How Checked Luggage Thieves Choose Bags To Steal (and How To Avoid It)
Affiliate disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission if you sign up or book through them, at no extra cost to you. We only recommend tools we use and love.
I have a lot of friends that ask for travel advice, and I’m always so excited to give them tips and tricks because travel can seriously be life changing.
So when one of my good friends reached out to me months ago to tell me she was finally taking her first international trip, I was thrilled to turn her onto the travel life.
Fast forward to after her trip and I receive this message, “Trip was great. But someone stole my bag at baggage claim when we got back to Atlanta.”
NOOOO! Those rats.
Unfortunately, while this isn’t very common, checked luggage theft does happen, and most people don’t even think about it because who would want to steal someone’s dirty clothing?
Well apparently really junky people who have nothing better to do with their lives. But I digress.
So in this post, I want to cover how checked luggage thieves target the bags they decide to steal and how to avoid this happening to you on your next trip(s).
What Makes A Bag A Target
I can’t tell you how many people I’ve seen walk around airports with expensive bags and luggage. I’m not into brand names, but I can spot a Gucci bag or a Louis Vuitton a mile away. Most people can, including thieves.
So when you roll up with pricey bags, you’re basically advertising that you buy expensive things, and that potentially includes the content inside your suitcase.
But let’s say you already have an expensive bag or suitcase, does that mean you’re doomed? No, not necessarily.
Lots of people have checked high-end luggage and never had a single problem, so don’t panic if you just splurged. But it does mean the fancy bag is doing you no favors in a place where theft is already common. This is especially true in many US cities, parts of the Caribbean, or certain South American airports.
If you’re going to be somewhere that’s perceived to be a little sketchier, I’d bring your backup suitcase instead of your luxury stuff.
On the other hand, the plain black suitcase has the opposite problem, which is interesting.
It doesn’t necessarily scream that you have a lot of money, but it’s the easiest bag to “accidentally” take. A thief can lift it, and if anyone stops them, they just go “oh gosh, I thought this was mine, they all look the same!” and walk away.
So the two bags that are most likely to get grabbed are opposite ends of the spectrum. The obviously expensive one, and the plain black one.
How To Avoid Having Your Bags Stolen At Baggage Claim
We already covered which bags are the typical targets of these lowlife thieves, and while it can help to avoid those kinds of suitcases, there are a few more things you can do to fend off these robbers.
– Put nothing valuable in Your checked bag, Ever.
We’re talking electronics, jewelry, cash, your nice camera, anything with a lithium battery, your computer, etc. etc. All of that goes in your carry-on or on your person.
Your checked bag is for clothes and toiletries and things you wouldn’t be devastated about if you lost.
Quick Tip: You should also never check your prescription medication. If your bag goes missing whether it’s stolen or lost, you do not want to be in a foreign country trying to buy a prescription. Keep them in your carry-on or personal item.
– Make your bag boring to a thief but easy for YOU to spot.
As I mentioned already, you want a bag that doesn’t look expensive, but is also really recognizable so that nobody could just pretend to mistake it for theirs.
I’m talking about adding obnoxious stickers, straps, ribbons, etc. I’ve also seen people bring a horrible mustard-orange suitcase and swear by it, because they can spot it from across the terminal and no thief wants to walk off with the one bag everyone would recognize.
Even more points if you can use a suitcase that’s sort of banged up. If you’ve had your suitcase for a while and it’s not in the best shape, this is a great deterrent for thieves. I used my beaten up suitcase for years, and it did perfectly because it looked like trash, and nobody wants trash!
– Get to the carousel early.
This one has been tough for us recently because we now have a toddler that requires us to stop at every bathroom along the way. But if you can help it, try to get to the carousel early.
To do this, you’ll need to be near the front of your plane, or put a rush on it after you get off the plane so you can beat or match the bags being released on the carousel.
If you’re slower to the carousel, I recommend choosing/paying for seats near the front of the plane so you can get a head start. Most airlines allow you to do this now, even if it’s not the cheapest option.
If you’re standing at the carousel before your bag comes out, there’s basically no window for someone to grab it. The thefts that do happen at baggage claim usually happen to bags that are going around and around while the owner is in the bathroom or off getting a coffee.
Be the one at baggage claim as soon as possible, watching the chute.
– Drop an AirTag inside.
This is one of the best travel upgrades of the last decade. Airtags. You just shove one of these deep in your bag where it won’t get found quickly, and you can track its location wherever it goes.
Of course, this won’t stop theft, but at the very least, you can tell the airline or police where your bag is located. Some travelers even put a second AirTag into a specific pouch inside so they can track individual pieces.
– Use packing cubes.
Here’s one that most people don’t think about, but many thieves will dig through bags quickly after they take them. If you use packing cubes, it might deter a thief who is searching through your things quickly.
I know I can’t be the only person who finds it incredibly frustrating to have to open a packed suitcase after you’ve shoved all your things into packing cubes. Thieves feel the same way!
And I’m not just talking about your typical packing cubes. Mike and I use vacuum packing cubes that allows you to suck out all the air and make space for even more. These bags are the magic way to get everything to fit into your suitcase AND to fend off airport robbers.
Here are the vacuum packing cubes we use:
– Add clips or locking carabiners to your zippers.
I see a lot of people using locks or carabiners on their suitcase zippers, and while it’s not impossible to open these, it’s annoying and suitcase thieves usually prey on opportunities with the least friction.
Adding a lock can help your suitcase LOOK more secure, which oftentimes helps you avoid baggage theft.
IMPORTANT: Know what your locks do and don’t.
As I hinted at above, locks are a bit of a trap for travelers. Yes, there are TSA-approved locks, which can be opened by security with a master key, but the problem is that keys to those locks are floating around online for anyone to buy.
So a TSA lock does not really keep out a really determined thief.
A regular non-TSA lock is typically more useful for peace of mind, because if security needs in, they have to either call you over or cut it off, which means you’ll KNOW someone was in your bag.
So again, a lock or a zip tie mostly creates friction.
– Use A Good Travel Credit Card To Purchase Your Airline Tickets and Bags.
I’m always shocked by how few people use their credit card benefits. If you have a good travel credit card, it will usually cover baggage theft.
The best travel credit cards for baggage insurance purposes tend to be Chase’s credit cards. To be clear, you don’t need to go out and apply for the Chase Sapphire Reserve with a hefty annual fee. You can choose a lower-fee card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred and get pretty awesome insurance coverage.
– Take a few photos before you check it.
You might know to do this with a rental car, but you should also take photos of your suitcase and everything inside it before you check it, too.
I usually take a quick video of what I put in my suitcase, not just for theft purposes, but so that I know how to repack it and make everything fit nicely on the way home.
If something goes missing or your bag gets destroyed, you’ve got proof for the airline or your insurance.
– carry on your suitcase
The bags that can’t get stolen from the conveyer belt are the bags you have with you on the plane. Before we had our daughter, Mike and I went everywhere with a carry-on only.
Although it might seem like a tight squeeze, it can be done. We once packed just carry-ons for a trip where we went to the beaches of Greece and then turned around and went straight up to Svalbard where it was negative 10 degrees Fahrenheit. So it can be done, especially if you do laundry during your trip.
The bonus with this is that you’ll also skip baggage claim entirely, which will save you a ton of time.
An Important Tip
While carousel theft does happen, it’s not where most thefts happen at the airport.
It tends to be behind the scenes where bags are stolen from most often. We haven’t encountered this ourselves, but baggage handlers and airport workers have time and privacy that a thief in the arrivals hall does not.
They can pull a bag off a belt in an area with no public view and take what they’d like.
And that’s why the smart move is to be conscious of what you’re putting inside your checked bags.
If the only thing to steal in your checked luggage is socks, you win!
Wrap-Up
While you can try, the truth is you can’t make any bag 100% theft-proof. What you CAN do is make your bag a worse target than the one next to it. Make it boring on the outside and keep nothing of value on the inside. Do that and the odds tip in your favor.
