CBC News
Nakita Rees and Tom Wilson of Cambridge, Ont., say they fought with Air Canada for four months to recover a piece of luggage – after the couple learned it had been lost and then given away – before it was handed over to them. finally delivered on Monday.
Rees and Wilson were on their honeymoon and returned to Canada from Greece on September 10. Their flight landed in Montreal and they had to recheck their luggage before continuing to Toronto Pearson International Airport.
When the couple landed in Toronto, the Apple AirTag tracker in Wilson’s luggage showed he was still in Montreal.
After completing the paperwork for the misplaced luggage, the couple returned home, certain the bag would be returned in a day or two, Rees said.
She said the AirTag, which allowed them to track the bag using an app on their iPhone, gave them “complete peace of mind”, and when they saw the bag begin to move four weeks later from Montreal to Etobicoke in suburban Toronto, “we were really, really excited.”
“I gave them the benefit of the doubt. I really did it. I was like, it’s okay. We’re going to get it. I can see it moving,” Rees told CBC Kitchener host Craig Norris -Waterloo. The morning edition.
Rees said Wilson’s luggage then sat in Etobicoke for over three months and did not receive an update from Air Canada.
In the meantime, Air Canada gave them financial compensation for the baggage, but Rees said they were frustrated with the airline’s lack of communication and action, given that Rees and Wilson knew the location of their baggage.
Earlier this month, Wilson drove to the public warehouse in Etobicoke where the AirTag said the bag was sitting.
Rees said Wilson walked around the storage facility and found a storage unit where he thought the bag was. There was a gap in the door and he was able to use a flashlight to see inside. Rees said he told her the unit was filled with luggage from floor to ceiling.
Rees said he called the police and officers launched an investigation, but officers were unable to retrieve their bag because it belonged to a third-party handler Air Canada sends unclaimed baggage to before it was given to a charity.
“Aggravated” situation of lost luggage tag
Air Canada said it provided Rees and Wilson with about $2,300 in October, the maximum amount of compensation available under law for “lost” baggage. The airline also said it located the bag and returned it to the couple on Monday.
“This client traveled in late summer at a time when all airlines in Canada were still recovering from the systemic COVID-related disruption to the entire airline industry. has been a high rate of baggage delays,” Air Canada said in an emailed statement to CBC News.
“In this particular case, the situation was aggravated by the disconnection of the bag tag at some point during the trip. Despite our best efforts, we were unable to identify the owner of the bag. It was designated as unclaimed and we have moved to compensate the customer.”
The airline said it is International Air Transport Association policy that customers are entitled to compensation 21 days after baggage goes missing.
“Bags whose ownership cannot be determined may be disposed of after 90 days, which we do through a third-party company, which donates to charity,” the airline said.
Air Canada admits that Wilson’s bag was “transferred prematurely by mistake, and we tracked that internally.”
Put an ID inside the luggage
Air Canada said its baggage delivery rate was “generally in the high 90th percentile,” but baggage could get lost.
“This story is an opportunity to remind your audience, as we always recommend, to put personal contact information in their luggage, such as a business card,” the statement read.
“We also urge customers not to pack valuable or essential items in their checked baggage, but instead carry them on the plane or make other shipping arrangements.”
Rees agrees that people need to get their information inside the bag somehow and also strongly recommends getting some sort of luggage tracker.
“Put ID in your bag a few times if you need it, get something to follow it and if you still can’t get it you know where it is, push it,” he said. she declared.
LISTEN | Cambridge couple spent four months fighting to get their bags back, despite saying they knew where they were:
The Morning Edition – KW6:06Cambridge couple spent 4 months fighting to get their luggage back, despite saying they knew where it was
Nakita Rees and Tom Wilson of Cambridge, Ont., say they waited four months to retrieve a piece of their luggage from Air Canada, even though they knew where it was the whole time because it had an Apple AirTag.