

No I did not purchase travel insurance.

Well everybody has a diff perspective on what is acceptable. For me, this was the first cruise for the whole family and we had spent a lot of money for the whole vacation and planning the trip for months. It definitely was a huge disappointment e.g. my wife complaining about no clothes or cosmetics, no night dress to wear for anybody, no swimming costumes for the kids, having to laundry everyday, no shorts or tshirts to relax in, spending hours trying to find reasonable priced clothing (everything was in the $50 - $100 ranges, shaving with disposable razors, spending hours on the phone with AA and Cruise line people instead of enjoying the trip etc. I could go on and on...

Having spent over $5K, this was no way to have a relaxing and fun vacation. Who knows when we will take the next cruise.

Would have it made a big difference? The kind that AA sells only covers $500 of baggage loss or delay, which it sounds like AA is likely to reimburse anyway.

The heaping on of all the woe-and-despair won't likely count for much since it can't be substantiated. Go with what you have receipts for and call it a day.

I am suprised OP manage to get stuff for 6 people into 2 bags for a cruise, and got enough stuff for them for only $500. Given 6 people on a cruise out of the county within hours of a flight, I would have taken the max amount of stuff in carryons.

The OP also mention only 2 bags checked on his ticket. I thought people traveling with the elite also got free baggage.

Okay, I'm going to be a little more generous with AA's money than the people above but not much more, since the situation probably could have been avoided. Bottom line: I think you are entitled to full reimbursement for what you bought, as long as you present the receipts. I don't understand why your bags didn't make the flight, but AA clearly didn't deliver on what it told you, including getting your bags on the original flight and then getting it to each of the ports of call. I'm also giving the OP some credit for the fact that not everyone is an expert traveler and the situation was definitely stressful. While the last agent's comments certainly don't guarantee you will be reimbursed above $250, that's certainly what she implied. But good luck proving it.

What you should do differently: My wife and I take at least one cruise every year, so we've gotten used to the routine, but here's a few hints:

As someone mentioned, always, always, always fly in the night before if you are taking a cruise. As you discovered, you just don't know what could go wrong. Always.

You must have travel insurance for a cruise. Not just for lost bags (I don't even know if the travel insurance would have covered the lost bags.) but in case someone gets sick, you miss a flight, etc. It's too expensive a vacation not to insure.

Never check bags if you can get away with carrying on. If you can't carry on, at least make sure you have "emergency gear," or necessities in case something goes wrong.

I'm also curious about your statement "Having spent over $5K, this was no way to have a relaxing and fun vacation. Who knows when we will take the next cruise." The problem was with the airline, not the cruise company. Cruises are an extremely cheap vacation for large groups and a lot of fun (assuming you have your bags). I'd definitely do it again.

Anyway, sorry to hear about what happened with your bags, and good luck getting your money back.

Mike

+1 ^ Great advice!

However, this appears to be yet another case of inexperience coupled with poor preparation meets the real world.

With all of the information and experience available on this forum, and others, unfortunately the bulk of this "agony" could have been avoided.

I do wish you good luck in getting your money back, though.

I understand that vacations are expensive for large families. However, I really urge you to look into travel insurance from a travel insurance company (not the airline) in the future. A number of incidents (such as lost luggage, medical expenses, trips cancelled due to illness, etc) can and do happen. I would just suggest doing the research now for your next trip.

I did have a couple of carry-ons as well but obviously did not do a good job of distributing contents more evenly. The reason I spent only $500 is because I was very conservative and manged to live without a lot of things, laundered everyday and wore same clothes etc.

I was not blaming the Cruise line just saying that I probably won't be taking such an expensive vacation anytime soon.

I agree that I have no way of substantiating every inconvenience but it should be obvious that in general it was a major hassle and must have been quite frustrating. I can recall a couple of instances, once when my wife and son were traveling internationally and their flight got cancelled and were put up in a hotel for one night and routed the next day through a diff airline. There was no monetory loss but we got a $200 travel voucher for the inconvenience and a second time my flight was delayed by 4 hours and I sent AA an email and they gave me 5K bonus miles. So they do compensate for inconvenience.

Anyways, I was hoping to get tips on increasing the probability of some compensation for the inconvenience but nonetheless I will give it a try and see what comes out of it.

Also, thanks for all the advice on future travel. Definitely some lessons learnt and will be more careful in future.

As to what AA "should" do, I am not going to opine and leave myself open. However, as to what they did for us, that's a data point I can offer. A few years ago, 3 of us were scheduled ORD-LHR-BRU, followed by train to Paris, with the other 3 scheduled to follow 2 days later ORD-LHR-BRU, pick up car and meet us in Paris. Over christmas, 12 day driving trip planned for six people; plenty of room in the car for one bag each to avoid need for too many wasted hours at the laundramat. Huge problem with fog at LHR with flights landing, but none taking off. I managed to snag 3 of the remaining seats on the train to Paris and 2 sons and I made it to Paris (out the cost of the train tix which was significantly higher than the tix I had purchased at home for the brussels to paris train). The rest of the group flew in 2 days later (after being assured by AA that the fog was not going to be a problem), were bussed (via ferry) to rotterdam and arrived in Brussels at 4 in the morning without their luggage. This messed up all of our reservations as we ended up a day behind.

Many frustrating phone calls followed. We were repeatedly told that our luggage had been found and would be delivered to our next destination. When it didn't arrive each day we were told that it had not yet been found. Because AA and BA kept telling us it would be there soon, we didn't want to buy a lot of clothes, both because of the cost (at no time was AA willing to commit to reimburse) and because of the time it takes finding clothes in a foreign city. Unfortunately this meant that we had to shop more than once. If anyone needs advice on where to shop in Perpignan... The 3 suitcases arrived at our home 2 weeks to the day after we did; according to their papers, they had been to Italy-we had not.

As to the first 3 of us, the cost of our train tickets was reimbursed. As to the others, we were reimbursed for their hotel in brussels, all of the phone calls, all of the clothes and the price of the suitcase necessary to get them home. We also received a couple of hundred each for the experience. However, all of the reimbursements were made in flight vouchers; since my husband negotiated with them, I don't know if this could have been avoided.
Whole process took months.

Yes, we could have traveled without checking bags (my preference when it's just me and my husband), but that was only part of the problem and part of my ticket price includes the cost of transporting my luggage (which until AA changes their intl baggage policy is a different situation from domestic baggage). The bigger problem, in my eyes, is the misinformation given out once the problem has occurred - something it sounds like the OP experienced too. I take the risk when I check bags of the airline misplacing the bags; I shouldn't have to take the risk of being given misinformation by AA on literally a daily basis for the rest of my trip.

Good luck.

There are plenty of threads here on how to successfully "b****" , what's reasonable to ask for, and what level you can reasonably expect. A search will give you lots of do's and don'ts.

Common themes are: Keep it simple, keep it short, keep it unemotional, be specific, and don't neccessarily take no for an answer the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd time.

Good luck!

Actually,I think that,if one continues to travel with AA,the flight vouchers may be a better option than cash. If one really will spend the money on AA travel, then these are the same as cash. Plus,since it's cheaper for them,they're likely to give a higher amount in voucher than in cash. Everybody wins in this case.

Cheers.

Brp's conjecture may explain why AA was willing to give us each a couple of hundred on top of the reimbursement for expenses.

Re Dallas49er's reminder to remember the FT way, I should have mentioned that my husband kept politely pushing the matter up the chain at AA and didn't settle for their first offer.

While AA messed up on your bags, you cannot blame AA for an ill-planned vacation.

You should have known flight delays do happen, and one should always fly in embarkation port 1 day early. Sometimes if your port is far away, such as Whitier or Seward for an Alaska cruise, you need to make sure the flight arrival time as the port is a good 2+ or 4+ hours away - and should your flight miss connection, thus have to take the next day flight, it may still cause you to miss your ship!

Secondly, you should pack in a way that the whole family's stuff spread out in different bags, i.e. a bag contains some clothings for EVERYONE, in hope not all bags got lost in the transit.

You should go to Cruisecritic.com to look up the very good write-ups to guide the first time cruisers.

Better planning next time, you would have a much more enjoyable and stress-free cruise.

I have a question - if the OP had booked his family's air travel through the cruise line's Air/Sea department instead of independently, would the cruise line not have been responsible for getting the missing bags to the ship ASAP? (If true, I would also guess that the cruise line's reps might have had more clout than a single traveler).

NO.

You should read the fine print of the cruiseline, they are acting as "agents" to provide air transportation for the convenience of the passengers, but in no form or fashion, be responsible for any mishap caused by airlines. On top of that, the air tickets you got from cruiselines, are Consolidator tickets.

There are enough horror stories posted in the forums of Cruisecritic.com, and the horror stories applied to every mass-market cruiseline.

Read this sticky to understand the peril of so-called "Cruise Air".

In fact, all stickies on that particular forum, are well-worth reading, even for people who cruise frequently. We cruise at least one to two times a year, and I still find info new to me every now and then.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=128

First of all, I agree when go from airplane to cruise, do anything you can to leave at least an extra day between arrival in the port and departure of the ship, and do anything you can to avoid checking luggage. It is something when I take my three kids on a cruise, I spend extra time planning (the packing) so we do carry-on only, including several 10 and 14 day cruises.

That said, in your case I would request the entire amount, and see what happens.

Last year going JFK-BGI I was made to check my tumi roller that I had forever taken on AA as part of their at the time carry-on crack down. I was connecting from BGI via a private plane onto a small island that was also served by AE from SJU, but anyway, I chose to go via BGI. Needless to say when I got to BGI, my checked bag was not there. Now keep in mind that I am hanging out on the tarmac at BGI near the FBO (private jet terminal) a bit concerned since it was up to the staff from the jet company to pull by bag from AA. At any rate, one of the AA people came over to me and confirmed it had not come on the plane, so it must be in NY. We filled out all the paperwork, I got on my charter and headed off with my gf on vacation.

I called as soon as I got to the resort, and AA had not located the bag. Day 2 they had not located the bag either, so it was a bit concerning, and several calls, etc. left the unsettling feeling the bag might be gone forever since it hadn't been located. At that point I had with me a USA Today in which there was an interview with a SVP at AA discussing how they were trying to improve customer service. I had spent at this point probably about $400 - polo shirts and shorts, swim trunks, etc. which at the resort store were expensive, but the only place to buy anything on the island.

I wrote him a very polite email identifying myself as a 5 million mile AA customer, seeking his help in tracking the bag since the only thing AA lost baggage could say if it hadn't been located by Day 5 file a claim.

Within a couple hours I got an email from the SVP and a phone call from the GM or MD of AA at JFK. They were apologetic and said they had made personal searches at JFK, MIA and SJU to no avail, but would do so again at the end of the day and again the next day as sometimes bags just show up.

At any rate, on Day 4 there was a knock on my door a voila, my bag. On Day 5, AA Baggage called me to begin the process of claiming my lost bag. In other words, AA didn't know they returned it to me. I told the person I had received my bag, which really seemed to stun him, because they had no record of ever finding it. I then took the time to re-contact the SVP, tell him what happened and thank him for his attempts to help. He asked if there was any expenses I incurred, and I told him I picked up some clothes, but it was things I would have bought anyway. A couple weeks later I got a transferrable travel voucher of some sort worth $500. The point is there is no reason not to ask, just be reasonable and polite. Also if you are not getting what you believe are adequate responses, escalate your cause to the executive ranks.

If they had purchased travel insurance for their cruise to include their flight costs then the insurance company would have compensated them for their lost baggage.

I don't think such a policy is realistic - it would likely be abused. People will just spend outrageously on things they'd never otherwise buy since it's free. Then you'll get people who book tickets intentionally where the bags are likely to misconnect then spend lavishly at the destination for reimbursement.

People just need to be realistic about travel and prepare better. If you absolutely need checked baggage and loss would be catastrophic to the trip, then plan to arrive a day early. If I'm headed to Nepal for a month long mountain trek and my bags are delayed, should AA have to buy me thousands of dollars worth of expensive gear? No, it would be up to me to arrive a day or two before my trek departs.

This example is the best one I've read on FT of how to go about getting compensation. It should be stickied.

Losing bags is no fun and I don't see a lot of people taking advantage of it to go on a shopping spree. Yup, the OP should have come in a day ahead of time, but the bottom line is that AA lost the bags. I think the OP spent a lot less than he reasonably could have. You'll note that I didn't say that AA should reimburse all purchases every time (although such a policy would virtually guarantee improvement in baggage delivery). I think the OP's expenditures were very reasonable.

Mike

Some good suggestions in the replies - so to summarize:

1. Always arrive the day before you are to begin a "long/extended" journey from your main arrival destination (such as a Cruise or train/road travel).
2. Buy travel insurance - for an expensive, non-refundable vacation
3. (My motto for more than travel) - Plan for the worst, hope for the best

Also, did you purchase your tickets (airline) using a credit card? If so, have you checked the travel insurance section of your CC benefits? Depending on the benefits - you may have a claim to make there as well. I know my Amex would pay for a lot of the expenses you're talking about.

Take care

While I agree with, and practice myself, the very sensible option of flying a day early to a cruise, in the OP's case this would have been irrelevant. They could not find his bags for 4 days, so even if he had flown in a day early, the bags would still have been missing for 3 days!

Not necessarily... the bags may have never been lost at all on the day prior. Even if so, they may have been merely delayed until later the same day. In any event, the additional time prior to sailing would have allowed for contingencies before getting underway, had the bags not materialized by that time.

As I said before, ship them to the hotel or the ship.

I'm sorry, but most people are not going to do that. One would expect your bags to show up on time or at the worst the next day. Telling him he should have sent them directly to the ship is not helpful. What I find disturbing is that every time he asked the story was either they were on their way or had not been found at all.

Actually, you miss an important piece of the info in OP's post - they almost MISSED their ship because he had to file loss baggage claim and spent couple hours at the airport.

Even not for any baggage issue, it is, I am sorry to say that, downright stupid to fly in on the day of sailing, and only allow a few hours to go to the pier which in OP's case, is from LAX to Long Beach. (Unlike FLL and Port Everglade, which are pretty much just accross I-95). What if there is a flight delay? He will be totally SOL.

Regarding the tracking of luggage - it is not unusual the airline cannot pinpoint where the luggages are, once they went astray. A friend went to MAD last year on IB. IB lost his luggage. The bag eventually caught up with him Day 5 at Granada - that was, he already left Madrid for Cordoba, and then Seville, and arrived Granada - that was when the luggage finally caught up with him.

I've already said I always fly in the day before a cruise. What I was saying was that while many people were beating him up about NOT doing that, I was just pointing out that his bags were lost for 4 days - if he had flown out a day earlier, they would have been lost for 3 (or maybe not, to be sure, but who of us has a crystal ball to say they would NOT have been lost the day before, but WERE lost the day of his cruise?).

I dont think people who point out he should fly in a day earlier for the cruise, mean that if he flied in a day earlier, his bags would arrive on time.

NO. What people are saying is, if you fly in a day earlier, then you have give yourself enough time to handle CONTINGENCIES, including the unlucky event of missing luggages. He could have enough time to get some necessary clothings, his wife could get cosmetics etc etc, before they board the ship, and then could still enjoy their vacation - certainly would be less stressful than they had experienced.

Maybe not, but they should. What did the OP ask for - advice. Telling him to send them directly to the ship is extremely helpful advice. I do it all the time. Usually six times a year. By doing so I never have the problem the OP is reporting since the shipping company is responsible for getting them sent to where I want them to go. Then if they do go astray it is their problem to find them, and deliver them to me.

Lost Bag for Me = Quick stop to the ship store for some t-shirts, shorts and a pair of khakis.

Lost Bag for my GF = cruise is ruined, especially if it is her shoes, hair products and make-up :D

Flying in a day early definitely gives you time to deal with the "what ifs", no one is questioning that.

But it's also true that AA should not be held responsible for the specific situation when they have a general policy for lost bags.

The policy means that the passenger could be heading to a cruise, to a convention hotel, or to his parent's house where he has a full closet of old clothes. When AA loses baggage, they have a specific response on finding it, prepaying for replacement, etc...

Whether the passenger is at a location where clothes and toiletries are cheap or expensive doesn't change that reponse/obligation, any more than the average cost of hotels matter when it comes to giving hotel vouchers for overnight delays which are AA's fault.

There's a lot of good advice on how to minimize risks in the future, but I don't think it's reasonable to claim greater compensation is due because the potential/actual expenses were higher since the passenger had a whole family's worth of clothes packed into 2 bags while embarking on a cruise ship.

If the baggage had been evenly divided into 6 different bags which got checked, the passenger would likely have received more compensation. But since it's 2 bags checked in by 1 passenger, the compensation will be limited.

Forget about luggage: if I ever take a cruise, I'm flying in the day before simply because of normal flight operations. A simple thunderstorm moving through DFW could have caused you to completely miss the cruise. Anyway, dead horse...I know...

That said, I think a $500 reimbursement for 6 people on a cruise when the bags were lost for 4 days is very reasonable. I don't think the OP abused the notion that he'd get reimbursed to spend excessively. If AA was professional, efficient, and accurate in their phone conservations with me, I'd probably settle for that an walk away. If they weren't, I gotta admit: I'd be a little testier. I don't begrudge the airline for losing the bag, but how quick, proactive, and solutions-oriented the client service is after the bags are lost is entirely within their control.

In my experience, AA has been fair when they've lost my bags. It's happened three times over the years, and I've always done my necessary shopping at midscale type places. They've paid the receipts without question, but I don't recall breaking the $250 mark if that's some sort of magic number over which it becomes a "case". My situations were simpler: no cruise, got the bag the next day...

Has anyone on this forum not had bags delayed or lost by the airline?
More likely delayed for a few days?
Yet how many of you have had packages lost by fedex?
Clearly AA could improve the service--they lose and delay an inordinate amount?
If fedex ran their business like AA no one would use them.
But with airlines there is no reasonable alternative.

Quite true. For package shipping- that's all that matters. If they can't do it,use someone else. For airlines,there are so many other factors, so it's harder to use this one factor as a means of decision.

In our case, we've had problems with BA, but never with AA (although we don't check much). For getting into Europe on OW, we don't have a whole lot of choice, though.

I don't have statistics on hand to know if AA or BA are any better or worse than anyone else, so I can't comment on that part. Maybe someone with real data will chime in.

Cheers.

There is a vast difference between FedEx operation and AA operation. FedEx is in a logistic business and 100% geared to that. May be comparing AA's Cargo side of business to the FedEx business, would make a lot more sense, but compare AA's passenger side of business to FedEx, is like the proverbial saying, Apple to Orange.

Do you realize FedEx ships all packages to its Hub in Memphis first regardless where it originated and where it is supposedly to go? Then it sorts the packages at the Hub, and re-distribute them to regional depots. There are 8000 employees working at the Memphis super hub during the day and 4000 during the night.

Would you think a passenger airliner can do that?

Knock on wood for us, we have not had any loss luggage experiences despite we have checked our rollaboards 100% of time in past 24 months on 6 domestic trips, 2 European trips, 2 Australia/New Zealand trips and 2 Asia trips. Airlines involved: AA BA QF CX JL CO & UA. They all arrived with the same flight. The only difference we noticed, was at some airports the Priority tags were observed regardless the check-in time, at some airports the Priority tags mean nothing. Now I mention our luck, I may have just jinxed it!

We could have carry them on the flights but we were lazy and preferred to just take the personal items with us.

The one single time we had our luggage arrived late was on a Hawaii trip - UA failed to unload the bag to transfer to an Aloha flight - none was transferred to Aloha according to the guy at Aloha's desk at Maui. The UA desk said the bag was definitely on the UA flight ORD-HNL but since Aloha was our last carrier - it became Aloha's responsibility to check it down. The bag arrived in a later flight.