A New Innovation in Luggage Tracking

Even if you have comprehensive travel insurance, losing your bags is not something you like to think about when on holiday. Apart from the expense, a lost bag can be a huge inconvenience and can indeed spoil a holiday in its entirety if it is not found and reunited with its owner quickly and efficiently. While comprehensive travel insurance can help with reclaiming the value of the bag and its contents, it cannot help with the potential stress and hassle a lost bag can lead to.

While human error in baggage handling is inevitable, an innovation is currently being tested to minimise the risk of a bag getting lost completely.

Tracking Luggage Electronically

Rimowa is a German luggage manufacturer and one that has been working with Lufthansa to develop the first digital electric tag that can help keep track of luggage. Fully integrated, this high tech initiative serves to make travelling with hold bags more comfortable, safer and quicker.

Currently, the most common way of tracking luggage is to fix one half of a paper luggage tag to it, and attach the other half to the owner’s passport. Both have the same barcode that can help when reuniting a bag with its rightful owner. The new, more efficient electronic tags, however, will soon be in operation for Lufthansa passengers.

How Does it Work?

The beauty of the electronic tag is its convenience. Passengers traveling with Lufthansa will soon be able to download the Lufthansa App and use the Rimowa electronic tag to check in luggage from home, while travelling to the airport, or in fact from anywhere they like. All it takes is one click and the wonder of Bluetooth to transfer the data from the electronic boarding pass that is held on the phone to the item of luggage that is fitted with the electronic tag.

As soon as the luggage is checked in, the data will show up on the data component that has been assimilated into the relevant bag. Using this convenient system also means that passengers only need to head to the Baggage Drop Off counter in the airport, thus avoiding any lengthy queues.

The tag is the same size as the paper tags in use today and the vital information that is specific to the bag is protected just in case it comes into contact with humidity, extreme temperatures or an impact of some sort.

So far it is only Lufthansa that is planning to provide this service, but other airlines are sure to take their lead.

When Can We Expect the Product to be Launched?

The plan is for the Rimowa electronic tag to be launched early next year. Currently there is a test phase being carried out, so should that be evaluated as a success, then the proposed launch date should be honoured.

Even if you plan to get on board with this initiative in the future, comprehensive travel insurance is still a must when making any trip, be it for business or pleasure.