DH77024

My daughter (college age) is currently on SFO-EWR (Aug 18) flight, first segment of SFO-EWR-ITH (Ithaca).

EWR-ITH (last flight of day) was cancelled. Next available EWR-ITH is four days away (Aug 22).

Rebooked tomorrow EWR-SYR (Aug 19) flight, and will take busto ITH.

She has luggage checked all the way to ITH. Reservation agent told me that she does not need to worry about luggage and that United will ship her checked luggage on the next flight tomorrow to ITH.

Is that correct? Will United offload her luggage in EWR?

Thanks in advance.

jsloan

Luggage with an ITH tag will be delivered (eventually) to ITH. The only other possibility is that it will be re-tagged to SYR to match her flights (unlikely, not not impossible). If it were to get offloaded in EWR, they would still be on the hook to deliver it to ITH, since that's where it's tagged. She should check the carousel in SYR, and, assuming it doesn't arrive, she should file a delayed luggage claim. She should have the option to have the bags delivered to her in ITH or to pick them up at the airport if she prefers.

RobOnLI

This is always iffy. There are a few possible outcomes to this scenario and only one will actually happen:

1. Bag gets to EWR, remains overnight and boards the next flight to ITH. Agent is right and the bag waits at ITH for pick up.
2. Bag gets to EWR, remains overnight and never gets loaded on a flight because the baggage handlers aren't sure what to do with it since it's tagged for a cancelled flight to ITH. This isn't likely but possible.
3. Bag gets to EWR, remains overnight and then gets boarded to SYR with your daughter. This is possible if the bag scanner gives the baggage handler an alert that the passenger was rebooked via SYR. In this situation the bag tag will be manually updated to SYR and it will arrive on the flight with your daughter. This one is just as likely as #1 IMO.

In my experience you just never know. The other problem is that the bag tag ID you get in SFO will be useless for tracking in many scenarios. Someone at EWR will likely re-tag the bag which generates a new baggage ID number. This doesn't always show up in the mobile app as the current bag ID so you can't track the bag. And if you can't track the bag then the baggage service center is going to have a hard time as well.

My suggestion, if it's not too late, is to short check the bag to EWR and have your daughter pick it up there. Then she can check it in with whatever flight she winds up on the next day. Maybe a seat opens to ITH and she can get on that flight. Always possible.

-RM

gene2632

RobonLI has it pretty much right. She really needs to take the time to go to baggage claim office and talk to them face to face about getting her bag back at EWR. It is much safer for her doing that way. It is always better when you can keep in your control rather than relying on some baggage handler/agent to do it right. Your daughter has a vested interested in her bag, they don't. My son learned this lesson the hard way going from EWR to EUG for a job interview. One flight canceled, re-booked and his checked bag never got past DEN because someone marked it OGG ......He had to go to a 24 hour walmart to buy some clothes for the interview at 8am....never trust them. Are they putting her up overnight at EWR or are the claiming weather delay? Just curious on that one.

DH77024

Thanks all for your answers.

A spot opened up on EWR-SYR tonight and I was able to grab that for her.

That means she has a tight connection in EWR tonight, so won't be able to deal with her checked luggage issue in EWR, i.e., she won't have time to pick up her luggage and re-check in to SYR...the luggage will still have the ITH tag.

I suppose she can advise the gate agent in EWR, but not sure that'll do any good.

Reason for delay is "Air traffic control conditions." I wonder if United will reimburse her for her one-hour shuttle ride from SYR to ITH, but doubtful based on the reasons given.

jsloan

For air traffic control, it's extremely unlikely.

mduell

ATC is out of UA control, so unlikely. UA will offer the next available flight to ITH as the way for UA to pay for her to get to ITH.

And before the usual brigade comes out:

Kmxu

PVDtoDEL

I've actually had really good experiences with this type of issue - for example, last year while flying IAH-EWR-BOM, I misconnected and was autorebooked IAH-EWR-LHR-BOM. Without any intervention on my part, a reroute tag was printed and applied at EWR (presumably when they scanned the bag and saw the routing change) and the bags arrived on the same flight in BOM with me.

Scan compliance might not be as good on a domestic flight, because there's no passenger-bag match requirement, but UA definitely at least has the infrastructure to reroute the bags automatically.

lixiaojuventus

Last month I had a trip LAX-EWR-BWI, but the EWR-BWI was cancelled, and I used the app to rebook myself to EWR-DCA while I was still in the air. After I landed in EWR, and called the Premier Desk, I was told that my bag had been tagged to my new flight in the system, which is impressive.

Often1

UA has an automated system which will spit out new tags for the bags. When her bags are off-loaded at EWR, the scanner will beep, signalling that they are rerouted and the new reroute tag should be applied. If it is not, the bags will simply go to ITH.

As noted, she should check at SYR on arrival and file a missing bag report at SYR if the bags are not there. UA will deliver in ITH.

As to the bus fare, it ought to be claimable against travel insurance.

Gabdawg

You can track the bag on the United App. I have had good success on it being accurate and up to date.

mr8

DH77024

OP here.

So the online bag tracking system automatically updated SFO-EWR-ITH to SFO-EWR-SYR.

It showed the checked luggage as offloaded from the plane EWR, but then the status updates stopped there (i.e., EWR-SYR flight took off, but luggage did not show as on loaded onto plane).

Daughter landed at SYR, and as it turns out, all the checked bags put on plane were supposed to go to Dallas. No one on SYR flight received their checked luggage,, because apparently they all stayed behind in EWR.

And also, Dallas passengers will be pissed to learn that their luggage is in SYR.

Perfect storm of screw-ups.

lixiaojuventus

This is one of the more rare events! How come that they put ANOTHER flight's bag onto this plane? I thought they would check each bag using the hand held scanner?