Nok Air And Baggage Loss

[skysurfn3d]

I'm thinking of flying with them in December to Phuket and Ubon Ratchathani for my wedding in Isan.

Looking at their website it says if they loose the bags, they will reimburse up to 2000 Baht - that's about $62 USD. To me I find that shocking low, as in that if someone takes the bag, Nok pays almost nothing.

My question is if I am paranoid? Or have other been flying with NokAir or like Asia Air with no problems?

If others have "lost" bags, then I think I'll be sticking with Thai Air so at least I am taken better care of in case.

[Lucifer]

Get yourself some Travel Insurance.

Nok Air's policy is in line with other airlines.

[tw25rw]

I'm thinking of flying with them in December to Phuket and Ubon Ratchathani for my wedding in Isan.

Looking at their website it says if they loose the bags, they will reimburse up to 2000 Baht - that's about $62 USD. To me I find that shocking low, as in that if someone takes the bag, Nok pays almost nothing.

My question is if I am paranoid? Or have other been flying with NokAir or like Asia Air with no problems?

If others have "lost" bags, then I think I'll be sticking with Thai Air so at least I am taken better care of in case.

Mislai my suitcase once on BKK-CNX,,

Got it back the next day. Considering how small their network is, it would be rare to lose it altogether.

[DurianChips]

I'm thinking of flying with them in December to Phuket and Ubon Ratchathani for my wedding in Isan.

Looking at their website it says if they loose the bags, they will reimburse up to 2000 Baht - that's about $62 USD. To me I find that shocking low, as in that if someone takes the bag, Nok pays almost nothing.

My question is if I am paranoid? Or have other been flying with NokAir or like Asia Air with no problems?

If others have "lost" bags, then I think I'll be sticking with Thai Air so at least I am taken better care of in case.

I'm sure it seems low to you, as it does to me. I think many Thai people would consider that quite a bit of money though. It is, after all, a Thai domestic airline.

[Rinrada]

Better not GO with this outfit....

Apart from dodgy dealings fixinging fuel surcharges...Fined £350 M.real ones they also admitted.......

BA admits it lost a million bags last year

with thanks ..the indy...

British Airways lost more than one million pieces of luggage in 2006, making the national carrier the worst baggage handler in Europe.

A report by the Air Transport Users Council (AUC) revealed that BA mishandled 23 bags for every 1,000 passengers, losing about 3,000 bags every day. Overall, that meant the "world's favourite airline" lost 1,047,750 bags last year.

Hundreds of thousands of BA's 45 million passengers began their trips without clothes, toiletries, presents, valuables or climbing or skiing equipment. Many have never been reunited with their belongings.

BA, whose problems led to 28,000 suitcases piling up at Heathrow in January, described its performance as "unacceptable". "We fully apologise to customers who have been affected by delayed baggage in the past year," a spokesman said.

According to statistics supplied to AUC by 24 members of the Association of European Airlines (AEA), BA was the only airline to lose more than 1 million bags. One bag was lost for every 43 people boarding a jet.

The next worst performers were Air Portugal, Lufthansa, Air France and Alitalia, who between them lost 2.3 million bags, approximately one suitcase per 50 passengers. Air Malta and Turkish Airlines were the best, losing one bag per 220.

The watchdog said more than 5.6 million bags were mishandled by European airlines last year, but added that the figure could be much higher as some AEA members such as Virgin Atlantic and bmi, and the budget airlines Ryanair and easyJet, did not provide data.

The AUC chairman, Tina Tietjen,said that lost luggage caused passengers "considerable stress, inconvenience and expense".

"When passengers hand over their suitcases at check-in they should be able to expect to see them the other end," she said. "British Airways has told us that its performance in 2006 was not acceptable and it apologises to its customers. It says it is doing everything it can to put that right. But passengers should not have to take airlines' word for it."

She added: "We would like to see 'name-and-shame' league tables on as wide a geographical basis as possible to encourage airlines to avoid baggage problems in the first place."

AUC said 85 per cent of bags were returned to their owners within 48 hours, but others were "not so lucky".

Airlines using large "hub" airports performed particularly poorly, and research suggested that 61 per cent of bags going astray belonged to passengers catching connecting flights.

"We accept that large network airlines such as British Airways do not entirely control their own destiny," said the report, Mishandled Baggage. "They might have to work within the constraints imposed by overcrowded terminals. And they might not be in control of the operation and maintenance of airport baggage handling systems. But passengers do not care why their baggage goes astray. They just do not want it to happen."

The council provided examples of complaints it had received. One woman had spent her entire two-week holiday in Alicante, Spain, without her bag, which had been lost. The airline compensated her £400 despite her claim of £1,500, because she did not have receipts for her old items.

BA's operations director, Geoff Want, said: "We accept the levels of service to our customers has not been up to an acceptable standard."

Katharine King: 'The airline was incompetent'

Skiing without equipment can be problematic, as Katharine King found out when she boarded a British Airways flight last Christmas.

An error by baggage staff meant she and her boyfriend spent the first few days of theirholiday in the Alps without fresh underwear or toiletries.

Despite their hopes, their luggage never turned up. But their real irritation stemmed from a three-month battle for compensation that was resolved only last week when BA paid £800. Ms King said the airline had been "utterly incompetent".

Ms King, 30, and Darran Snatchfold, 31, media researchers in London, reached Heathrow on 23 December. Although they used the automatic check-in, they had to wait one and half hours for the baggage drop because the queue was so "horrendous". Ms King was not surprised the unfortunate baggage handler mislabelled their luggage.

A BA colleague asked the couple to describe their bags, but it did not help. "When we arrived in Munich we were left at the carousel wondering if the bags would come out. They didn't," Ms King said.

Instead the bags had been sent to Frankfurt.

"It was our Christmas holiday and we weren't going to let anything ruin it for us. It became the daily joke to run downstairs to see if our luggage had arrived. For three nights we stood at the sink washing our underwear."

Total bags lost per year

British Airways 1m

Air Portugal 156,000

Lufthansa 982,000

Air France 915,000

Alitalia 421,000

KLM 372,000

Luxair 190,000

Iberia 521,000

LOT 57,000

Finnair 108,000

Nok Air....???????

[ercorn]

Better not GO with this outfit....

Apart from dodgy dealings fixinging fuel surcharges...Fined £350 M.real ones they also admitted.......

BA admits it lost a million bags last year

with thanks ..the indy...

British Airways lost more than one million pieces of luggage in 2006, making the national carrier the worst baggage handler in Europe.

A report by the Air Transport Users Council (AUC) revealed that BA mishandled 23 bags for every 1,000 passengers, losing about 3,000 bags every day. Overall, that meant the "world's favourite airline" lost 1,047,750 bags last year.

Hundreds of thousands of BA's 45 million passengers began their trips without clothes, toiletries, presents, valuables or climbing or skiing equipment. Many have never been reunited with their belongings.

BA, whose problems led to 28,000 suitcases piling up at Heathrow in January, described its performance as "unacceptable". "We fully apologise to customers who have been affected by delayed baggage in the past year," a spokesman said.

According to statistics supplied to AUC by 24 members of the Association of European Airlines (AEA), BA was the only airline to lose more than 1 million bags. One bag was lost for every 43 people boarding a jet.

The next worst performers were Air Portugal, Lufthansa, Air France and Alitalia, who between them lost 2.3 million bags, approximately one suitcase per 50 passengers. Air Malta and Turkish Airlines were the best, losing one bag per 220.

The watchdog said more than 5.6 million bags were mishandled by European airlines last year, but added that the figure could be much higher as some AEA members such as Virgin Atlantic and bmi, and the budget airlines Ryanair and easyJet, did not provide data.

The AUC chairman, Tina Tietjen,said that lost luggage caused passengers "considerable stress, inconvenience and expense".

"When passengers hand over their suitcases at check-in they should be able to expect to see them the other end," she said. "British Airways has told us that its performance in 2006 was not acceptable and it apologises to its customers. It says it is doing everything it can to put that right. But passengers should not have to take airlines' word for it."

She added: "We would like to see 'name-and-shame' league tables on as wide a geographical basis as possible to encourage airlines to avoid baggage problems in the first place."

AUC said 85 per cent of bags were returned to their owners within 48 hours, but others were "not so lucky".

Airlines using large "hub" airports performed particularly poorly, and research suggested that 61 per cent of bags going astray belonged to passengers catching connecting flights.

"We accept that large network airlines such as British Airways do not entirely control their own destiny," said the report, Mishandled Baggage. "They might have to work within the constraints imposed by overcrowded terminals. And they might not be in control of the operation and maintenance of airport baggage handling systems. But passengers do not care why their baggage goes astray. They just do not want it to happen."

The council provided examples of complaints it had received. One woman had spent her entire two-week holiday in Alicante, Spain, without her bag, which had been lost. The airline compensated her £400 despite her claim of £1,500, because she did not have receipts for her old items.

BA's operations director, Geoff Want, said: "We accept the levels of service to our customers has not been up to an acceptable standard."

Katharine King: 'The airline was incompetent'

Skiing without equipment can be problematic, as Katharine King found out when she boarded a British Airways flight last Christmas.

An error by baggage staff meant she and her boyfriend spent the first few days of theirholiday in the Alps without fresh underwear or toiletries.

Despite their hopes, their luggage never turned up. But their real irritation stemmed from a three-month battle for compensation that was resolved only last week when BA paid £800. Ms King said the airline had been "utterly incompetent".

Ms King, 30, and Darran Snatchfold, 31, media researchers in London, reached Heathrow on 23 December. Although they used the automatic check-in, they had to wait one and half hours for the baggage drop because the queue was so "horrendous". Ms King was not surprised the unfortunate baggage handler mislabelled their luggage.

A BA colleague asked the couple to describe their bags, but it did not help. "When we arrived in Munich we were left at the carousel wondering if the bags would come out. They didn't," Ms King said.

Instead the bags had been sent to Frankfurt.

"It was our Christmas holiday and we weren't going to let anything ruin it for us. It became the daily joke to run downstairs to see if our luggage had arrived. For three nights we stood at the sink washing our underwear."

Total bags lost per year

British Airways 1m

Air Portugal 156,000

Lufthansa 982,000

Air France 915,000

Alitalia 421,000

KLM 372,000

Luxair 190,000

Iberia 521,000

LOT 57,000

Finnair 108,000

Nok Air....???????

Classic.I guess I am one of the lucky ones because in all the travelling I have done on many different airlines I haven`t lost a bag.Touch wood I hope it stays that way.

[skysurfn3d]

Lucifer - You are correct in that NokAir's policy is the same as another domestic air carrier, such as Air Asia.

But in regards to a full air carrier such as Thai Airlines, their Term and Conditions of Carriage are

15.1.1(e) Except in the case of an act or omission done with intent to cause Damage or recklessly and with knowledge that Damage would probably result, our liability in the case of Damage to Checked Baggage shall be limited to 17 Special Drawing Rights (approximately US$20) per kilogram

Which means for a 15kg bag, they would reimburse $300 USD, or about 9,800 Baht.

Tw25RW - Yes I agree that since it's a small network, I would hope if lost they will find it quickly and return quickly.

Durian Chips - Yes 2000 Baht may seem a lot for a Thai person. But I would like to see a Thai person replace a suitcase and two weeks of clothing and all the relevant stuff for a mere 2000 Baht. That's not going to be easy. And I'm no fool, the important stuff for the wedding and my camera is in the carry on bag. And for 9,800 Baht it's reasonable to replace a suitcase and buy the clothes for two weeks to survive.

Rinrada/Ercorn - I have had bags lost in Europe, USA, and in South America. But what kept me happy was that the airlines found the bags with a day or two. And twice when they never found the bags, they paid promptly while on the vacation so that I could replace the clothes and continue to enjoy my vacation.

I'm no broke deadbeat who is unable to spend some $ to buy clothes. Rather I'm just trying to see if the carrier will take responsibility for their actions (or lack of).

[NorthernStar]

Lucifer - You are correct in that NokAir's policy is the same as another domestic air carrier, such as Air Asia.

Or One-Two-Go.

These are low cost airlines. Not surprising that they reimburse less that high cost airlines, such as THAI Airways. How much is the one way airfare on THAI BKK - HKT? Bht 3,580? How much on Nok Air or Thai Air Asia? Less than Bht 3,000 roundtrip if you plan well in advance? It doesn't surprise me in the slightest that low cost airlines reimburse less than high cost ones like THAI.

So, it comes down to what you think is fair. If you find THAI more fair than low cost airlines, then pay more and fly THAI.

Forgot to mention that I've flown low and high cost airlines. Not once they lost my bags.

Edited August 26, 2007 by NorthernStar

[billp]

As #2 said, get baggage insurance. I too have flown extensively and never actually had a lost bag, just misrouted and delayed for up to a couple days. Make sure you're covered for getting the necessaries for 48 hours, and replacement if it really is lost for good, and then just relax. Since low cost carriers like Nok Air only fly point to point, it's very rare to have a lost bag anyway. In dozens of flights on Nok and Air Asia I don't think I've ever even had a bag delayed or misrouted.