American Airlines Bought Me New Running Shoes (Delayed Baggage Compensation)

Recently, I was on my way back from a work trip in Las Vegas. On my way home, the flight leaving Las Vegas was delayed, leaving me with an incredibly short layover in Charlotte. While I did make it (after sprinting through the airport and arriving at my gate breathless and sweaty), my checked bag did not. This is not surprising, given the fact that there was less than 5 minutes between my departure from one gate and arrival at the next, and they closed the gate almost as soon as I boarded the aircraft.

This left me in a tough spot. My bag was not lost. The airline knew exactly where it was, but I was on the last flight out of Charlotte to Norfolk for the evening, so there would not be another flight to put the bag on until the next morning. Unfortunately, my only pair of running shoes were in the bag, and I needed to work out the next morning. I do not deal with jet lag well, and exercise is one of the ways I help myself get over it. So I did some Googling on American’s Delayed Baggage Compensation program. It turns out, their policy is to “reimburse you for the reasonable and necessary items you need immediately while away from home without your bags.” This gave me some hope, but I was concerned that I would not qualify since I was not away from home. Regardless, I reported my bag as delayed and got an Uber home from the airport.

I had already been considering buying new running shoes for a few weeks, so I went ahead and took the leap, figuring I could just take the money out of my savings account if American denied my claim. I went to the local running store the next morning and bought a new pair of shoes. I filled out the delayed baggage compensation form, providing my ID, receipt, baggage claim tag, etc. Within a few hours of submitting my claim, I received an email informing me that it had been approved, and had a check in my mailbox in roughly a week. My bag was delivered to my house by American the same day that my payment was confirmed via email (the day after I returned home).

A screenshot of the email I received from American’s Central Baggage Division confirming that I would be receiving the full amount of claimed compensation for the new pair of shoes I purchased.

I think the biggest lesson here is that if you feel you have been wronged or injured (physically or otherwise) by a corporation, especially an airline, it is okay to ask for compensation. You are not greedy, you are not a leech on society. Airlines and other companies like keeping customers, and it is often cheaper for them to provide compensation and retain you as a customer rather than losing you and paying to acquire a new customer. Just remember, they will usually not offer compensation proactively, so you have to ASK!

Have you received compensation for delayed bags or other inconveniences from an airline recently? Let me know your story in the comments!