Delta baggage manager’s PSA: Stop tossing your bag tags at the airport—or risk a nasty scam

A Delta baggage claims manager just issued a blunt warning on Reddit: Stop ripping off and trashing your luggage tags at the airport.

The reason? Fraudsters are allegedly scooping up those tags and using the info to submit bogus reimbursement claims—clogging the system for real passengers who actually need help.

“I am a Delta baggage claims manager and I just wanted to let everyone know to please start discarding your bag tags at home,” the poster wrote, adding they’re seeing “an influx of fraudulent claims” from people “observing who is removing their luggage tags in the claim areas and using your information to submit claims for reimbursement.”

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The manager doubled down later in the thread: “What I am discouraging is removing your tag while still at the airport… who would enjoy getting a call from a Delta rep letting them know that their flight information is entangled in a fraud claim?”

What other travelers had to say

Travelers chimed in with related cautions—don’t toss tags in hotel trash either, and treat printed/visible boarding passes the same way. “There have been a few instances of fraud using bag tags found at hotels,” one former hotel employee wrote. Another user flagged that even leaving a mobile boarding pass in view can be risky.

Not everyone was convinced, but airline ground staff in the comments explained why the risk isn’t imaginary: the claim number and passenger details on the long adhesive tag can be enough for bad actors to start a false claim, even if you keep the little claim sticker you’re handed at check-in. “All you need is the bag claim number,” a baggage handler noted.

What to do instead

Keep tags on until you’re home. Then shred them—don’t dump them at the carousel or in a hotel bin. “Shred your bag tags and printed boarding passes,” one top comment urged.

Don’t display boarding passes. Avoid leaving printed passes visible (or your mobile pass open) where someone can snap a photo.

Skip sticker “souvenirs.” Slapping old IATA stickers on your suitcase can misroute bags if the wrong code gets scanned, a ramp agent warned.

Hang onto documents until issues are resolved. If something goes wrong with your bag, you’ll need the info—then dispose of it securely once you’re squared away. (This is common-sense security echoed by multiple commenters.)

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Bottom line: Treat luggage tags and boarding passes like any other document with scannable codes and personal details. The extra step of taking them home to shred could save you from a headache—and help baggage teams focus on real claims.

Editor's note: This article is based on a public Reddit thread started by a user identifying as a Delta baggage claims manager. Yahoo has not independently verified the user’s employment status.

Yahoo CreatorJill SchildhouseJill Schildhouse has 25 years of experience as a journalist, regularly contributing travel and cruise content to U.S. News & World Report, Reader's Digest, AARP, The Points Guy, and more. FollowFollow