Lost Luggage and Lost Property
What happens if your luggage goes missing or if you lose anything at Tenerife South Airport? What can you do to avoid your luggage getting lost during air travel? We have summarised some information and advice for you below.
What to Do if Your Luggage Hasn’t Arrived
You have arrived at Tenerife South Airport but your luggage hasn’t! What do you need to do?
How do I report my luggage as missing?
If your luggage does not arrive at Tenerife South Airport, you will need to contact your airline’s luggage handling agent immediately, before leaving the airport. The handling agent will ask you to complete a Property Irregularity Report (PIR). Make sure that you get a copy of this report and the handling agent’s contact details. This is important, in case you need to make a claim later on.
How can I get my luggage returned to me?
The agent can track your luggage via the bar code on the airline’s luggage label. This will enable the staff to let you know what has happened to your bags and where they currently are. Most of the time, it will be possible for the handling agent to locate your missing luggage and to deliver it to you. This usually happens within one to three days.
Lost Luggage Office
You will find the lost luggage office in the baggage reclaim hall on the ground floor. Below are the contact details for the luggage handling agents at Tenerife South Airport.
| Avia Partner | Telephone: (+34) 922 759 126 |
| EasyJet | Telephone: (+34) 922 759 186 |
| Iberia | Telephone: (+34) 922 759 391 |
| Menzies | Telephone: (+34) 922 759 376 |
| Ryanair | Telephone: (+34) 922 759 693 |
How can I make a claim for lost luggage?
Any baggage that hasn’t been delivered within 21 days is officially classed as “lost”. At this point, you can make a claim against your airline or your travel insurer, if applicable. For this purpose, you will need a copy of the lost luggage report that was completed by the handling agent at the airport (see above). Please contact your airline and your travel insurance for more information on the process.
Lost Property at Tenerife South Airport
Should you lose your luggage or any other items at Tenerife South Airport, you will need to contact the Lost Property Office.
Lost Property Office at TFS
| Location: | Departures hall, first floor |
| Opening times: | 10 am to 10 pm |
| Email: | [email protected] |
Please follow the lost and found procedure to reclaim your lost property:
Send an e-mail to [email protected]. You will need to include the following information:
- Date when you lost the item
- Where in the airport you think you lost the item
- Description of the items (including brand, model, colour, size, any damage or marks, etc). Please give as many details as possible – the information you provide must unmistakably identify the items. Include photographs, if possible.
- Your contact details
Await confirmation that your property was found:
- If your lost property was handed in, you will be contacted by the Lost Property Office via email.
- You will receive a registration number and further instructions on how you can retrieve your property.
Collect your property:
- Please allow some time when you come to collect your property and make sure that you bring any relevant documentation, as per the instructions you received.
- Please note that the items cannot be delivered or posted.
- If you are unable to collect the items yourself, you can give permission for someone to do this on your behalf. This could be someone you know or a courrier of your choice.
Lost property onboard the aircraft
If you discover you have left any items behind on the plane, you will need to contact your airline as soon as possible. Please see here for airline contact details. If you are still at Tenerife South Airport, go to your airline’s help desk inside the terminal.
How Can I Prevent my Luggage from Getting Lost?
Unfortunately, there is no ultimate answer to this question and sometimes you will just be unlucky. However, there are a few things you can do to make it less likely for your bags to go missing or to increase the chances of being reunited with your luggage, should it get lost somewhere along the way.
Consider the following:
Don’t check in late
If you have luggage to check in, try to get to the airport in good time and don’t leave it to the last minute. A late check-in at the bag drop desk can be one of the reasons for your baggage getting lost. The check-in window for your bags can vary depending on your airline, the airport you are departing from, and your destination. The bag drop facility for your flight tends to open around 2 to 3 hours before departure and closes around 40 to 60 minutes before departure. However, the later you leave it, the higher the chance that your luggage may not reach your aircraft in time.
Clearly label your bags
In addition to the airline’s tag that gets secured to your bag at the check-in desk, you may want to add your own luggage label with your name and telephone number. This is useful as a back-up, should the airline tag become detached or unreadable. It is also important to remove any old airline luggage labels from your bags, to avoid confusion. If you want to play it completely safe, you should also add your contact information inside your suitcase, which can help if all the external tags go missing for some reason.
Avoid bags with straps
Loose straps on your luggage increase the risk of it getting caught or entangled on one of the conveyor belts in the airport. This in turn might cause the bag to not reach the aircraft in time for your flight.
Place bags flat on the belt
Bags that are placed on the luggage belt in an upright or otherwise unstable position are in danger of falling off. If this is not noticed and rectified straight away, it can cause your bag to be delayed and to miss the flight!
Buy a luggage tracker
If you want to be able to be able to keep tabs on your bag’s movements, you can get a luggage tracker. Putting this small device inside your suitcase will allow you to establish its location via GPS tracking. This may give you peace of mind and can also help in speeding up the process of retrieving lost luggage from your airline.
Ensure your luggage is easy to recognise
If you have a bag or a suitcase that looks just like everyone else’s, there is always a danger of another passenger accidentally taking it off the luggage carousel instead of their own and taking it home without realising. This can be easily avoided by giving your bags a slightly more “individual” look, e.g. with the aid of a colourful ribbon or strap.
Photograph your bags before you check them in
Should your bags go missing, it can be useful to have a photograph that you can send to the airline together with any paperwork you may have to fill in. This will enable airline staff to recognise the lost bags more easily.