Tips to keep your baggage safe

Travel tips to keeping your baggage safe:

1. Do not pack your expensive or irreplaceable items in packed baggage. Things like expensive jewelry, eyeglasses or medication. Although it's great to assume that all screeners are honest, in the real world that's not a reality. If you need to take these items along, pack them in your carry on bags.

2. Put tags on your bags and make sure they're up to date. Most people fill the tags out then forget about them. When their bags are lost, airport personnel find that the owner hasn't lived at the address listed for years.

3. Pack additional identification and even a copy of your itinerary inside your luggage. If your bag is lost, the airline can decide whether it should be mailed to your home or travel destination.

4. Put your name on everything. If anything gets lost or left on a plane, it's easier for you to make your claim with the airline if your item is easily identifiable.

5. Check all zippers and locks on your luggage. They may have broken or become worn since the last time you used them.

6. Keep an inventory of everything in your bags.

7. Make sure the airline places the correct destination tags on your bag. You don't want to go to Philadelphia PA and have your bags go to Philadelphia MS.

8. Once on the plane, remember where you stow your bags. If you stow your items in row 20 and you're seated in row 16, you could easily jump up and forget your items.

9. If your luggage is not on the luggage carousel, find the baggage agent on duty. Your baggage may have arrived before you did and is locked up in the agent's area. This can happen if your luggage is loaded onto a non-stop flight while your flight has a stopover.

10. Tie a string or bandanna to your luggage to help it stand out. Most luggage looks exactly alike, this helps you identify your luggage more quickly.