By Scott Nyerges on September 26, 2009 in
If you're still in the airport, but have left the secured area, check with the airline's baggage-claim office, which is located near the luggage carousels. "This actually has a pretty high success rate," says Arlene Fleming, About.com's guide to air travel. "The agent may still have a chance to call the bridge... or to radio the cleaners to see if it's been found."
If you've left the airport, make a note of your flight number, date and time of departure, the seat you were sitting in and the airport gate number where you arrived (if you recall it). You'll need this info to call the airport's lost-and-found office. "If they don't have it they can usually transfer your call to the airline's lost and found (or) lost baggage office at that airport," Fleming says.
If you don't get anywhere that way, the airline may have a number for its baggage-claim office. Fleming offers a handy list of toll-free numbers for U.S.-based carriers, as well as a list for international airlines, on her channel. If you think you may have left the item at an airport security checkpoint, or an item from your checked baggage is missing, the Transportation Security Administration website suggests calling airport customer service.
If you've lost your passport, you must contact the U.S. State Department. You'll need to fill out a statement of loss or theft (available online) and send it in. A toll-free help number is also listed.
If you've lost your driver's license, it's a bit more complicated because each state has a different procedure for reporting the loss. The websites of some states' department of motor vehicles say you must file a report with your local police department, while others merely suggest contacting the DMV. AutoExchange.net has a list of state DMV websites that's a handy place to start.
If you've lost a credit card, you'll want to contact your issuer promptly. It's best to have your account number with you, but since most people don't carry copies of their last statement with them, you'll have to answer several security questions when you call the customer-service department. About.com's guide to credit and debt offers a handy online guide describing what to do if you've lost your credit card.
To increase the odds that a lost item will come back to you, About.com's air travel guide offers this advice for people getting ready to travel: "Try and have a phone contact on important documents (or) items when traveling," says Fleming, who has worked at both mid-sized and large airports. "The chance of retrieving a lost item is then very good."