Mishandling of baggage
After reading Mr Hasnat’s experience with Air Arabia (“Missing bag on trip from Sharjah to Bangladesh,” Gulf News, September 9), I feel compelled to share my recent experience as well. I regularly travel with Air Arabia and our most recent trip with the airline was to Antalya, Turkey from August 2 to 6, 2014. In my previous travels with Air Arabia, I have experienced that the way the baggage is handled by Air Arabia staff leaves much to be desired.
In this case however, when we picked up our luggage at Antalya, the lock of one of our suitcases was totally broken into pieces. This was a Samsonite, which I know to be one of the most rugged suitcases in the market today. We somehow managed to get it to the hotel without losing any of the contents and on the return journey, paid a hefty amount to get external plastic wrapping done on all pieces of our check-in luggage at Antalya airport to keep together the contents of this suitcase and also to protect the other pieces of check-in baggage.
In my over 25 years of international travel I have not seen such crude handling of passenger luggage. The convenience of destinations that Air Arabia provides gets totally marred by such regular bad experiences and expenses post the journey. I hope Air Arabia will take action.
From Ms Savita Vaidya, Dubai
Ms Vaidya updates:
I received a call of inquiry from Air Arabia regarding my complaint. They asked me if I had registered a complaint at the Antalya airport and on replying in the negative, asked me why not? I informed them that the time of arrival at Antalya was 1.30 am, there is a language difference in Turkey and that at that time of night, all we wanted to do was reach our hotel with our baggage intact.
I also informed them of other occasions wherein my luggage was damaged as a result of mishandling by Air Arabia staff. Of course, in this case, I realised it only after reaching home. It had to do with an expensive photo frame, which had been appropriately packed and labelled as fragile by Air Arabia at the departure port. I was told that in the future I should check my baggage at the airport only and report any damage there and then. I was informed that since there is no formal complaint on my part on that day, I could not be compensated.
It is quite ridiculous that during the course of any future travel with Air Arabia, I need to open all my baggage at the airport to check for damage and then close it all up again before coming home.
The management of Air Arabia responds:
Ms Vaidya didn’t claim her baggage until after leaving the airport. As per the airline’s procedure, compensation cannot be processed without submitting a claim. Air Arabia customer relations team is in touch with Ms Vaidya to have her case solved.
Ms Vaidya responds:
Thank you for all the follow-up on the part of Gulf News.
I have as yet not been contacted by Air Arabia, since my return to Dubai. My last contact from Air Arabia as communicated to the newspaper previously, was to tell me that they cannot offer any compensation as I had not lodged any claim in either Sharjah or Antalya, which is what they have reiterated in their communication with the newspaper.
My original reason for writing was not with seeking compensation in mind, but because I am sure I am not the only victim of rough handling of baggage.
I would however, like to share through Gulf News with all future travellers of Air Arabia, the solution that the airline has offered. In the future, please check your suitcases at the airport’s baggage claim to ascertain if there is any damage. If so, make a complaint and follow up. This is irrespective of port of arrival and time of day and night.
Editor’s note: The follow-up letter was forwarded to Air Arabia for further comments. However, its management did not reply.
Do you have similar issues that you would like to raise with us? You can write to us at readers@gulfnews.com.
