Lost luggage auctions
 

http://travel.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/travel/essentials/article2277055.ece

>From The Sunday Times
August 19, 2007
Lost luggage auctions

BA lost your bags? Join the club. An exasperated Jennifer Cox went to
a lost-luggage auction to try to track hers down

Forget about a fool and his money, recent figures from the Air
Transport Users Council (AUC) show passengers and their luggage are
parted to the tune of 30m lost bags a year. With Heathrow at breaking
point and other airports not doing much better, plus bad weather,
increased security and creaky old luggage systems, it's hardly
surprising that one insurance company this week reported an 85%
increase in claims for lost bags in just 12 months.

The AUC points out that 85% of bags are reunited with their owners
within 48 hours. But what happens to the remaining 15%? If, after
three months, the airline hasn't traced the owner, they come to
auction houses such as Greasby's, in Tooting, south London. About
1,000 unclaimed items pour into Greasby's each month. Shoes,
electricals, valuables and accessories are removed from the cases and
sold separately; the cases themselves are sold sealed, containing only
the clothes.

I'm here on a mission: hoping to find a suitcase of hen-party
accoutrements lost somewhere between Heathrow and Berlin back in June.
It's obviously a long shot that I'd get the right week, but I've tried
everything else and this is my last chance. There's another hen do in
September, and I don't want to make any more bubble-wrap bikinis
unless I absolutely have to. Besides, one lucky couple did turn up
about three years ago to find their bag.

Queuing to pay my £100 refundable deposit in exchange for a catalogue
and bidding card, I meet Sue. "There are so many professional dealers
on eBay these days," she says wistfully. "I thought I might get a
better deal on a used laptop here." (Since 120 laptops a month are
handed in at Heathrow alone, she could well be right.)
Related Links

* How to tag your suitcase

* Get ready to travel

* Q&A on travel insurance

Downstairs, the auction hall looks like a cross between a village hall
and a lockup: it's a curate's egg of unclaimed Samsonite cases, oil
paintings, surfboards and blood-pressure machines. In glass cabinets,
the latest mobile phones and MP3 players sit next to plastic bags
bulging with cosmetics and neatly brushed toupees. A library of high-
altitude literature stretches from floor to ceiling, and from the
rafters hang colourful bunches of sandals and flip-flops, like
artificial bougainvillea.

Scattered around the hall, 60 potential buyers carefully inspect the
piles of wetsuits, guitars and pushchairs, and a six-man canoe,
diligently cross-checking the number on each item against its
description in the catalogue.

The back wall is piled high with luggage, though, sadly, there's no
sign of my pink Kipling case in the great wall of Antler. Ken and
Lesley are also inspecting the cases: they got bitten by the auction
bug two years ago and treat it as a hobby. "Waiting for your lot to
come up, bidding... it's really exciting," grins Ken. "It can be hit
and miss, though," cautions Lesley. "You're paying between £8 and £10
for a case, and they're sealed, so you never know what you're going to
get." How do they decide which to bid on? "You look the cases over
carefully," Lesley says. "Then you go on instinct. We've had some nice
designer clothes. Just last week, I got an Amanda Wakeley dress."
"It's like Christmas," Ken says gleefully. "Opening the cases... it's
like opening presents."

Lesley rolls her eyes and I move on. With no sign of my case, it's
time for Plan B: finding something that will do for the hen do. In a
display case of lost souvenirs, wooden bears stand on the starched
skirts of big-haired dolls in national dress; a hand-grenade cigarette
lighter (at least, I hope that's what it is) and a pair of Lulu
Guinness sunglasses rest on a Moroccan tea tray.

As I stare speculatively at the toupees, weighing up potential versus
hygiene, Lovejoy-lookalike Bob flicks expertly through a pile of CDs.
Spotting my chance to get some decent advice, I ask for bidding tips.
"Have a good look at what you're interested in, then decide how much
it's worth to you," he counsels.

"I did get carried away once and bought a thousand umbrellas," he
admits sheepishly. "I didn't realise how much room a thousand
umbrellas could take up. I couldn't even fit them in the car."

When the auction begins, bidding is brisk: lots start at £5, rising in
£2 increments. A Timberland holdall containing towels goes for £6; a
Kipling bag (my hopes soar, but no, it isn't mine) containing men's
clothes goes for £7. Half an hour in, I gain confidence and - against
Bob's advice - whimsically bid on a crate containing bric-a-brac,
hoping there'll be something hen-do-ish inside. And, sold! It's mine
for £6.

Later, in the car park, I open the box and peer inside... I have until
September to build a hen night around a torch, a pack of AF291 Hoover
bags, an M&S Easy Pasta recipe book and Flummoxed - the foreign
language bluffer's game.

Greasby's auctions are held every Tuesday, at 10.30am, at Longley
Road, Tooting, SW17 (020 8672 2972, www.greasbys.co.uk ). Other lost-
luggage auctions take place at Wellers Auctions (01932 568 678,
www.wellers-auctions.co.uk ) in Guildford and at BCVA (0117 9533676
www.dnfa.com/bcva ) in Bristol

Lost-luggage tactics

Before you fly Attach luggage tags giving your flight details and a
contact number. Customise luggage with coloured labels or ribbons.
Mark the inside of bags with your name and a contact number.

At check-in Ensure the clerk attaches barcode labels securely. Put
your baggage receipts - usually stuck to the back of your boarding
pass or passport - in a safe place.

At the airline desk Your luggage is missing. Present baggage receipts
and describe your bag. Take a copy of the paperwork, a telephone
number and the name of a supervisor before leaving the airport. Ask
about expenses to cover essential items: some airlines offer cash on
request.

Two days later By now, 85% of lost luggage is back with its owners.
Keep receipts for essential purchases made during this period and get
progress reports if your bag hasn't been located.

Twenty-one days later According to the Montreal Convention, your
luggage is now officially lost. You are entitled to a maximum of £820
compensation from the airline, exclusive of any other sums paid, but
you could do better claiming on travel insurance.