When you are flying, whether you’re traveling for business or pleasure, dealing with lost luggage is an absolute nightmare. Those of us at LuggagePoint.com are not impervious to the perils of lost and delayed luggage. Yes, it has happened to us a time or two in the past! Because of this, we thought it would be a good idea to put together a few suggestions for reducing the chance that your luggage will end up where you are not.

1. Don’t check a bag at all. If you are able, use carry-on luggage only. This will avoid the possibility of an airline company losing your luggage altogether. Check out our article on How to Become a Carry-on Traveler.
2. Use non-stop flights as much as possible. By avoiding multiple transfers of your checked luggage, you reduce the chance that it will be lost significantly.
3. Many entrepreneurs and sales reps are used to shipping sales material, samples, and other necessary items to their hotels in advance of their arrival. If necessary, you can do the same thing with your clothing or other items that won’t fit into a carry-on. FedEx Kinko’s and UPS Store’s will allow you to just drop off a suitcase; you do not need to use a box.
4. 80% of luggage is black. The next time you’re waiting at the luggage carousel, do your own research and look at all of the black bags. It’s a common mistake for someone to carry off the wrong bag simply because it looks just like their own. If you’re ready to purchase new luggage, we would encourage you to look at optional colors and purchase a color other than black. Many manufacturers are now offering their luggage in other colors such as red, orange, and other bright, recognizable colors.
5. If you aren’t in a position to purchase new luggage in a different color, then consider using another method to “spice up” your luggage and make it look unique. Use colored tape and make a stripe in a bold, bright color around your bags. Better yet, purchase some brightly colored luggage straps. LuggagePoint.com features Safe Skies TSA Luggage Straps that come in six vivid colors. Not only do these straps help your bags stand out in a crowd, but they also offer some additional security with their TSA approved combination locks.
6. Make sure your luggage is ready to go before you leave the house. Remove old luggage tags and stickers from previous trips. Ensure that your luggage tag contains up to date information. If you know where you will be staying on your outgoing trip, you may want to put the destination address and phone number (along with your cell number) on your luggage tags. If you do this, just remember to change it again before you begin your trip home so that your luggage tags display your home address and phone number. If you are concerned about security, use your business address and phone number instead of your personal address.
7. When checking your luggage, don’t assume that everyone will do their job properly. When you receive your baggage claim tags after yielding your bag into the presumably capable hands of the check-in staff, we suggest that you wait to see that the appropriate labels being placed on your baggage and that your baggage is placed onto the conveyor in a timely fashion.

While these seven tips are not a guaranteed way to prevent the airlines from losing your bag the next time you fly for business or pleasure, they certainly will assist you in lowering chances of your bag being misplaced. At LuggagePoint.com, we’re interested in providing you with only the best in products and helpful information. We hope these tips will be of good use for you!

This list is also available via this printable pdf. When you are flying