There are hundreds of thousands of suitcases that get lost every year, but where do they go?
In America, the
Unclaimed Baggage Centre in Alabama receives 800,000 visitors per year and is, incredibly, the state’s biggest tourist attraction. Its 40,000 square foot shop has many departments full of unclaimed baggage, from womenswear to electronics and shoes to handbags. Who knows what you might find!
But don’t worry, you don’t have to go to Alabama to get a lost luggage bargain, in Britain you might find lost luggage at a few auction houses.
British Airways sells its unclaimed luggage to
Greasbys in Tooting which is in south west London. Here, auctions take place every Tuesday at 10.30am. Viewing is held on Monday to give you a chance to see what you could bid on, however, you only get to see the outside of the bag and the contents are a mystery until you place the winning bid! Who knows what you might find? A bunch of old scruffy clothes, or some beautifully expensive jewellery, it’s all a guess!
Lonely bags from Gatwick can end up in Guildford at
Wellers Auctions and
Bristol Commercial Valuers & Auctioneers and
Hertfordshire Auctions contend with unwanted baggage from Luton Airport.
Most auction houses, including the ones listed above don’t have allotted airport auctions so it would be advisable to check their website for the next scheduled lost baggage auction.
But why buy lost luggage?
Some people might try and make some money out of the bags by selling the contents on places like
ebay or even a car boot sale. Many make a profit - a good way for some extra money to go towards your next holiday. However, this is of course never guaranteed and you could be out of pocket if the contents of your winning bag lacked in saleability.
Make sure you have comprehensive travel insurance that covers you if your possessions are lost, stolen, damaged or delayed. If the airline loses your luggage and won’t reimburse you, you may have a claim under your insurance policy. Providing you have reported the loss or damage to the airline and obtained a Property Irregularity Report (PIR) form or its equivalent within 24 hours you may not be out of pocket. Ensure you check your travel insurance policy covers you for the correct value of your contents and keep all purchase receipts to support your claim.
Labels: baggage, lost luggage, personal possessions, travel insurance
Posted by 24/7 travel insurance @
14:29
30 Dec 2011
The UK’s longest running travel loyalty scheme, Airmiles, has become part of a new programme called
Avios. More than two million members will see their hard earned Airmiles turned into Avios’s equivalent. What does this mean for Airmiles members?
Airmiles used to offer free flights in exchange for loyalty points but now with Avios, flights are subject to tax. There is a charge of £27 for a flight to Europe to cover the cost of taxes and fees but longer distance flights are subject to as much as £360 for a flight to New York! So what used to be free can now cost just as much as purchasing a flight direct from the airline!
A flight to New York departing on 6th March 2012 and returning on 13th March 2012 will cost 40,000 Avios and £299.53 towards the taxes and fees. Saving these Avios points can take some time and their online calculator can help you work out how long it would take to save those points. If you were to spend £200 on grocery shopping, £550 on credit cards, buy 200 litres of fuel and spend £200 on online shopping a month, it would take you two years to save enough Avios to get a flight to New York. To save these points you need to use their partners, for example, the only credit card to use is the Lloyds TSB Avios Card and to get your grocery points you need to be shopping at Tesco.
To compare against the Avios deal, if you were to book a flight using somewhere like www.expedia.co.uk, the flight would cost you £362. So all in all the Avios flight isn’t that much of a deal and all that hard working saving those points has really only saved you £62.47.
There are other ways you can spend your points at Avios, such as spa treatments, days out and hotels stays amongst many other experiences including even travel insurance!
By using your points towards the experiences you may feel like you are getting something for free as there are no taxes or fees to pay. You can even buy a gift voucher for a friend and let them choose what they would like to do.
Source:
Labels: airmiles, avios, free flights, loyalty points
Posted by 24/7 travel insurance @
15:54
5 Dec 2011
† price based on an individual aged 18-54 taking out a 'Last Minute' Single Trip policy excluding baggage cover for 3 days in Europe.
