Which airlines are losing baggage?

These are the worst airlines for lost and mishandled luggage in the United States:
  • American Airlines. American Airlines is the number one worst airline for losing or damaging your luggage, with 5.34 incidents per 1,000 bags. ...
  • United Airlines. ...
  • Alaska Airlines. ...
  • JetBlue. ...
  • Frontier Airlines. ...
  • Delta Air Lines. ...
  • Hawaiian Airlines.




People Also Ask

During the first three months of 2023, over 721,000 bags checked on domestic flights were mishandled out of 113 million checked bags in total—an average of 0.64 bags per 100 checked bags, per the U.S. Department of Transportation. That's up from 2019, when 0.59 bags were mishandled per 100 checked bags.

MORE DETAILS

The top 10 worst airports in the United States for lost luggage are:
  • Chicago O'Hare International Airport.
  • Harry Reid International Airport – Las Vegas.
  • San Diego International Airport.
  • Austin-Bergstrom International Airport – Austin, Texas.
  • Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.


MORE DETAILS

According to the Department of Transportation, airlines are liable for up to $3,800 for lost, damaged or delayed bags. International flights fall under different rules; the maximum baggage liability is about $1,780. (Airlines can pay you more than that, but they're not required to by law.)

MORE DETAILS

Delta Airlines dropped down two spots from its 2021 ranking to sixth-place with a mishandled baggage rate of 0.61%. The airline mishandled 230,142 pieces of luggage between January and June 2022, compared to 69,376 during the same time period last year.

MORE DETAILS

Even after you arrive at your destination, you may face an unexpected, and unfortunate, obstacle: damaged or lost luggage. While frustrating, data shows it is a relatively rare event — of the roughly 115 million pieces of luggage put on a plane between November 2022 and January 2023, less than 1% was lost or damaged.

MORE DETAILS

Mishandled baggage rate almost doubled globally in 2022 as airlines scrambled after Covid. It was the year of “the summer of lost luggage”, in which travellers across the world told stories of disappearing bags as the aviation industry struggled to keep up with rebounding demand.

MORE DETAILS

American Airlines is the number one worst airline for losing or damaging your luggage, with 5.34 incidents per 1,000 bags. Although it's a low percentage compared to the total number of bags checked, American Airlines still takes the dubious distinction of being the airline most likely to lose your luggage.

MORE DETAILS

With checked baggage, you have the space to do so. Ease of Movement: Once you check-in, you can move freely without toting around a big bag. Sure, you'll probably want a small carry-on for your essentials and electronics, but a small bag is much easier than hauling a large carry-on through the airport.

MORE DETAILS

Your chances of being involved in a fatal plane crash are incredibly small – around 1 in 11 million, according to Harvard researchers. While your odds of being in a plane accident are about 1 in 1.2 million, survivability rates are about 95.7% – so the odds are with you no matter how you look at it.

MORE DETAILS

Allegiant Air topped the list for the second year in a row for the best luggage handling, with only 0.15% being mishandled. It was followed by Southwest and Hawaiian at about equal rates.

MORE DETAILS

Here's the ranking of US airlines from MOST complaints in May 2022 to LEAST complaints in May 2022:
  • American Airlines (575 complaints)
  • United Airlines (400 complaints)
  • Frontier Airlines (301 complaints)
  • Delta Air Lines (281 complaints)
  • Spirit Airlines (269 complaints)
  • JetBlue Airways (244 complaints)


MORE DETAILS

What are the airlines' responsibilities when your bag is lost? Once an airline determines that your bag is lost, the airline is responsible for compensating you for your bags' contents - subject to depreciation and maximum liability limits.

MORE DETAILS

If you can't come to an agreement with the airline, you may be able to sue for lost or damaged baggage in your local small claims court without hiring a lawyer. However, each state has a maximum amount that you can seek to recover in small claims court.

MORE DETAILS

The leading cause of lost luggage is the mishandling of the bags between flights or from the sorting office to your airplane.

MORE DETAILS

If you need to file a claim for Delayed, Damaged or Lost baggage or missing items: Get a File Reference Number from the Baggage Service Center. Complete the online claim form, giving us details on your itinerary and property.

MORE DETAILS

Although that is ultimately your call, there should be no added risk with checking your bag at the gate, since it's no more likely to get lost or misplaced than any other checked bag.

MORE DETAILS

You may have questions about what this process looks like and if there are any risks involved. The good news is that gate-checked bags are treated the same as all other checked bags, and this process does not necessarily increase the likelihood of your bag being lost. (That may still happen, though.)

MORE DETAILS

5 Ways to Avoid Losing Your Luggage in 2023
  1. USE A LUGGAGE TRACKER LIKE GEGO GPS: ...
  2. PACK ESSENTIAL ITEMS IN YOUR CARRY-ON BAG: ...
  3. USE A LUGGAGE IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM O STRAP: ...
  4. KEEP TRACK OF YOUR LUGGAGE AT ALL TIMES: ...
  5. GET TRAVEL INSURANCE:


MORE DETAILS

Odds are slim your airline will lose your luggage. According to the Air Travel Consumer Report issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation, you face less than a 1 percent chance that a major airline will misplace your bags; in 2022, there were only about 7 reports of mishandled bags per 1,000 passengers.

MORE DETAILS

While airline policies on delayed versus lost baggage can vary, in most cases, bags that don't arrive with you at your destination are considered delayed until the airline officially declares them lost, which typically occurs between five and 14 days after arrival.

MORE DETAILS