US: Airlines, passengers debate refunds for late baggage

As the DoT sharpens its proposal for airline refunds for delayed luggage, carriers and consumer groups are disagreeing about how late is "late. Airlines warned that setting the deadline too short for luggage to arrive without a fine could have the unintended result of raising the risk of lost bags and penalising carriers for allowing passengers to take an earlier flight without the luggage. But consumer groups and travel agents said the deadlines should be as short as possible, to encourage airlines to have a passenger and luggage on the same flight. “Indeed, we are of the opinion that each additional hour baggage may be delayed without triggering the right to receive a fee refund represents an incrementally greater inconvenience to the customer,” the general counsel to the American Society of Travel Agents, told DoT. <br/>