Does Wrapping Your Baggage Make It Extra Safe? TSA Weighs In

There are loads of odd airport jobs. The “fowl guys” hold birds at bay, bathroom crews empty the loos, and at last, there are individuals who receives a commission to wrap baggage in plastic. The primary two jobs make sense—it’s necessary to maintain the runways clear and the planes clear— however most vacationers aren’t positive in regards to the third. That mentioned, luggage-wrapping stations have been a mainstay at main U.S. worldwide airports because the early 90s. They’re much more widespread overseas; one Miami-based firm, Safe Wrap, has greater than 500 workers wrapping baggage at airports throughout 17 completely different international locations. 

Why do passengers wrap their baggage? 

Passengers wrap their baggage for an array of causes. Some vacationers get their baggage wrapped to guard the outside of the bags from scratches and marks, whereas others get it wrapped to guard the contents inside the bags. Some vacationers might imagine that if a suitcase is wrapped in plastic, it’s much less more likely to be inspected by TSA or interfered with by nefarious characters who could also be inclined to steal or maybe worse, plant one thing incriminating inside. For this reason baggage wrapping is so widespread in some high-risk locations. For instance, in 2015, Ninoy Aquino Worldwide Airport in Manila made headlines for a purported planted-bullet racket. Identified regionally because the “laglag-bala rip-off,” it entailed corrupt airport personnel allegedly planting bullets in passenger baggage. The passengers have been then inspired to pay bribes to keep away from getting arrested for flying with ammunition. 

And a few vacationers, particularly these going to the Maldives, Australia, and different international locations that spray insecticide and disinfectant on arriving flights, wrap their baggage in plastic to guard their contents from the chemical substances. “Lots of people did this on my flight arriving in China due to how a lot they spray and ‘disinfect’ your bag upon arrival,” wrote one traveler on Reddit who mentioned they regretted not wrapping their bag prematurely as a result of their garments obtained saturated. Lastly, there are all the time vacationers who need to get their baggage wrapped as a result of their suitcase is falling aside or they’ve been cursed with a rogue zipper. Paying $15—what Safe Wrap costs at Miami Worldwide Airport—to wrap a damaged bag is so much cheaper than shopping for a brand new suitcase on the airport. 

What does the TSA do with wrapped baggage? 

TSA spokesperson Lorie Dankers tells Journey + Leisure that baggage wrapped in plastic is handled the identical as baggage that isn’t wrapped in plastic. All checked baggage are topic to screening earlier than they’re handed on to airline baggage handlers who load them onto the airplane. Within the U.S., that’s roughly 1.3 million checked baggage per day. TSA and its counterparts overseas use X-ray machines that use a 3D scanner to search for objects that resemble explosives or different hazardous supplies. Some airports additionally depend on Okay-9s that may detect every little thing from bullets to bombs. Wrapping your baggage in plastic doesn’t have an effect on how the X-Ray machines scan the bag, nor does it deter the canine. 

Most baggage, roughly 95 %, move this screening and don’t should be bodily inspected by a TSA officer. Luggage which might be flagged, get opened—this implies plastic wrapping will likely be minimize, and locks will likely be damaged in the event that they’re not TSA-approved. Within the U.S. not less than, the TSA examines baggage in a managed setting monitored by CCTV. This ensures that nobody is tempted to tamper (in an pointless manner) with a passenger’s property. Whereas the TSA agent who examines the bag will repack it and embody a paper slip indicating that the bag was inspected so the passenger is aware of why somebody rifled by way of their baggage, they won’t rewrap the bag in plastic. 

Nevertheless, some luggage-wrapping corporations, together with Safe Wrap, provide complimentary rewrapping if the plastic wrapping is minimize by TSA. Additionally they embody a assure that matches the airways’ compensation for misplaced baggage or injury. Be aware: These kinds of ensures are topic to many phrases and situations. 

What else are you able to do to maintain baggage safe? 

Whereas some luggage-wrapping corporations declare they solely use one hundred pc recyclable plastic, many airports are beginning to contemplate banning plastic baggage wrapping as a consequence of environmental considerations. Fortuitously, if you wish to hold your baggage safe, you might have different choices. For starters, you need to use TSA-approved locks or baggage straps. It’s also possible to spend money on a reusable baggage cowl in case you’re involved with aesthetics.