To: The United States House of Representatives
Airlines: We want our luggage on OUR flights
Airlines routinely route passengers' luggage on later flights without passengers' permission, causing extreme and sometimes costly inconvenience. If airlines want to charge for baggage service, they should be required to a) notify you before you reach your destination if your baggage isn't on your flight; b) provide you with a refund; and c) credit for the inconvenience they've caused.
Why is this important?
In a misguided effort to correct their own flawed business models, most airlines now charge for the right to check even a single suitcase. And yet, the airlines reserve the right to place your suitcase(s) on a different flight without telling you in advance and without being obliged to offer you a refund for a service they did not, in fact, provide. If airlines want to charge for baggage service, they should be required to actually provide that service rather than subject passengers to the extreme inconvenience and stress that invariably accompanies arrival at a destination without one's belongings. If the airlines are going to charge for a service, they should be required to provide it or refund your money. Period.