I always use cable ties on my luggage as most of my journeys either do not involve the US or are in conjunction with Europe or Asia.

I live in Australia. Recently, a sales assistant selling me a new duffel bag tried to sell me TSA locks and assured me that they were now being accepted by European countries and that the customs/immigration of these countries had the codes.

Is this correct? It seems unlikely to me but .....

Well, if the "security types" don't know how to open them, the baggage handlers do...

If these "Lock codes" are known the thieves know them (Of course in the US some of the thieves work FOR the TSA.... recently here in Atlanta two of them were arrested for smuggling drugs as part of thier "job" LOL!)

The locks don't ad much security.

Hi S,

A professional thief can very quickly get into your luggage whether you have cable ties or TSA locks.

Both will deter the casual thief.

If someone steals your luggage, it doesn't matter at all.

Hi I

I accept that, it is only a deterrent, but cable ties are a much cheaper deterrent, especially if the security/customs people in non US countries will damage your luggage if they don't have codes for the locks.

Julie

I have to admit - in 7 years of living overseas and doing extensive travel in non-US locations (and some pretty weird locations at that!)....I have always locked my luggage and have never had a problem.

Guess I've just been lucky.

I know that locks won't stop a determined thief....just makes me feel like I'm making life for the "casual thief" a little more difficult!

Well I travel weekly in the US and have traveled a lot outside of the US.

I have never locked my luggage and never had a problem.

So I don't really think that there is a relationship between locks and thefts.

I think the bigger issue is NOT to put things in checked luggage thieves want. I am always amazed when I read "My digitial camera was taken from my luggage" What was it doing there?? I don't put electronics, valualbe jewerly in the checked luggage. Thieves rarely want dirty undies LOL!

I don't lock any more, either, but I used my brand-new TSA-approved lock on my most recent trip to France. Upon arrival in Paris, after flights PIT-PHL and PHL-CDG, I noticed the lock was gone. My traveling companions still had their TSA locks.

It's one thing for TSA to search the bag and confiscate something illegal, but come on! The lock?

Just stick with using cable ties.

Whatever you use, European customs can get in your bag without the need for a magic key

I tend always to lock my luggage. There's nothing valuable in it, but I don't want people putting things into it that I don't know about.

Please bear with somebody who doesn't have much experience traveling overseas...

But when do you actually put the locks on your luggage? Do you bring your luggage to the TSA official to be inspected then you lock the luggage after they are done?

The reason I'm asking is I don't understand how you can use cable ties. If you use cable ties, checked your luggage then the TSA decides to open your luggage all they have to do is cut the ties. Do they then replaced the cut cable ties with new ones?

Thank you.

A smart person locks his luggage and uses cable ties to attach the keys to the lock.

I must be a genius.

Cable ties are extremely cheap and just as effective to me as those TSA locks. Yes, if the customs needs to check your luggage they'll cut off the cable ties, but they will not replace them. Therefore, you should not put anything of significant value in your luggage. They've opened our luggage a few times and nothing was missing (that was in our experience only though) and there was a note placed inside the luggage to explain that they had to open it.

One trip to Paris, I couldn't remember the "safe" place I stored my keys.

I quickly figured out that you can insert a ball point pen between the nylon zipper teeth, and voila! Then, I could run the locked zipper pulls along the open section to reclose it.

Haven't used locks since.

Thank you the replies.

Do they also open and inspect your luggage in your destination country? Or do they only get inspected once, from the country you are leaving? Thanks.

This "opening for inspection of checked in luggage" is a US thing. In Europe, up to now, it is done on flights to the US, not other flights.

I've used TSA locks since they came out and have never had any problem traveling anywhere in the world until my recent return from CDG to SFO via FRA.

Two bags had missing locks and one of these had had the zipper pulls snipped so it will no longer be able to be locked. This was a bag I bought at Ross for $20 so although it's a shame, it's not a big loss. The other (fortunately the more expensive) bag had had the lock removed without incurring any damage to the bag. The third bag still had its intact lock.

There was no indication whether the bags had been opened by officials or by thieves, other than the fact that nothing was missing.