Nearly 35% fliers found their checked-in baggage damaged one or more times: Survey

Have you been one of the unfortunate air travellers, who has reached the destination only to find your checked-in luggage damaged or missing after a hectic search?

A survey on air-passengers said that 1 in 4 fliers either lost their baggage or found it delayed during the last three years; 35 per cent found their checked-in baggage damaged one or more times.

The survey has been conducted by community platform LocalCircles to understand the collective experience of people, from a delayed or damaged baggage standpoint.

When fliers were asked the question: "How many times in the last 3 years (2020-22) have you had a situation where the airline you or your family traveled on had an issue with delivering your bag on a timely basis (instead of having delayed baggage or lost baggage)?" it was found that 14 per cent of 10,944 respondents had gone through this experience at least once, while 11 per cent had faced this anxiety-filled experience twice. The remaining 75 per cent had always gotten it on time.

Delays due to technical snags in conveyors or baggage logistics equipment, mishandling, failure to send luggage by the correct flight, security issues are among the many reasons cited when passengers are put to hardship at airports by airlines in India. Some fliers have also alleged airline staff occasionally engage in removing baggage tags leading to their luggage getting held up in the airport lost and found sections.

According to the government aviation data, missing and mishandled baggage continues to be among the top three complaints of fliers in India.

To the next question: "How many times in the last three years have you had a situation where the airline you or your family traveled on damaged your checked in bag(s)?" One in 3 fliers shared that they faced this experience one or more times. Of the 35 per cent out of 10,981 respondents, 20 per cent shared that they or their family member faced this experience twice, while 5 per cent faced it twice, another 5 per cent thrice and yet another 5 per cent experienced it more than four times in the 3-year period.

When fliers were asked: "When you or your family member had a delayed, lost or damaged baggage issue with airline(s) in the last three years, how would you rate their customer service and responsiveness?", 62 per cent out of 11,112 respondents were dissatisfied. Of these, 38 per cent rated it as poor, 12 per cent described it as pathetic, while another 12 per cent felt it was average. However, 25 per cent rated the air carriers` response to their complaint as good while another 12 per cent described the remedial action as excellent.