An Air Canada client who found his lost luggage using an Apple AirTag claims he is furious and frustrated at the company for not putting more effort into finding it. Paul Kliffer remarked, “You feel helpless, like there is nothing you can do.”
Kliffer and his wife purchased an Apple AirTag. AirTag is a wireless tracking device that can be attached to various goods, including checked bags, after hearing numerous reports of airlines misplacing luggage. This past November, when the Victoria, British Columbia, couple returned from Mexico City, the technology was tested.
Before continuing to Victoria, Kliffer’s wife checked their AirTag on their phone when they landed in Vancouver. “It said our bag was 4,000 kilometres away, which didn’t sound good,“ Kliffer said. The luggage was still there when the couple arrived at the airport in Mexico City.
Kliffer claimed that he immediately contacted an Air Canada representative and filed a complaint. He claimed that an agent informed him that his suitcase would be delivered back to his house soon.
According to the location of AirTag, Kliffer’s bag was in Spain
He said, “My bag never arrived. “Over the next three days, I went back out to Victoria and they again reiterated there was nothing they could do except send a note to Mexico City.”
Kliffer claimed that the situation just got worse after two weeks. He was shocked to learn that the suitcase was currently parked at the international airport in Madrid, Spain, according to the location of the AirTag.
Kliffer kept contacting Air Canada, but nothing happened. “They would escalate the file up to a more important stage and I would be contacted in 48 hours. That never happened,” Kliffer said.
Kliffer’s message was sent to Air Canada by Consumer Matters. Air Canada said the following to express its regret: “We fully realize how inconvenient it is when baggage is delayed and our goal is to always have bags travel and arrive with the passenger. In this case, this regrettably did not occur, and, given the time that has now passed without success recovering the baggage, we have advised the customer we are moving to compensation. The claim is being processed, and we will follow up directly with the customer.”
Additionally, Consumer Matters provided Air Canada with a screenshot from Kliffer’s AirTag displaying the location of his bag. The location was in Madrid, Spain. However, the airline declined to respond when asked why it wasn’t making an effort to locate Kliffer’s bag.
According to John Gradek, a lecturer at McGill University and the programme coordinator for the aviation management school, the airline frequently places a low priority on luggage handling. Furthermore, Gradek suggested that AirTags might be a helpful tool.
Kliffer, on the other hand, claimed that after Air Canada announced that it was switching to compensation, he felt abandoned.
