Comments on: Why airport luggage thieves steal black bags

By: Don’t Make Your Luggage A Target « Prepare For Your Trip « The Go To Handbook

Fri, 30 Dec 2011 22:54:09 +0000

[...] take it home. The blog “Thiefhunters in Paradise” made an excellent observation about why airport luggage thieves steal black bags. If they want to take someone’s luggage off the carousal but the owner sees them it appears [...]

By: mahmopud adib

mahmopud adib — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 11:53:21 +0000

black bag 1X1.5 feet (m resort casino bag) with all documents medication , us passport and many documents lost in security check point (D) in las Vegas airport Jan 4 2011 at 3 pm before heading to Portland Oregon by Alaska air lines flight 623 , i appreciated your help

By: Bill C.

Bill C. — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 23:34:51 +0000

I know this is an old thread, but I just discovered this website today…. very addictive reading! :)

When I fly, I always have a 10-inch silver duct tape around the handle of my suitcase. It says “DIRTY LAUNDRY” and in the last 10 years, I haven’t had my suitcase stolen yet. In fact, foreign customs also seem very reluctant to inspect my bag. :)

By: Anik Bansal

Anik Bansal — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:06:07 +0000

Sir/Madam,

I am a Nokia distributor at Sunam distt. Sangrur Punjab(India) and Come on trip to Thailand last week (dt 05/03/2010) with group of 120 persons sponsored by NOKIA.

When we all were checking out the hotel dt 08/03/2010, we had put in my luggage in the Bus which was expected to take us to the airpot. To my utmost surprise I could not get my luggage at the airport. all the baggages were there .it is black in colour suitcase (suitcase company is VIP) with my name slip (ANIK BANSAL of SUNAM INDIA) in the suit case also my airticket of thai aitways dt 08/03/010 time 19:50.I also compliant in lost & found.

So kindly do look into the matter and do the needful at the earliest as i have been put to a loss of more than 1 lac (indian RS) .
Regards,
Anik bansal
Bansal Automobiles
Patiala Road
Sunam punjab(india)
919814720080

By: Weekend link dump for November 22 – Off the Kuff

Weekend link dump for November 22 – Off the Kuff — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 20:09:09 +0000

[...] Avoid black luggage. My grandmother used to travel with a piece of puke-green Samsonite that had the letter K (for Kuffner) plastered on it in lime-green masking tape. No one would ever claim to have picked that off the carousel by “accident”. [...]

By: Car Rental Singapore

Car Rental Singapore — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 19:55:17 +0000

I love bag tags, however, sometimes it is just not enough to deter criminals. As for having bright color bags, the last I checked, it is hard to find it. Ok, maybe there are, however, I doubt many men would consider a pink luaggage. Any guys out there like to tell me if they really would consider a pink bag?

By: Rick

Rick — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:51:21 +0000

Bambi: you saw a bold zebra-striped shiny plastic suitcase? You did? But why did you take it? That was mine!

OK I’m just marking time until Bambi gets to a hotspot so we have more cool stuff to read again. xox

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:43:15 +0000

I believe the ‘black bag’ theory is true for handbags as well, and not only in airports but, also major train stations and, presumably, other large public places are high risk…

After having my ‘plain black’ handbag ripped away from me while trying to board a train in the Brussels-Midi station, I decided ‘no more black or neutral handbags for me, ever!”
…it was on a Friday evening, late January (when people tend to dress in darker clothing), hundreds of people with dark handbags and brief cases boarding and de-boarding international trains – this station is within a (few) mile(s), in some cases a few hundred yards, of most major embassies (incl.USA) , the UN HQ, etc….

By: Adam Bates

Adam Bates — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:46:41 +0000

It is an airline’s responsibility to ensure checked bags are returned to their owners – MSNBC http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33833245/ns/travel-tips/.

These days it is unwise to pack anything valuable or irreplaceable into checked luggage. There is a high probability somebody will go through your luggage before it gets to the carousel.

By: grant jacobson

grant jacobson — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:19:46 +0000

I agree with the colored bag theory but I have taken to an old school trick of taping my name and destination boldly and firmly over the side of my China side walk sale special black market bag. I also stand by the shute and can see my bag as it comes out. Now couple that with a piece of rope around it and my bright red bandanna and they think I am from Bohunk Canada where no one has anything to steal. Have traveled world wide and never lost a bag yet… touch plastic. By the way I have several bags of rewrapped laxative chocolates inside just to give me a bit of satisfaction if they do go missing. I have grabbed my bag out of the hand of an “oooh I grabbed the wrong bag” guy just because I stood at the right spot and kept my eyes open.

By: Bambi

Bambi — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:11:00 +0000

Thanks, Louis, I’ve made the correction. Appreciate that!

Drew. I haven’t interrogated any airport luggage thieves myself, but my cop friends have. The thieves actually say they prefer black luggage for the reason I outlined. However, if an opportunity presents itself, I’m sure a green bag wouldn’t be smirked at. Also, as a very frequent traveler, I do see greater variety in luggage lately. Today I saw a bold zebra-striped shiny plastic suitcase.

By: Drew Thaler

Drew Thaler — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:14:18 +0000

I’m not so sure this is correct.

Perhaps the prevalence of black bags is just related to the source material — the percentage of ALL bags which are black.

For example, imagine a different couple who in fact stole *entirely* at random, literally using a random number generator to make their choice. But of course they would necessarily be stealing from the set of bags available at airports today, which are mostly black.

What would the set of bags they stole look like? And how would the end result be different from what these guys stole?

By: Louis

Louis — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:52:41 +0000

It’s actually “scot free”

By: uberVU - social comments

uberVU - social comments — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:12:52 +0000

Social comments and analytics for this post…

This post was mentioned on Twitter by bambivalent1: New blog post: Why airport luggage thieves steal black bags http://bit.ly/3kcG4y...

By: Bambi

Bambi — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 05:02:06 +0000

Hah! The dark suit made you attractive to thieves. It must have been your hair ribbons and green socks that scared them away.