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Delta to keep 20-minute ‘guarantee’ for checked bags

Delta Air Lines says a checked-bag guarantee it introduced on a trial basis in February will become a permanent feature.

April 03, 2015

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​The airline now guarantees fliers' checked luggage will arrive at the baggage carousel within 20 minutes when traveling on domestic flights. Delta will give 2,500 miles to customers' whose bags take longer than that to reach the carousel.

Delta first rolled out the offer in late February, but did so on a trial basis. The trial was to expire March 31.

"Customer response was positive and our employees are rallying to achieve the 20-minute mark, so it's here to stay," Delta spokesman Morgan Durrant says in an e-mail to Today in the Sky.

Customers whose bags are slow to get to the carousel must fill out an online form on Delta's website to receive the miles. Delta will check the details and award the 2,500 miles once it confirms a customer's eligibility.

The guarantee covers all itineraries where a traveler's last leg is a domestic Delta flight – including those operated by Delta's regional Delta Connection affiliates.

Delta says the plane-to-carousel time will be "measured by Delta's baggage tracking system, where available."

For now, Delta becomes the second big U.S. carrier to offer such a guarantee.

Alaska Airlines has long offered it's own 20 minute baggage guarantee. Like Delta, Alaska Air offers 2,500 miles to customers whose bags do not arrive to the carousel within 20 minutes. Alaska Air also gives customers the option to receive a $25 travel voucher instead of the miles.

As for Delta's offer, fliers must meet the following criteria to be eligible:

+ Be traveling on a domestic U.S. flight. International flights are not included. However, a passenger traveling from Paris to Chicago via New York would be eligible since the passenger's last leg would be a U.S. domestic flight.

+ Customers must be a Delta SkyMiles member in good standing at the time of travel.

+ The offer is limited to one request per passenger per outbound or return travel. Fliers will be eligible only for 2,500 miles, regardless of number of bags they've checked.

+ Lost, mishandled, and damaged bags are excluded. Oversize and overweight baggage and special items also are not eligible.