Problems with All 3 Checked in Luggage

tajid on 31/12/2016 - 16:14
Last edited 31/12/2016 - 16:26

Hi All,

Just arrived back in Sydney today and found all 3 of my checked in luggage have problems:
1. First bag had a lock as I put more valuable stuff in it (eg tablet, sunglasses, etc). The lock's gone and from the zippers I could see the lock was forcefully removed.
2. Second bag is where I put light stuff like used clothes and my suit. It came out all torn up (It is not a suitcase), things inside scattered around the bag when I found it on the conveyor belt. And the way it was torn looks like from a knife.
3. Third bag has food and other souvenirs, I asked for a fragile sticker during check in, but when I found it on the belt, no sticker was there and had a quick look, the food boxes are all pressed together.

I wasted 2 hours being pingpong-ed around by the ground staff and final conclusions were they could be the results of after customs looking at them (although nothing inside any of the bags could be considered suspicious by custom so I am not buying this one), I was told that nothing can be done about the tornup bag as it was not a proper suitcase!. They can't do anything and told me to contact Malaysia Air directly (the ground staff said they are pretty sure MA will say the same thing) and contact travel insurance company.

I am typing this while I am on the train home, I have not searched if anything's missing but I could not find my sunglasses earlier after quick search. I will do proper unpacking and search at home. My questions are: has anyone experienced something similar? what did you do? If something's missing, how do I prove to my travel insurance company? I registered for a complimentary travel insurance from my Commbank CC.

I flew in from Siem Reap, transit KL (didn't claim baggage) then Sydney.

Cheers.

Travel

Comments

  • try2bhelpful on 31/12/2016 - 16:24
    +1

    It would be interesting to know where you flew in from. I had friends who flew out of South America and their bags had been well rifled, in fact some of the clothes were turned inside out so they wondered if they had been tried on; all the jewellery they bought had been taken. The first rule of flying is that all the electronic gear, and anything of value, goes in the carry on. We also have all our chargers in carry on as well, replacing them would be painful whilst travelling.

    Check your bags and notify the Insurance company ASAP and lodge the claim. Just list everything that is missing, where you bought it from and how much you paid. If you have receipts that certainly helps. Fortunately I have never been in that position myself, knock on wood, but it is a nasty way to end a holiday. Whatever the outcome don't get too stressed, it is just stuff and people love to hear these sort of stories - no one wants to hear about your perfect holiday, just everything that went wrong.

    • tajid on 31/12/2016 - 16:25
      +1

      Flew in from Siem Reap, transit KL (but didn't claim baggage) then Sydney. (will edit the OP)

      Cheers, thanks for the wise response.

      • try2bhelpful on 31/12/2016 - 16:29
        +1

        No probs - just wondering as it is more likely that the baggage was interfered with at the sending end, rather than the receiving end. However, do make sure you log this with all the airports and the airline. They will probably do nothing about it but if they see a pattern then an investigation might ensue.

        • [Deactivated] on 31/12/2016 - 16:50

          hard to really tell as it could have happened during plane loading by the actual bag handlers and if there is a "ring" they aren't going to dob on their mates

        • try2bhelpful on 31/12/2016 - 16:59

          @shawncro 222: I agree, it is probably the baggage handlers; just not sure which baggage handlers in the chain are doing this. This is wy I think you should report this. If the airports get enough complaints they might actually do some investigation. This might raise some security alarms because people interfering with luggage could put things into the luggage as well as taking stuff out of it.

  • 2jzzzz on 31/12/2016 - 16:25
    +4

    1. Locks get caught in the conveyor belt and ripped off all the time.

    2. A fragile sticker means zero, nada, zilch.

    3. Quaratine could have wanted to see the food and had a look.

    Claim insurance through credit card but they'll just say reasonable wear a tear.

    • try2bhelpful on 31/12/2016 - 16:36
      +1
      1. Maybe, maybe not. Either way the luggage has been damaged - if something is missing then less likely to be from conveyer belt
      2. Absolutely agree - this is why anything I really care about goes into the carry on luggage.
      3. Quarantine might look, but they aren't going to squish things. This is more likely a heavy piece of luggage has been put on top of this one.

      Difficult to know what the Credit card insurance people will say until the claim has been put in; but worthwhile trying. (You might be right, but the family motto is "You don't get what you don't ask for").

      • tajid on 31/12/2016 - 17:00

        Never dealt with insurance before. There's an excess of $250 per claim, do I need to pay that regardless the result of the claim? or only if the claim is successful?

        • try2bhelpful on 31/12/2016 - 17:08
          +1

          If there is an excess then you might want to look into this and see what the damages are. Excesses usually mean that you can't claim for the first e.g. $250 worth of loss, i.e. if the total amoung of your loss is less than $250 then it isn't worth claiming. You don't need to pay anything, you just don't get that money. The other thing to keep in mind is some insurance policies ask if you have ever made an insurance claim in the past and this can count against you if you say "yes". Do an inventory and total up the loses, including any damages to baggage etc. This may just be a learning experience and a tale to tell over dinner parties.

          There is a guy in America who made a song about his issues with baggage handlers.
          http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/24/united-breaks-guita…

        • HeWhoKnows on 01/01/2017 - 17:02

          It is PER CLAIM.
          So lost, stolen or missing items is one claim. Damaged luggage is a different claim. etc They make sure it is difficult to claim

    • HeWhoKnows on 01/01/2017 - 17:00
      1. Not really
      2. Not really
      3. Not really
  • [Deactivated] on 31/12/2016 - 16:49

    Good luck, they will wipe their hands clear of any responsibilities unfortunately

    I don't pack anything expensive inside my bags, all comes with me on carry on as others have said
    less chance of issues, sure its a hassle at screening during check in taking laptops and tablets out but I don't run this risk you've had happen
    Claim insurance ASAP

  • [Deactivated] on 31/12/2016 - 16:50

    Of course the soft cardboard boxes are going to get squished, they're packed in with bags from 300 other people!

    Did you use TSA approved locks?
    Bags being cut with a knife is a little suspicious, do you have travel insurance?
    Is this your first time traveling?

    • tajid on 31/12/2016 - 17:01

      Not sure if it's TSA approved lock or not.
      I do have.
      No I travel at least once a year but second time with travel insurance and first time experiencing this.

      • [Deactivated] on 31/12/2016 - 17:05

        Did the lock have a second key hole? This is how customs open the locks without breaking them.

        Just claim everything through insurance.

        I average one flight per week and I've never had issues. In particular I'm in Kuala Lumpur almost monthly without issue myself. But occasionally shit happens.

  • bluesky on 31/12/2016 - 18:54

    A google search shows instances with many airlines where the bag handlers stole from bags. Also, came across this account, where the flights were with Malaysian Airlines.

  • holdenmg on 31/12/2016 - 19:16

    Have you thought about Baggage Wrapping @ Siem Reap?

    Baggage Wrapping Services:
    Location: Check-in Area
    Operating Hours: 05:00 - 00:00
    Passengers can make use of the new service at a special baggage-wrapping stand just at the front of the departure entrance.
    http://www.rep.aero/en/passenger-guide/services-facilities

    Can be done locally https://www.baggagestorage.com.au/index.php/services#wrappin… if you have a bodyboard bag or something…

  • vtecdohc on 31/12/2016 - 22:58

    It probably happened in Siem Reap because a family member had their personal belongings stolen from their checked in luggage quite recently. Even if you report it, they will briefly investigate and will say they can't find anything.

    Next time, take your valuables with you in your carry on luggage.

  • nikhi24 on 01/01/2017 - 08:08

    I thought everyone knew not to lock their bag. Has that rule changed?

  • derek324 on 01/01/2017 - 08:37

    From Comm Bank insurance booklet:
    "we will not pay for loss of or damage to any item(…) lost, stolen or damaged while in(…) checked-in baggage/luggage".

  • Gershom on 01/01/2017 - 11:08
    +1

    Surely there can't be any shonky baggage handlers in Malaysia or Australia! That's just too unbelievable!

  • HeWhoKnows on 01/01/2017 - 16:58

    Credit card Travel insurance usually has a $250 excess per claim. So you cant claim for your sunglasses and you would need a receipt to prove what you paid for them.

  • ca6leguy on 31/01/2017 - 21:33

    I had my bag zippers broken couple of years back and was repaired by the airline. Happened when I was in Thailand. They send the baggage repair person to collect the bag from my hotel, repaired and returned before I flew off.

    • tajid on 01/02/2017 - 09:11

      Yea the same happened to my mom in Indonesia too. I think it's easier to talk to Asian staff than local. I have couple items missing & damaged bags & items but no one wanted to be responsible.

      • ca6leguy on 01/02/2017 - 09:33

        You should have just made a report at the airport. The baggage carrier is responsible for the damage.

        • tajid on 01/02/2017 - 11:25

          I did and wasted 2 hours got pingponged to talk to different people there and was told to try insurance provider and Malaysia Air.

          Insurance provider doesn't cover items in baggage.

          Malaysia Air pingponged me back to ground staff and ground staff stopped replying.

        • ca6leguy on 01/02/2017 - 12:02

          @tajid:
          Did you make the report before you exit the airport? If you do it after leaving, you will have no proof that the damage was done during transit.

        • tajid on 01/02/2017 - 12:11

          @ca6leguy:

          I only got 1 paper from Menzies Aviation that they are not responsible for damaged checked inluggage etc with my name. I think I can only rest the case now, no one wants to do anything with it and I've wasted enough time. I've sent Malay Air and Menzies a follow up email but I doubt they'll do anything.

  • pyramid on 01/02/2017 - 09:18

    On recent trip, when i returned to Melbourne, one of the checked bag was missing so I spoke with luggage team at airport and they confirmed that bag has not arrived to Mel and they delivered it at home as soon as it arrived (On the same day eve).

    I checked bag at home and found lock was broken. But i also found a note from Dept of Immigration or Quarantine that they forced open my bag and checked it.
    So did you find any letter or notes from immigration etc?

    • tajid on 01/02/2017 - 09:21

      No and I asked the ground staff if they could check if immigration has opened it they said there's no way of checking it. Either way there are missing items that no one wants to be responsible for.

  • Peck on 01/02/2017 - 10:30

    Skip the idea that it was shonky baggage handlers, or that it was Customs/Quarantine. Just very rough treatment loading/unloading/inflight. Your first step is always to report it to the Airlines and the insurance company. However do not delay. The insurance co. will await the outcome of the Airlines complaint. Do it ASAP.

    • tajid on 01/02/2017 - 11:28

      I did.

      Insurance provider doesn't cover items in baggage.

      Malaysia Air didn't respond to facebook message and contact us and I found another email and they replied back and just pingponged me back to ground staff told me to contact border force and after replying Menzies Aviation (ground staff) for a bit re-telling the whole story, they just stopped replying.

      • Peck on 01/02/2017 - 12:32

        Yep, sadly that sounds just like MAS. For future ref. for all, if you have noticed problems at the airport, always go to the airline agency there. Face to face it is harder for them to give you the flick. Anyway I hope that your Insurance company is more accommodating.

        • tajid on 01/02/2017 - 13:42

          Cheers for the advice.

          My insurance company doesn't cover items in checked in luggage (missing or damaged).

        • Peck on 01/02/2017 - 13:45

          @tajid: That is a surprise, especially considering that at least one of your bags was damaged. I would have thought if a bag is damaged then that bag and any damaged etc contents would be covered.

        • tajid on 01/02/2017 - 15:07

          @Peck:
          No their exclusion clearly states they do not cover items in checked-in luggage unfortunately.

  • voteoften on 02/02/2017 - 01:38

    Can you post photos of the knife cut and forced zipper lock thing? Just curious.

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