We hear lots of stories from travellers who have had their baggage or luggage tampered with and stolen from and thought therefore it was about time we wrote a little something about it.We all have our different ways of securing luggage, many you use a lock, cable ties, straps or perhaps you even shrink-wrap your cases before you leave home (or sometimes a service available in some airports!), these call all be a good deterrent, but can’t protect your belongings against a determined thieve, after all bags and luggage is portable and a crook will have all the time in the world to break into your luggage once it out of sight from you.
The best defence, is to do either of these:
- Take out a good comprehensive travel insurance, and
- Ensure you only pack valuables in your carry-on luggage.
Our other top tips are:
- Ensure you label every piece of luggage you have with your contact details. Make sure that these tags are weather-proof and securely attached.
- If your bag has an external pocket, ensure that a copy of your itinerary is in each one, then if you and your bags are parted you can be reunited sooner.
- Ensure that any old tags, labels or contact details are removed from your luggage, you don’t want them to end up at an old destination!
- Again, we said it earlier, but worth saying again, don’t leave any valuables and identification documents in your checked in luggage, keep these on you and close to you at all times.
Luggage
Seems crazy, but thieves don’t care about your luggage nowadays and they are willing to do anything to break into it to steal your valuables. Soft cases can easily be cut or slashed open (only takes a second!), even hard cases can we easily cut around the zips and our items taken. You can now buy ‘zipperless’ luggage which is much more secure, and they often have multi-point locking systems just like your front door. Find Some Here
Locks
Locks are a very good starting place to protect your property (but never use the free ones that often come with luggage), they can slow down a thief and even deter some. Apart from the free ones, any others add improved security to your luggage, key or combination, the choice is yours. If you can, go for a ‘TSA-approved’ one – read ‘The United States of Security’ later in the article. Find Some Here
Cable ties
Cable ties can be used as a low-cost alternative to locks. They're cheap, quick to secure, easily replaceable and come in different colours to help identify you luggage on an airport conveyor.Some even have security numbers on them that help you further identify your luggage later, but they can usually be cut with something as easy as simple nail clippers, really cheap versions can often be unzipper and retied with ease meaning your cases aren’t always as secure as you think.
But the are a very good deterrent. Find Some Here
Shrink-wrapping
Shrink-wrapping can be very easy to do at home and can stop luggage been tampered with easily.Many airports around the world now offer a shrink-wrapping service for a small fee, whilst again it won’t stop someone determined to steal your items, it does make it difficult and actually stop someone slipping something into your case without you knowing about it.
Another advantage of shrink-wrapping is that it makes luggage ‘handler-ready’, and it goes a long way to securing tags handles, wheels etc making it less likely that they break! Find Cheap Shrink Wrap Here
Straps
Straps are excellent at securing luggage (some even come with locks to make them more secure) and they can be personalised to make it easier to spot your luggage at the airport, you can even strap luggage together. They can be very reasonably priced but most strapping can easily be cut with a knife. Find Some Great Ones Here
The United States of Security
We travel to the US fairly often, and many travellers have found that no matter type of lock or security you have, the TSA (Transport Security Administration) can get into it! If they deem it necessary they have the legal power to open your luggage for a physical inspection.To combat the chance of your luggage being broken into, look for locks that are ‘TSA Approved’, this means that the TSA officials have a master key that will allow them to open your bags without damaging them. Find Some Cheap TSA Locks Here
FROM OUR PARTNERS
OUR BEST HINTS AND TIPS TO SAVE MONEY:
Book Cheap Overseas Holidays:
We tend to use lastminute.com, they constantly return some of the cheapest holidays abroad and they don't have to be made at the last minute either!
Book Cheap UK Holidays:
We use TravelSupermarket and Easyjet - maybe not known for their UK breaks, but they have some really cheap deals for hotels and B&B's around the country.
Travel insurance:
Holiday Extras can be difficult to beat, you can also book your airport parking from them too. Never leave home without your travel insurance to protect yourself from illness, injury, theft, and cancellations.
If you are looking for other areas to save money when booking holidays check out our Discounts and Deals page. We list all the ones we use to save money when we travel – and that will save you time and money too!
Book Cheap Overseas Holidays:
We tend to use lastminute.com, they constantly return some of the cheapest holidays abroad and they don't have to be made at the last minute either!
Book Cheap UK Holidays:
We use TravelSupermarket and Easyjet - maybe not known for their UK breaks, but they have some really cheap deals for hotels and B&B's around the country.
Travel insurance:
Holiday Extras can be difficult to beat, you can also book your airport parking from them too. Never leave home without your travel insurance to protect yourself from illness, injury, theft, and cancellations.
If you are looking for other areas to save money when booking holidays check out our Discounts and Deals page. We list all the ones we use to save money when we travel – and that will save you time and money too!
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