Scottsboro, Ala., is destination for 'hopelessly lost' luggage
By Theodore Kim
Indianapolis Star
The answer to one of life's small mysteries lies nestled in the foothills of northeastern Alabama.
What happens to lost airline luggage: 1. It is sent to an airline's claims center. A description of the luggage is then entered into an electronic tracing system used by the major airlines. 2. The airlines take anywhere from 90 to 120 days to track down luggage owners. Airline officials will search the luggage for anything that might offer contact information. Owners are found and contacted in most cases. The luggage is then shipped to the owner or kept at the airport for pickup. 3. If an owner is not found, the luggage and its contents are sold to the Unclaimed Baggage Center, a private outlet store based in Scottsboro, Ala. The company says it has contracts with most major airlines, although terms of those contracts are confidential. 4. On average, the Unclaimed Baggage Center discards a third of the goods it receives, donates a third and sells a third. The company adds about 7,000 items to its inventory each day. 5. Luggage owners, meanwhile, get airline compensation up to $2,500 per lost bag. Sources: U.S. Department of Transportation, Unclaimed Baggage Center
Inside the Unclaimed Baggage Center — an outlet store nearly the size of a football field — sits an odd blend of merchandise, all disgorged from bags that have lost their owners: $2 shorts, baby strollers, pillows, jewelry worth thousands.
In 2003, just more than four of every 1,000 air travelers filed mishandled-baggage reports with the nation's largest airlines. Though most travelers eventually are reunited with their luggage, owners sometimes cannot be found.
This is the final destination for most hopelessly lost airline luggage.
This obscure store in Scottsboro, Ala., and its uncommon mission are gaining new attention in the wake of one of the nation's worst airline baggage snarls in recent memory.
US Airways lost track of more than 10,000 pieces of luggage and canceled hundreds of flights on Christmas Day because of what the company called an "operational meltdown" at its Philadelphia hub.
Many of the airline's operations were disrupted. Airline executives blamed the complications on worker absences, while union leaders pegged the difficulties to inadequate staffing in Philadelphia.
All but a handful of bags misplaced by US Airways over Christmas were returned to their owners before New Year's Day, said US Airways spokeswoman Amy Kudwa.
But the publicity fueled air travelers' fears. "All those television images of baggage piling up in the airport have a negative impact," said John K. Hawks, executive director of the nonprofit Consumer Travel Rights Center in Nashville, Tenn., and co-author of a book titled "Traveler's Rights: Your Legal Guide to Fair Treatment and Full Value."
Although those who work at the Unclaimed Baggage Center are reluctant to admit it, the mix-ups that plagued US Airways and other airlines may be a boon to the outlet store, which adds about 7,000 items to its inventory each day, said Brenda Cantrell, the store's marketing and sales director.
The store gets a larger daily influx of items after the busy holiday travel season and attracts locals, distant travelers driven by curiosity or an itch to shop, and a few seeking lost items.
Some shoppers might blanch at the idea behind the operation: selling goods lost by others' misfortune. But Cantrell is quick to point out that most mishandled airline luggage eventually is matched with its owner.
In fact, the rate of mishandled-baggage reports has declined since 1990, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. In 2003, one in every 240 airline passengers reported lost baggage to the major airlines, down sharply from one in every 150 passengers, federal statistics show.
However, the numbers add up. The major airlines reported about 2.2 million misplaced-baggage claims in 2003. The figure accounts for less than 1 percent of all luggage, but it keeps the outlet stocked.
The store reports that it discards about a third of what it gets, donates a third and sells a third at the outlet and through its Web site, www.unclaimedbaggage.com.
Items range from the commonplace (clothes, shoes, portable electronics), to the curious (a Barbie doll containing $500, a kayak), to the ultra-peculiar (a fighter jet guidance system that was returned to the government, a 41-carat emerald that sold for about $15,000).
Over the years, the store has developed into one of Alabama's top tourist attractions, said Cantrell.
"Some people think that this place is just folklore, so they drive here to see it," he said.
