To want to wrap my suitcase in cling film

[OneAPecker]

I've noticed recently in airports that people wrap their suitcases in cling film. We are flying to Sweden over half term and I think I'd like to do this too. I'm not really sure why people do it but I guess I like the idea of my bag not being tampered with once it's checked in.

I mentioned to dh and we had a disagreement. He thinks you can't do it because they may want to check the bag when we go through security, and it will take ages to cling film it up again. He also thinks that it's not necessary.

Am I being unreasonable to think that it's a good idea to cling film up the suitcases like everyone else does?

I did a test run today and bought some cling film from the supermarket but it is non-PVC and doesn't stick very well. Anyone know which cling film best to use and how many times to wrap it?

We had a (deliberately unlocked) travel bag ripped open with a knife/scissors and an empty watch box ripped apart in LAX (on the outward journey the box had a watch in it, birthday present for my DH)
Not sure if wrapping would've been a deterrent to this, but it gave us pause for thought.
Pipbin although nothing was stolen, our bag was both ruined and delayed, which wasn't a very nice experience. The airline did pay for a replacement, but it wasn't something I would like to repeat.
(Although I'm sure that actually having stuff stolen would have been much, much worse, obv)

I've had my bag tampered with - the lock was missing and inside were somebody else's clothes (mine were all there too - they must have opened multiple bags and some extra stuff got packed into mine).

Wrapping stops petty / opportunistic thieving but does allow security to access the bag if needed.

Personally I carry valuables / essentials with me and don't wrap my bag but I can understand it.

Don't do it at home though!

I had stuff stolen from suitcase in Asia so would have it done if travelling out of Europe but wouldn't bother cling filming it for trip to Europe. Tried with cling film at home - lol! Worth a try I suppose!

It's to do with people having drugs planted in their suitcases. When I was in Australia 10 years ago there was a very high profile case of a young Aussie woman jailed in Thailand due to having drugs found in her case, so all the Aussies were doing this. No one else did though!

I don't get it? The machines are beyond security and most people have already checked their bags in?

The machines aren't beyond security- they're in the check in hall.

Why would it stop a thief though?

I mean, I'm no criminal mastermind but even I could figure out how to get through some cling film. I do it every day with my sandwiches for work.

If security open it to check they will leave a note inside saying so

Clash

If I was a thief the suitcases I'd suspect of having anything worth stealing would be the ones wrapped in clingfilm.

The first thing the customs people will think is "what don't they want me to smell".

My friend had a pair of sandals stolen from her case (presumably by security staff at the airport). Her case had a travel combination lock on, which was still intact when she got her case back. The lock manufacturers advertised that the lock is most secure but airport security have a universal code to unlock the manufacturers lock.

There was a programme on a few years ago, about all the cases found in Heathrow airport and how they auction off the contents rather than locating the owners. They had huge warehouses of cases

We had a (deliberately unlocked) travel bag ripped open with a knife/scissors and an empty watch box ripped apart in LAX (on the outward journey the box had a watch in it, birthday present for my DH)

Is that US customs though? We had our bag opened last time we went to the states. There was a note from US customs saying that they had done it as a random bag search.

I'm feeling a bit left out here - travelled many thousands of miles and never had my bag lost, stolen or even obviously interfered with - I never lock my case/bag - although I don't generally leave anything of any great value in it.

I thought you had to leave suitcases unlocked now, for security to check cases, otherwise they'll break your locks?

I've only seen this at the airport in Rio and had forgotten all about it!

I've always assumed the cling film people were one of those many pointless ways that they try to extract money from you when travelling, like paying to choose your seat .

If the security people want to look in your case, they will, and now people have said it, yes it does seem like a good way to ensure that your case will be 'randomly chosen' for a good thorough manual search.

But then, I've never been outside Europe so people may think it a small price to pay in countries where the likelihood of being tricked into being a drugs mule and the consequences are very much higher.

Or maybe, if we had paid for the clingfilm wrap the last time we came away from Lanzarote, the baggage handlers would not have stolen DPs Swiss Army Knife.

We had DD's car seat wrapped a couple of years ago when we flew and needed to take her seat with us, purely to protect it from getting damaged in the hold. It was worth the £10 we paid! It takes a strong pair of scissors and about a quarter of an hour to get if all of again afterwards, so would def deter a baggage handler or similar nicking stuff.

I thought you had to leave suitcases unlocked now, for security to check cases, otherwise they'll break your locks?

Our bags have got security friendly locks. They have a master key so they can unlock it.

Pipbin no, there was no note. And I would have thought (hoped?) that security would have unzipped it to have a rummage, and would have opened the box not literally ripped it apart.
The bag was knifed open (for speed I guess) and eventually arrived back to us wrapped in cling film to both cover the evidence and stop everything falling out!!

If I were flying into certain destinations, I'd definitely cling film my suitcases. If a thief has a choice between your cling filmed suitcase and one that isn't, they will go for the one that isn't. Also, if you have cling filmed your bag, you'll instantly know if it's been tampered with so you can report it there and then, rather than getting to your hotel and having to prove it was tampered with. (as someone else said, if airport security check your bags, they leave a note)

Iirc, you get a receipt that you keep to prove you've wrapped your bags, so no need for terribly amusing little pictures with newspapers and ground crew.

Shrink wrapping is also recommended for people who are putting back packs in the hold, to prevent the straps getting eaten by the belts on the machines.

riverTam

I remember that, it was Scapelle Corby wasn't it? I think she took a bodyboard to Indonesia and it turned up full of weed. She claims that th weed was put there airside by baggage handling staff as a per of some smuggling ring. Poor bugger has only just gout out of prison. And was lucky not to get the death penalty.

Put the wind up everyone in Aus at the time. I never used to lock my rucksack (scabby backpacker I had nowt worth stealing) never occurred to me till then someone might want to put something IN my bag. I Bought a new lockable rucksack before my next onward flight!