Complain about a product or service

Delta - Lost & Damaged Luggage

Linda of Tahlequah, OK August 14, 2009

Traveled with Delta from Tulsa to Atlanta 7/30/09 Delta 5252 by Atlantic Southeast; Atlanta to London Gatwick 7/30/09 Delta 812 by Northwest Airlines; Arrived London Gatwick on 7/31/09; Checked 1 Bag; all that was allowed, carried a handbag; Bag never made it to London until the night before I left back to Tulsa; I am on a trip with my daughter who has attended school there for the summer at her own expense; this was a vacation that we will not be able to afford again; I had packed 2 days of medication in my carry on, I was without clothing, medication, my maps, had made arrangements for international calling which the provider could not get to work;

This is the bottomline: NO ONE was willing to help me with Delta/Northwest/Atlantic Southeast; The plane was delayed in Tulsa due to weather; I understand; What I do not understand is the passive, non-professionals that are employed by Delta at the Baggage Claim Area in London; From London I traveled to Nice without clothes as the receptionist at the Hotel in London was very helpful to call Baggage Claims in London. She managed to get information to them when and where I would be traveling during the entire 9 days.

Each of the two hotels where we stayed were most helpful in communicating with Delta Baggage to see if they could confirm that my bag had been found. I paid to use a computer to communicate with Delta to no avail. When the concerie called each day I was told the bag would be delivered. That did not happen. This consumed me as I was not able to purchase but the bare necessities on this trip. I had hoped to get my belongings. I hand laundered my clothes that I was wearing daily. No night clothes, no medication, nothing.

Ms. of Effort, PA August 5, 2009

LOST LUGGAGE - I'm not sure how or why my luggage was lost. Flight from FCO/Rome to JFK - DL089. On my flight, the service rep told me that that had three different flights of luggage on my flight which is probably why I can see why my luggage was either lost or left behind.

I have had the run around from every customer support person since 7/31/2009. I would like a legal remedy for my complaint. Maybe the airline would listen then. Signed - ONE ANGRY CUSTOMER.

Dennis of Oklahoma City, OK August 4, 2009

My wife and my luggage did not show up on at 11:30 p.m. flight. Okay, it happens. The lady gave us a lost baggage claim, said we could check on it online. Should come in the next day at 11 p.m. So, next day, we are still waiting. The claim she gave me doesn't work. The number she gave me, is always busy. I still don't have my bags. My bags contain my CPAP machine. Without it I can't sleep. I tried last night and lost my breath. We are still waiting.

Rosemary of Atlanta, GA August 3, 2009

Here is the exact email that I registered to Delta online. if there are any errors it's because of my anger and frustration. "after trying to get a refunds on fees for bags that I should not have been charged for I am currently on the phone and still have not gotten any results and it is going into 1 hour. the hold time on the phone is absolutely too long. after calling & speaking w/ciera (after being on hold for about 17 minutes I was told that she could not help me & I would have to speak w/someone in refunds & that she would transfer me.

I asked for the # for future reference or in case I got cut off. she told me that she could not give it to me. after being transferred and being on hold for another 15-20 minutes Eva in Atlanta (more friendlier than ceira) i was told after explaining the situation again that I had to be transferred to baggage from which I had just called and was told by ciera that I needed refunds. Eva was in ticket refunds. she had compassion and tried to get someone on the phone. no success after about 8 minutes. she told me i had to call baggage at 800-. ciera could not give me the # but Eva could.

I am now on hold with baggage and the initial call to get a refund has been so far exactly 58 minutes. my flight was booked before the first baggage fee was accessed. however, in booking online there was no way around that fee. i called before checking in & was told that i could check in online but not check my bags until I got to the airport and they would override the fees. No such success. I paid 15 each way for my daughter and myself. some lady with no customer service skills at all made me check my carryon bag in Vegas where I did not have to check it in Atlanta. She said it was about 1 inch too long. i tried to explain to her that i did not have to check the bag initially & her attitude was like "whatever". very matter-factly and unconcerned. I am so frustrated with this whole experience I am at a point where unless it is absolutely unavoidable I will not fly Delta again unless I feel there is some sort of positiveness that comes out of this email and/or phone call (whenever someone decides to answer."

I registered this complaint while being on hold and being transferred from one department/person to another. My initial call was at 2:35 EST. It is now 3:38 EST and I am still on hold. At this point I will have to hang up the phone in a few minutes because of an appointment with @ 4:30 that will take me about 30 minutes or so to get to. this is the most rediculous situation I have had to deal with in a long time. On my job I am on the phone a lot and deal with situations that are not resolved with the customer services rep. NEVER have I had this sort of problem. If this is the way Delta continues to do business it is understandable why there has been so much financial problems and bailouts. I CANNOT EMPHASIZE. I have now gotten someone on the phone & she is telling me a whole different story and is refusing to give me a refund. I have just ended the phone call with absolutely no results after making the initial call at 2:35. A grand total of 1 hour and 21 minutes.

Stuart of Chesapeake, VA July 31, 2009

I traveled on Sunday, July 26, 2009 on Delta flights 94 and 6709 from Salt Lake City, Utah to Norfolk, Virginia via John F Kennedy Airport in New York. My bag did not arrive in Norfolk so I went to the Delta Baggage Service representative and filed a claim. My suitcase was delivered to my home at approximately 6:45 pm on July 27, 2009. As I started to opened the suitcase, I noticed that the zipper track was broken and I could not open the suitcase.

I immediately drove back to the Baggage Service representative at Norfolk Airport with the unpacked suitcase to report the problem. The representative told me that Delta does not repair broken zippers nor replace suitcases with broken zippers. At this time, I showed the representative “DELTA BAGGAGE INFORMATION” packet (Delta document 0412-81287.06/2008) that the representative gave me when I filed my missing baggage claim Sunday evening and showed the representative the following from page 2:

“Delta assumes no liability for preexisting damage, including minor cuts, scratches, and broken zippers as a result of overpacking, or items that protrude from luggage, such as wheels, luggage feet or retractable handles.”

It was explained to me that first Delta does not repair/replace zippers and second that the representative had no way of know that the bag was over packed since it was delivered to my house. I explained to the representative that I did not unpack the bag because the zipper was broken and I could not open it to unpack. Once again the representative reiterated that Delta was not liable.

At this point, I am totally baffled. Your pamphlet stated you are liable if the suitcase is not over pack, which it wasn’t. However, since I did not receive my luggage when I arrived, I could not show the representative that my luggage was not overpacked. The zipper is clearly broken and I believe that I would have noticed the broken zipper if my luggage had arrived on time.

Added to add to my frustration, when I called the 1-800 Baggage Service Center to find out when my luggage was since it did not arrive during the time period the baggage service representative said it would in Norfolk, the Baggage Service Center told me that Delta has no way of knowing when my luggage will be forwarded to me since it was on a contract airline. Please explain to me why you have something in writing and your agents say something totally opposite. Also would you care to comment on what I was told that Delta has no control of when baggage will be put in a contract airline plane?

Pete of Baton Rouge , LA July 29, 2009

My niece arrived from PIT, transiting thru ATL - she had a layover of over 2 hours and her gates were on the same concourse about 3 apart, yet her bag still was not transferred, and did not make it. She was told at BTR that the bag would arrive about 5pm and would be delivered between 6 and 8 - nothing was ever heard. When I called the 800 number after 9pm I was told her bag may arrive about 10pm. When I asked when it would be delivered (IF it arrived), there was no answer; so how can she possibly make any plans, as there is absolutely no provision (and numbers) to contact the local DL office.....I consider this deplorable, especially when passengers now have to PAY to check a bag. I used to be a staunch Delta 'fan'....no more. If nothing else, she should be reimbursed her check-in charge....as far as I am concerned, this is just another ongoing representation of the depths to which a once proud industry has sunk - it's why I choose to drive whenever possible any more.

karin of jakarta, Indonesia July 27, 2009

my daughter left for miami on the 21st july and arrived in miami without her luggage. off course they had promised that her luggage will be forwarded the next day. on the 22nd july she continued her travel from miami with aa to santa cruz in bolivia. delta airlines has promised that they will forward her bag to aa to have it sent to santa cruz bolivia. up until now (27) nothing has happened yet and she has still not received her bags.we have made various call and was promised the bag would be forwarded. a file was opended and if you look on the website it says that the bag has been found and will be delivered. this message has been there since the 23rd.

my daughter is a 21 year student that just graduated from her university and wanted to do volunteer work in bolivia. She is not able to join the voluteer group which is 5 hours away by bus, because of her clothes and equipment that she needed. that would include mosquito nets, water purifiers waterproof clothes, emergency medication etc. she has been staying in a hotel which is costing her 100 a night of which she does not have the budget for. i am also extremely worried for her safety as i do not know the circumstance at all and it is not safe for a girl her age to be alone. i live in indonesia and you can imagine the costs of tel calls to get hold of delta to solve this problem. i had to do a 45 min call yesterday to try and solve this issue. what else are we to do !!!!

Lauren of Brooklyn, NY July 25, 2009

My letter to Delta and their response follows. Please note New York Daily News (Wednesday, July 15, 2009) has an article pertaining to Delta Airlines having two baggage handlers at JFK arrested for stealing electronic equipment from bags. Delta is aware of this problem and is not warning passengers about it. Regarding a contract, an exclusion would apply in normal circumstances, but due to the police corroborated criminal activity at Delta with its baggage handlers, the exclusion should not apply. And I wonder why Delta will only investigate the claim with representatives of an insurance company? I do not have insurance on the laptop that was stolen. Delta is not willing to look at surveilence tapes? I am willing to prosecute but Delta would rather keep this as quiet as possible. I hope you will help me get the word out. Thank you.

I am a student at Stanford University who is under medical care for scoliosis and carpel tunnel. I have appropriate medical documentation to prove I am unable to carry any items due to my condition. Both of my hands are in a soft cast. I have taken a medical leave from school and traveled on Delta Flight 720 from SFO to JFK on July 14, 2009. I had checked two bags (documentation provided) at SFO and when I arrived home I discovered several items were stolen from my checked bags. I assume this occurred in SFO after my bags were checked but it may have happened at JFK. I will further assume there is video surveillance of the baggage work areas and that this video is saved for a certain period of time.

I reported this immediately by email on the Delta website and also called your 800 number where I was advised to submit the Passenger Property Loss Claim. I have also filed a police report with the New York City Police Department. The items stolen include my MacBook Air laptop with detachable wireless keyboard and detachable CD Rom Drive in addition to my cell phone charger. I am enclosing the Passenger Property Loss Claim and all appropriate receipts.

There is an implicit trust that items in checked baggage will not be subject to theft by the very employees who are charged with overseeing the baggage transport. I am anxious to press charges and ask your assistance in viewing the video camera footage that will hopefully ensure those involved in this theft are arrested and fired. I am also seeking full reimbursement from Delta to make good on my loss, which is a direct result of having some employees who are clearly criminals. I look forward to your reply. Thank you.

Their response: Thank you for your e-mail to Delta Airlines. We are sorry to learn that you had items missing from your baggage. The tariff rules and ticket contract covering your travel exclude responsibility for cash, jewelry, cameras, electronic and computer equipment in checked baggage. We realize this is disappointing for you and trust you will understand our position. If you have insurance coverage that will provide for payment, we will be happy to cooperate with your representatives in their investigation. The Delta Baggage Service Center

Frederick of Seven Hills, OH July 23, 2009

7/22/09 Family leaving US to South Korea. I called Delta Airline to get info on baggage weight. I was told (2) bags per person for a total of (4) 50#lb per bag limit. That is all that was said. Bags were packed as closely to 50lbs as possible. Having been visiting the US for a month they had exceeded the weight per bag by an average of 4 pounds per bag. The Delta agent informed me that each bag because of being over the 50 pounds would be 150.00 per bag total 600.00.

He said if we could shift the weight to (2) bags then the other two bags would not have the charge. This is not about safety as he was allowing the additional weight into the other baggage. This charge is deplorable and had the Airlines informed me of the policy when on the phone I could have taken other measures. I was told that that info is on a web site. I'm saying that charge is deplorable and nothing but greed. I will fight to get that money back.

Donald of Mary Esther, FL July 23, 2009

I emailed a complaint last week. My complaint was, my bag was a day late getting to me. I had to go out and buy cloths to go to work. Also on my return flight I had a window seet. A very large man sat in the isle seet. I was crushed against the wall for two hours. I paid for a seet and only got to use half of it. The large man slepet the whole flight. This was the most unconfortable flight I ever had. The answer I got from Delts was, (If you need assistance see Delta before boarding the plain). The answer had nothing to do with my complaint. If I get the same answer again, I will sugest that my company and friends use another airline.

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