Despite the gloomy economic situation, the British remain resolute about the need for an annual holiday. This may have something to do with the gloomy British summer: taking an umbrella rather than a parasol to the beach is wise.
If you travel by air, and most of us do, there is real concern about whether we are likely to be reunited with our luggage at the destination airport. The seemingly annual problems with foreign baggage handlers and flight controllers, as well as industrial action at home, have reminded travellers everywhere of the element of luck involved in handing your cases over at check-in. The airlines do a pretty good job of moving our belongings along with us, but the volumes of baggage in transit are colossal and mistakes do happen.
Many frequent travellers take hand baggage only – but this is hardly practicable for a family of four heading for a holiday resort. You need to be aware of the restrictions on the shape and weight of your hand baggage, depending on the airline you fly with. If you overstep their limits, it will usually cost you quite a lot to stow the case in the hold. Overweight suitcases can also put a huge hole in your spending money, so weigh them beforehand and err on the side of caution. Many airlines now say one piece of hand baggage per passenger and they really mean it: if you can’t cram it all into your cabin case, repack!
On average, it takes 48 hours for missing luggage to be found and returned to its owners. The more changes of plane you make, the more likely your baggage is to head off somewhere else, so it pays to be prepared. The airlines barcode bags in transit but this needs backing up with labels of your own inside the case, stating name, flight details, and giving contact addresses. It is a good idea to put a mobile number or destination hotel landline on this sheet too.
Something that makes the bags identifiable also helps: picking out a standard trolley case from a sea of other standard trolley cases is always going to be hard. Decorations, or coloured straps, will allow you to spot the case on the carousel and may help trace it if it goes missing.
Mix and match as far as you can if you are travelling in a group. If you pack a change of clothes for everyone in different cases, it makes the awful realisation that the last case is not going to emerge from the sorting area onto the carousel just that bit less depressing. No-one is stranded only in what he or she stands up in.
Make sure your travel insurance is up-to-date and that you have the emergency number on your mobile or in your cabin baggage. Don’t leave the airport without reporting the baggage as missing and getting written confirmation from the airline rep. You may well be entitled to out-of-pocket expenses, so be sure to ask.
If you have to make a claim, it helps to know what you packed and roughly what it cost: generally receipts will be required. At 50plus our policy covers you for up to £400 per insured person in the event of your baggage being delayed. Lost or stolen baggage is covered up to £2,000 per insured person. You need to ensure that the single-item limits are adequate for your needs and, if necessary, make sure you speak to your home insurer to increase cover for expensive items and jewellery.
A good travel insurance policy, either annual multi-trip or single-trip, will make sure that you are not out-of-pocket through delays, cancellations, airline failure, loss or theft of your money and valuables, or damage to your belongings. You will be covered for illness, or for the unforeseen need to cancel too. Click here to buy online.
We hope you have a lovely holiday - and that you and your cases go out and come back together. The washing machine will be waiting.
