Delayed, lost, or damaged items

Report baggage issues immediately

We cannot award compensation for damaged or missing items without a report on file. Hold on to your ticket receipts and baggage claim checks until your file is closed.

• If your bag is damaged, report it to an agent immediately after you pick it up from the baggage carousel.
• You must report all other issues in-person to the baggage service office at your arrival airport within 24 hours.
• Once you have reported the issue, you will receive a confirmation email with the File ID.
• To check the status of your report contact the airport service baggage office where you filed the report, or log into the baggage tracing portal "This indicates a link to an external site that may not follow the same accessibility or privacy policies as Alaska Airlines. By selecting a partner link you agree to share your data with these sites." with your File ID.

Most bags are located within 48 hours.

We'll deliver your recovered bags to your home or hotel — unless you checked your baggage in late, or you chose to take a flight other than the one your bags were tagged for.

Get reimbursed on essentials

Keep all your paid receipts for any travel essentials you buy while your bag is missing (such as toiletries and clothing.)

Present your receipts at the airport baggage service office where you filed your report.

Find out more about reimbursement coverage on our Limitations of liability page.

If your bag is still delayed after 5 days

• Your filed report automatically transfers to Alaska’s Central Baggage Service office. They’ll do a comprehensive computer search of airlines worldwide.
• The Central Baggage Service office will email a statement of mishandling form within one week.

If you have any further questions, you can contact the Central Baggage Service Office number: 1-877-815-8253 (6:00 am – 10:00 pm PT) or contact us with the online Central Baggage Service contact form.

Place an identification tag inside your bag.

In the rare event that your bag is misplaced, this free downloadable tag will make the identification and return process quicker. Simply complete the form and place it inside your bag.

Download a baggage ID tag. (PDF File is 343K)