ON AIRLINES LOST ON LOST & FOUND

CUSTOMER DIS-SERVICE

As readers may know from my posts the last couple of days, I've been down to the Caribbean for the 2007 World Cup Cricket matches. 

Upon finally reaching home after a long travel day this Sunday, I realized that my camera bag was not in my backpack. 

It quickly hit me where I'd left it.   

It was on the American Eagle flight 5087 Sunday, from Nevis to San Juan.  The flight was over half hour late coming in from Nevis, and we had only 30 minutes or so to clear immigration and customs in San Juan, and transfer our checked bags onto a flight into Newark airport. 

I remember taking the camera bag out of the backpack boarding the Nevis flight, so that the backpack would fit the smaller overhead compartments on the American Eagle plane.  And of course, I forgot to grab the camera in the rush to connect with the next flight.

I relay all these details, because most reasonable people would assume there would be two ways to quickly connect with an airline on a piece of luggage left on one of their planes.

The first would be a centralized, national "Lost & Found" toll-free number.  If that weren't available, one would expect to find "Lost & Found" in the phone menu when calling any of the toll-free numbers.

The other would be to be able to the airline's website and quickly find a "Lost & Found" tab where one could dash off an email with the specific details, so that the airline could quickly follow up.

Well, as I write this, I've been on hold for over 40 minutes trying to reach the LOCAL Baggage claim cum Lost & Found department in San Juan.

The American Airlines rep on the national toll-free number said that I would need to contact EACH of the baggage claim AND Lost & Found phone numbers at EACH of the locations where I thought I might have left the item.  I'm looking at a list of over 4 telephone numbers.  And have just managed to dial one so far.

While I was waiting, I thought I'd go online and check out the American Airlines website and see if there was an option to connect online on this issue.  After scrounging around for over 20 minutes, I found no area on the web-site that relates to Lost & Found.

I next typed in that phrase in the search box at AA.com, and got the following results.  Essentially a listing of those three words in every published document on the site.  Take a look at it and see if it's at all helpful.

Most likely, I'll be writing off the Nikon D40, the super zoom lens, along with a handful of high-performance memory cards.  About a $2500 write-off. 

More importantly, I'll of course lose all the pictures taken on this trip, which of course are not easily replaceable.

This is the second time this year, I've had this kind of an experience with items left on an American Airlines flight.  A few weeks ago, my wife left a winter coat on an American Airlines Business Class flight, where the attendant forgot to return the coat upon landing that they normally offer to hang up.  In that case as well, she was rushing to catch a tight connection, due to a delay on the originating flight.

There too, we spent the better part of a week calling AND visiting the Baggage Claim and Lost & Found phone numbers in four cities (it was a complicated itinerary).  In each case, the person on the phone, or at the Baggage Claim office in person, seemed generally eager to pass the hot potato of a customer request for help onto the next link in the travel chain.

That coat too was a write-off.

In both cases, I knew exactly on WHICH flight the item had been left behind. 

In both cases, there was a high likelihood that the items would be recovered in the normal cleaning and preparation for the next flight. 

In both cases, one would expect those items to be forwarded to a lost and found area. 

In both cases, one would expect a easy way for passengers who discover the loss, to quickly and easily connect with the said item without having to call half a dozen representatives of the airline all over the country.

I'm a long-time Platinum flyer on American Airlines.  And this post is not to single out this carrier.  I would expect to have a similarly frustrating experience getting centralized help on Lost and Found on most of the other carriers.

I guess the reason for this post is to publicly reflect on how the blindingly obvious customer service solutions (in hindsight of course), are never, ever implemented by the companies that otherwise fight tooth and nail for your business.

Comments

[Jo Hutchison]

My 84 year old father lost his two little hearing aids yesterday on an American Eagle flight from Charleston to Dallas or on the flight from Dallas on to Lubbock. They were in a little black velvet case with silver trim. I have tried to call American Eagle and the lost and found departments at all three airports. No one cares about helping to find them. Hearing aides are very expensive and I am very disappointed in American Eagle for not trying to help

[Teresa]

Similar experience with AA. There seems to be no system in place for holding cleaning crews accountable. It must be a plum job... you get to keep what you find! But very bad for AA's reputation. Nothing makes a customer happier than knowing that a company values honesty. I don't get that sense from AA.

[LO]

ok this is coming from an AA employee..when I find something on a plane (especially of value!)I note the seat number and have the agent look up the passenger and I CALL the passenger and send it to them . I do not turn the item in if possible!Also, there have been passengers that have left a valuable, got off the plane and came right back on and the item is gone...people deplaning see the left item and swipe it. Just the other day a woman went to the restroom, came back and her pocketbook was gone from her seat. I really wish AA would have a lost and found system in place...Customers should write and complain and maybe they would do something about it. I feel everyones frustration cause I just lost my passport and try to get a # for TSA lost and found at JFK and they say to contact your carrier!!

[g]

Misery loves company. I, too, lost a DVD case full of my 3-year-old son's favorite movies. About 15 of them. I called and had the same experience--had to call the airport I flew into (DFW) and leave a message with a description. If the item was found, then I'd get a call back.

Problem is--what if it wasn't found until the NEXT airport the plane flew to? Of course I have no idea which airport was next on the plane's schedule that particular day.

Guess my son and I are out of luck.

I can't understand why there isn't a centralized lost and found database, so that customers have a better chance of locating their lost loot. Maybe someday AA will read these posts and feel badly for all of us.

Until then--good luck to everyone!

[paula]

Lost and "FOUND" in the cabin on most airlines needs to be renamed "LOST". To cut a long story short -- it is a complete theft story... bulk gathering and no - no documentation ... as in tracking of 'cleaning of planes' 'lost devices' etc. Paying over $1,000 to fly 280 miles for business on the east coats USA - the airlines do not care nor need to -- for all the devices 'LEFT" at the seat. They know who we are -- they make us pay for specific seats every flight (its not a bus unless its Ryan Air) and yet they refuse to have a decent process in place or performance managment system regarding what is left in the cabin? Having dealth with this on one airline I discovered what i think needs to be a "60 minutues' piece.. consumers just get so frustrated they give up... lets not... best pb

[bob]

lost wallet in seat 3a ny-zurich

multiple calls
no help

this is a disgraceful amdministrative practice

[Ron M. Wood]

I recently traveled to Guatemala City to visit Antigua for 3 weeks. Upon returning, I left my Sony Camera on the desk of the counter at the American Airlines Ticket Counter. After several attempts, and My newfound language of spanish, I still cannot get through to the lost and found. AA has a horrible system set up for customers who loose valuables. Nice flight, but only if your items are handcuffed to your person.

[Rachel]

My 14 year-old daughter lost a silver Kodak Camera on an American flight (657) from DFW to Albuquerque last night. She saved up a whole year to take a school trip - her first to NYC - and lost all her pictures.
:( As all these other posts mention, there is no central lost and found for American so we are at a loss. If anyone finds it, PLEASE contact Rachel at 505 989-1182.

[Laurie]

What's really sad about the whole thing is that AA will never see this article or the frustration by all these customers. I too had exactly the same situation as those listed, did the same routine with calling Lost & Found, etc. But I know that they do not care - and there is no way to even get anyone to care at the Airlines.

[Trina]

I just came back from a flight from Honolulu (June 28th, Sunday)with a layover in L.A. then off to Las Vegas (home). My brand new Sony cybershot silver camera fell out of my carryout and under my seat. I called as soon as I got home and no luck. The same thing, a recording. I even called the other airports to speak to a live person and they give me a recording of numbers which is the same AA number. How PATHETIC that someone would keep something as personal as a camera. You know they look at the pictures. I just want my memory card. They can have the camera if it means that much to them. I can always replace a camera but not the pictures of my children on a vacation such as the one they had as a first time. It makes me feel sick to know I lost it and I can't go back in time to change things. I'm in Las Vegas and if a crew member or anyone from that flight on June 28th from Honolulu with the one hour layover in LA to LV arrival time 545pm please contact me at email [email protected] if they find the memory card or camera. No questions asked. The camera was in a bright blue Miller Lite beer bottle sleeve made of foam and a zipper. Thanks. TM