lost luggage....help!
 

Somewhere between Berlin and Boston yesterday, our two large suitcases vanished. We were travelling on Lufthansa and, as a result of pilot and ground crew strikes, missed our connection in Frankfurt and were re-routed back home via Washington D.C. (Dulles) on another Lufthansa flight and then to Boston via United. Our luggage, along with that of many of our flightmates never made it to DC. Have filed a claim with United in Boston (as instructed by Lufthansa in DC) 24 hours ago. Just called to check on status and was told they have yet to find the bags. Am I panicking needlessly (have never lost luggage before and dont fully understand the typical scenario) - would love any feedback on others experiences......we miss all of our dirty clothes!

Ellie: <BR> <BR>I've had lost luggage a number of times. Although it generally shows up within 24 hours, I've had it not surface for anywhere from 2 to 5 days. I once went on a business trip to Florence for 5 days and finally retrieved my lost luggage at the airport just before my flight home! It may be premature to panick. But DO keep calling!!

Annoying, yes! But at least they lost it on your RETURN home. Think what a drag it'd be to start your vacation with lost luggage. <BR> <BR>KEEP BUGGING THEM. And when you call, make sure you get name of who you talked with, document day/time, etc. just in case . . .

My luggage has gone on a walkabout several times but has always eventually shown up. Once it took about 20+ days but that was exceptional. Usually it shows within about 2 - 5 days. Don't panic yet.

Thanks guys! I was afraid I'd get a flood of responses telling of lost bags that were never found. I'll calm down and keep bugging them - this has really helped.

Ellie, <BR>I fly frequently with Lufthansa on flights to and from Germany and internally in Germany and I find them the worst airline in my opinion for losing luggage and finding it again. I have always and eventually got it back but they have often found it and lost it again before returning it to me so my advice is keep on at them. <BR> <BR>Re your claim hit them for whatever you can - they tend to respond faster to requests for compensation than they do to complaints and also do insist on speaking with senior people. Lufthansa staff I have dealt with tend to blame another part of the airline and shack their shoulders. Keep checking as sometime my bags have been waiting patiently for collection at the airport while Lufthansa told me that it was still lost - the right hand doesn't know what the left is doing. <BR> <BR>After all that negative response so be assured that it will turn up - it may take time and energy and nagging, <BR> <BR>Cathy

My luggage has been delayed twice through Frankfurt. In bothy cases, we got our bags back within 2-5 days. My advice is to keep any receipts, and write a detailed letter requesting compensation. United reimbursed me the cost of a new outfit, even though I was home, because my washing machine was broken when I arrived home. I also submitted a receipt for Eye drops ($6.00) and they sent a check for the whole amount of my Costco receipt (over $400.00). I think I lucked out on that trip. Keep calling and good luck.

Here's an update on my "plight". <BR>The bags have been on the ground for 42 hours now in Boston. I have been on the phone around the clock trying to get word on when they will arrive at my home (an easy 30 minute drive from Logan).At 3 pm yesterday, I offered to drive in to pick them up myself, but was told that they were in a delivery vehicle on their way to me. That was a lie. The bags remain somewhere in the abyss at Logan. I was promised around 8.30 last night that I would get them later in the evening. This was another lie. Lufthansa then closed for the night - will not open til 10 am this morning. United (with whom I've filed the claim and who generally seem to be trying to help me) are apparently also being lied to by Lufthansa. <BR>This morning my son will return to his college from our spring break trip to Berlin - with only the clothes on his back and a few items borrowed from his Dad's closet. I guess I can try to collect compensation for the expense I will need to incur to ship his luggage and its contents to him when and if I ever see our bags. But there is no way that Lufthansa will ever be able to compensate our family for erasing very effectively every pleasant memory of our trip to Berlin. <BR>I will NEVER again travel on Lufthansa - I encourage all of you out there to think twice before you do so. <BR>I guess it sounds kind of petty for me to be so upset by this situation - but I simply find this level of disrespect for the paying passenger to be an outrage.

Did you get your bags back? What sort of compensation did you get?

To be fair to Lufthansa, this tends to happen when you're re-routed or miss a connection. We missed a connection with KLM when we flew from Manchester to Venice. Our bags ended up in Brussels. We got them back after a day. I noticed that the clerk in Venice perked up a lot when we mentioned that the cases had straps with our name written on them. Anything which makes your bags distinctive is a plus.

We got one of the bags back Monday night at 10 PM. (Bear in mind that both bags have been on the ground in Boston since 1PM on Saturday). I realize how common and unavoidable it is to lose bags when flights are re-routed - my beef is with Lufthansa being unable to process them once they get to their destination. I want to compliment the folks at United who are having to bear the responsiblity of this claim - I've spoken to at least 10 of their representatives over the past couple of days and they've all been wonderfully sympathetic and helpful - but their hands have been tied by Lufthansa's chaotic baggage dept. I've followed the previous posters advice to keep on calling and bugging them which I'm sure is the only reason I've got one of the bags back. Have found that if I let more than an hour of so pass between calls, my claim sort of slips in to limbo. Now that I have the one bag, I feel pretty comfortable that the other will arrive eventually - but I will never feel comfortable flying with Lufthansa again.

Glad it seems to be resolved. But be dogged in pursuing them and a $$ claim as others have said. Last summer we went Boston-Paris, via Philly, and our luggage didn't arrive for 55 hours. It too had definitely been at CDG for a while, and I offered to go and look at all of the lost luggage, but they refused to allow this. I finally got a native English speaking person (all French had gone out the window as we were going to Lorraine the next day, and I feared a total trip without luggage). I told her I had 2 young children with me (they were actually 12 and 15!), no clean clothes or items for our canal trip, and what would she do in my situation? I kept repeating, what would you do to her. Finally, she went and checked again after I gave yet another complete description of the bag, and lo and behold, they were there. That was at 10 a.m., but they weren't delivered until after 5! In the meantime, we'd purchased some underwear, a few clothes. I kept all receipts and sent them to US Air upon return. They reimbursed me quite quickly (in $), and using the French franc rate I told them, which was great since the franc had risen in value, and I was afraid I would get less than I paid. So keep at it and good luck! <BR>Carol