Why is UA checked bag claim so slow? (EWR,ORD, SFO, IAH, ...) [Consolidated]
Feb 1, 2019, 9:02 pm
#137
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Feb 1, 2019, 9:43 pm
#138
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I've had an hour plus waits for bags at EWR before on a UA flight from ZRH. Thankfully I had enough time to catch my connecting domestic flight to YYZ. OTOH I've also had domestic flights on UA where I'd land and my bag would be at the carousel before I get there! That being said, I suspect the situation at their outstations like EWR, IAD, ORD, SFO, IAH, etc. might be slower than their hub like NRT and their signature hub at LHR 
I think the moral of the story here is not to bother checking bags. I'll avoid it whenever since:
I think the moral of the story here is not to bother checking bags. I'll avoid it whenever since:
- Set aside time to check in the bag and pick up the bag from carousels (can easily add 30 minutes to your travel time which if you travel as much as I do can add up)
- Bag could get lost or stolen which is also another potential hassle (only work around there is packing heat in your checked luggage, which then adds time to step 1 and is a logistical pain)
- If my flights go IRROP I'll have more options if I don't have a bag I need to reclaim, particularly if the recovery flight is OAL.
Feb 1, 2019, 10:20 pm
#141
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However, I don't feel I should have to give up a benefit because UA has trouble executing.
Feb 2, 2019, 5:35 am
#142
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Feb 2, 2019, 9:43 am
#144
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Not to hijack the thread , but the oversize bag situation at EWR is especially awful. The bags are dumped onto a ramp in a somewhat inaccessible area considered “secure”, so UA has contractors (Omni-Serv) drag luggage through this area down to passengers waiting 20 or so feet away, and positive-match claim stubs.
In the evening during winter, when ski flights arrive (DEN, EGE, MTJ, HDN, JAC, etc.) there are dozens of ski bags and usually one or two Omni-Serv agents that struggle mightily in getting bags to pax. The process usually takes 20 minutes or more on top of the 30+ minutes it takes to get oversize items to baggage claim.
It’s a case study in inefficiency and has been a problem for a long time.
In the evening during winter, when ski flights arrive (DEN, EGE, MTJ, HDN, JAC, etc.) there are dozens of ski bags and usually one or two Omni-Serv agents that struggle mightily in getting bags to pax. The process usually takes 20 minutes or more on top of the 30+ minutes it takes to get oversize items to baggage claim.
It’s a case study in inefficiency and has been a problem for a long time.
Feb 2, 2019, 10:06 am
#145
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Bags came out about 5 minutes after.
I rarely check bags but this was one case I had to.
Feb 2, 2019, 12:25 pm
#147
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Feb 2, 2019, 1:20 pm
#148
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Feb 2, 2019, 1:38 pm
#149
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That said, after 40 minutes with no bags in sight I've had UA take a missing bag report and deliver it to my hotel. I'm more patient than some but if you can't even start dropping bags at baggage claim within 20 minutes of a passenger making it to baggage claim...it's not the passenger's problem. And I do actually have better places to be/ways to spend my time.
Feb 2, 2019, 2:39 pm
#150
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Obviously UA has not made this an operational focus. Perhaps as they get flight ops under control they can work on catching up with DL on baggage delivery as well.