Holiday Truths Forum

Like you, Fiona, my missing case was thanks to BA! It was in 2008 and took 19 days and 22 hours to reach me after not having been loaded in San Francisco, then spending a very long time at LHR Terminal 5.

Despite all attempts to track it, and various phone calls at 3 am from BA San Francisco (who had forgotten the time difference but meant well) it seemed to be a hopeless case (pardon the pun).

It turned up 2 hours before the allotted time for the bag to be reunited with its owner before compensation was payable, delivered by taxi without warning ... at 11.30 pm, fully tagged and thankfully intact.

Yes, but fortunately on the way home from holiday so it wasn't the disaster it could have been. I can still remember the feeling as we stood there watching an empty carousel going round and round and being the only couple still waiting - horrible.

Touch wood, the only time I've arrived without my luggage is on a return flight from Dublin. We were on a works leisure trip and about 5 of us were left waiting around while the staff at Cardiff airport tried to determine where our cases were. it turns out they'd been left in Dublin and they were putting them on the next flight back. They turned up about an hour later so not too bad.

Our cases have often been with the last off the carousel whilst abroad and more than once, I've wondered if they actually made it onto the plane. So far, no problems but just in case it happens what is the procedure to follow please? Easy enough if you're on a package, you can let the rep sort it for you but what if you're on a diy flight? I would imagine we'd have to find the customer services dept at the arrivals lounge and report it to them. How easy would it be to find the CS, given the signs probably won't be in English?

Any advice is welcome- hopefully I'm not witching myself for my next flight in a few weeks time.

My brother-in-law used to live in the Middle East and his wife is American so they used to go to the US stopping over in the UK on the way. Every time they travelled something went missing. On one occasion they arrived minus 3 cases and their son's car seat and as time went on it was looking like they might be leaving for the US before the luggage arrived. Fortunately our younger daughter is the same age as their son and they were able to borrow some of her clothes plus our spare car seat. On another occasion their buggy disappeared and was never seen again.

Only had my cases go missing once. BA flying to Lanzarote. It arrived 36 hours later.... from Frankfurt

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2 years ago on a schol trip to Chicago one of the students cases didin't get loaded in Birmingham. It was a group from 7 different schools and this poor lad wasn't from my school. But i had to take him shopping to buy him underwear, shirts etc.He was so embarrassed! His case arrived 2 days later but i suppose he got some free clothes out of it.

Son had his backpack missing when he went to Australia.

It hadn't been put back on the plane along with several other cases at a stopover.

They gave him an 'emergency bag'...shower gel/deoderant that sort of thing...BUT had run out of 'mens' bags... so he had to have a girls one! Tampons and pantyliners were of NO use to him whatsoever

They sent his backpack by taxi to the hostel he was at in Sydney the next day.

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Travelling back from New York some years ago with a friend my luggage arrived very quickly but her case appeared to have vanished. It was a very nice newish one which she had borrowed from a friend. Eventually there was only one very tatty looking case going forlornly round and round. You guessed it - it was her case which had been seriously damaged by the baggage handlers. I always have a coloured strap and a laminated coloured luggage label showing my name, mobile number, hotel for outward journey and post-code for inbound and so far have never had any problems. Only time I've been without my luggage was in Cyprus one year, when after going through to departures the plane was seriously delayed and we were put into an hotel for the night but couldn't retrieve our cases.