Airlines could pay when bags are lost

When an airline loses a passenger's baggage, the customer shouldn't have to pay the air carrier's rising luggage fees, said U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer of New York.

He said if airlines don't start reimbursing their rising fees when passengers' bags are lost, he'll introduce a bill to force the issue.

"Unless airlines do the job they are paid to do and return bags in a timely fashion, passengers shouldn't have to pay a dime," Schumer said Sunday. "It boggles the mind that airlines can lose your bags for days on end and stick you with the bill."

The Democrat says that under a new rule airlines would only have to reimburse their baggage fees if the luggage is lost forever. That rule is scheduled to take effect in August.

The fees range from $25 to $100.

Schumer tells The Associated Press that airlines should voluntarily refund the fees upon request to passengers when their checked bags don't arrive when they do.

He says only a small fraction of lost bags are never returned. Most show up hours or days later.

But if airlines don't make the move, he says, he'll introduce a bill to require the refunds.

Schumer's criticism comes as the U.S. Department of Transportation is proposing airlines detail their many and growing fees for baggage, pillows and other services, so consumers can better choose between airlines. Airlines receive $3.4 billion a year from baggage fees alone.