The stress that comes with losing one’s luggage

 

From Thiagan Mathiaparanam

I would like to pen my thoughts about the baggage system at airports.

Normally upon arrival at a destination, after the routine clearance, one goes to the designated carousel to pick-up one’s luggage. It’s all based on trust, whereby one takes only what is one’s, and departs.

I used to wonder: What if one takes the wrong bag, as in that state of tiredness and fatigue, one is liable to mistakenly do that, since some bags look similar. The onus is on the person to return it. That depends on one’s conscience.

Another situation is one where the person takes an extra bag knowingly (though it rarely happens).

A third possibility is that the bag is mysteriously lost in transit, and cannot be traced for one reason or another.

Many are put off from going on vacations due to the arduous procedures that we have to go through, to and fro, for a good many hours in handling our baggage. On top of that, if one’s baggage is lost, that puts a damper on travelling even more.

Where group check-ins are concerned for group tours, at the end of the day, it’s the one who has lost his or her baggage that has to solely bear the hassle of claiming from the insurance company. Furthermore, if the group check-ins are in a mess, the claiming process would be an ordeal for the victim.

In this age of modern technology, where highly sophisticated systems are in operation, why can’t there be one simple system to collect one’s rightful baggage and depart.

The trauma and stress of losing one’s baggage, and on top of that, the hassle of claiming from the insurance company needs to be addressed seriously. - FMT

Thiagan Mathiaparanam is an FMT reader.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.