Lost Luggage: What to Do in the First Hour at the Airport

The first hour

1. Go to the baggage service desk in the arrivals hall before you exit. Leaving first makes everything harder.
2. File a property irregularity report and get the reference number in writing.
3. Give a clear description: brand, colour, hard or soft, distinguishing marks, and the tag number from your boarding pass stub.
4. Ask how you will be updated, and how to reach the handling agent directly.
5. Ask what you are allowed to buy in the meantime and what limit applies.

Buying essentials

If your bag is delayed and you have nothing to wear or wash with, you can usually buy reasonable essentials and claim them back. Reasonable is the key word. Keep receipts, and keep purchases modest and obviously necessary.

Airlines differ on whether they reimburse afterwards or give you an immediate allowance. Ask which applies to you.

Tracking it yourself

• Check the airline's baggage tracing page daily with your reference number
• If you have an electronic tracker in the bag, share the location with the airline, it genuinely speeds things up
• Note every call and every reply, with dates

If it does not come back

Under the Montreal Convention, airline liability for lost, delayed or damaged baggage on international flights is capped, and there are time limits for making a claim. Domestic rules can differ.

Bags are generally treated as lost rather than delayed after around 21 days, at which point the conversation moves from tracing to compensation.