How likely is our baggage to be lost when we fly? In truth, less than what we can think. Losing the luggage at the airport is a fairly rare event: each a thousand passengers, they are lost on average only 6.3 luggage. Of these, 66%, however, is found and returned within 48 hours and the probability that a suitcase will come lost forever it is only of the 0.03%.
But what to do if our baggage is lost? And above all, how can we avoid it? Let’s see it in this article.
How long are there to lose the suitcase at the airport?
Imagine the scene: we land after an international flight, we arrive at the luggage ribbon, we look anxiously every suitcase that flows … but ours never arrives. Discomfort grows. But How really is a suitcase to get lost? The numbers, surprisingly, tell a less dramatic story than we might think.
Global passenger air traffic is more than doubled in the last twenty years, but fortunately the lost luggage have not increased proportionally. The data of the Sita Baggage It Insights Report 2025 They tell us that in 2007 there were 46.9 million luggage in 2007, compared to 2.48 billion passengers. In 2024, the 5.3 billion passengers instead lost “only” 33.4 million luggage, with a 29%reduction.
However, this means that Every thousand passengers are still on average about 6.3 lost luggage, That is, they do not immediately arrive at their destination for delays, damage or temporary or permanent losses. Attention, in fact: lost does not mean “lost forever”. According to the IATA legislation, only after 21 days A lost suitcase can be considered lost permanently.
Lost luggage are almost always found
In 2024, 66% of the lost luggage were found and returned within 48 hours and overall e Only in 5% of cases, the suitcase is not found within a week. In fact, the luggage delayed represent 74% of all lost luggage. This means that the chance that the suitcase is delayed or temporarily lost is 0.76%, while the one that the suitcase is lost forever is about 0.03%. In short, on average it happens a lot Less than once out of 100.
However, The probability of loss is not the same everywhere. There are airports and situations in which The risk increases:
- Stops and flights with coincidences: about half of the loss takes place during the transitions. The shorter the time is between two flights, the more likely it is that the baggage does not have time to get on the second plane.
- International flights: especially intercontinental, they are statistically more at risk. Reasons? Different airport systems, company changes, customs checks and greater number of transboria.
- Period of the year: During the summer and Christmas holidays, with a greater influx of passengers and stress for airport operators, the probability increase.
Why do the suitcases get lost?
Behind every lost baggage there is almost always a problem of logistics, timing or human/systemic errors. A’incorrect management of transfers represented in 2024 the 41% of all the luggage late, down by five percentage points compared to 2018, but it is still the main cause of interruption. The Moving of luggage between flightsespecially on narrow coincidences or between different carriers, continues to be another critical element, as well as the failure to load the luggage (17%) they ticketing errorsexchange changes and safety problems (16%).
Operating factors, including airport processes, customs, weather conditions and space or weight constraints, have instead contributed to 10% of delays. In the meantime, the loading errors remained stable 8% And the management and marking errors on arrival have each represented 4%. In some cases, the luggage is not lost, but it is not deliberately loaded especially for reasons of weight, safety or overbooking. In these cases it should be embarked on the first following flight next.
What do companies do to avoid loss?
To limit these inconveniences as much as possible, airports and airlines, however, are increasingly evolving. For example, from 2024 several airlines, such as British Airways, Lufthansa, Qantas, Cathay Pacific and Virgin Atlantic, have integrated the Function Share position of the Apple element with Sita Worldtrain®which allows passengers to share their Airtag position directly with the airlines. To date, 42% of passengers use the Real -time luggage monitoring. By 2027, this number is expected to double almost 82%. Another step forward was the introduction of version 2 of Modern Baggage Messaging (MBM), a new sector standard designed to improve the quality of data and reduce the incorrect management of an additional 5%.
What to do if they lose your luggage
If the suitcase does not arrive, it is fundamental report Immediately the inconvenience to the office “Lost & Found” Before leaving the luggage resignation area of the destination airport and fill in the PIR (Property Irrugularity Report). It is then very important keep the documentation: Both copy of this PIR report, and the boarding card, the identification heel of the luggage and also the receipts of any urgent expenses incurred to replace the personal effects contained in the luggage.
It may be useful to check the specific clauses in case of loss applied by the airline with which we have traveled and also of any travel insurance that we have entered into. Finally, we just have to wait for updates: as we have seen, LMost of the lost suitcases are returned in 1-2 days. When we point out the loss of luggage, the airlines seek to identify it through the label, the passenger data (name, booking code) and the description of the suitcase.
What if, bad luck does it want, does the airline permanently loses the suitcase?
If within 21 days the carrier does not deliver the luggage the passenger can request a refundcommunicating in writing to the airline by registered letter with return receipt of the loss. In these situations you have right to compensation which, according to the Montreal Convention, can go up to just over a thousand euros for each passenger. However, this amount can vary depending on whether the airline adheres to the convention or not. However, it is possible to obtain a further compensation If it is possible to demonstrate that the bewilderment was due to the malafede of the staff of the airline (as in the cases of theft by airport employees).
What if the content of the baggage has a higher value than standard compensation? In these cases, already at the time of check-in it is possible declare a “special interest on delivery”paying a possible surcharge to be able to access supplementary insurance.
If, on the other hand, the baggage is returned late but within 21 days, it is still possible to carry out a request for compensation for any expenses incurred (within 21 days from the date of effective return of the baggage).
What to do to avoid loss of luggage
At check-in it is important to make sure that the holds from the hold are tag correctly and firmly. It is then advisable to add a Double personal label with your data and contact details: one to be hooked outside the baggage, and one inside. Finally, you can use ribbons, bows or stickers to make your suitcase more easily identifiable.
To try to facilitate logistics, it is then advisable try not to get to the last minute check-inand, when possible, avoid flights with too short airports, in which even the time useful for landing and re -entering correctly the luggage is significantly reduced.
In any case, it is always a good idea to bring a small bag or backpack on board with it with the narrow necessary to face at least one day at their destination without the suitcase (like a change of clothes, a small beauty and medicines).
