Is Delta about to eliminate the 20-minute bag guarantee?

27.02.2024 - 20:29 / thepointsguy.com / Airlines

The rumor mill is swirling with speculation about the end of one of Delta Air Lines' checked bag policies.

For years, the Atlanta-based carrier has offered what it calls a "Bags on Time" guarantee. This policy awards 2,500 bonus SkyMiles — worth $30 according to TPG's latest valuations — for any checked bag that doesn't show up at the carousel within 20 minutes of arrival.

This policy only applies to domestic flights, but it has been a great incentive for Delta employees to deliver bags to the carousel within a reasonable amount of time.

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But could Delta be about to ax this long-standing policy?

According to reports on social media, including on various Delta-specific Facebook groups and forums, the answer is "yes" — and it's expected to happen as early as next week.

For its part, Delta says that it has no changes to announce.

"There's nothing we've announced nor have to announce with regards to a change in the program," said a company spokesperson in response to TPG's inquiry.

Still, Delta's vague wording gives the carrier just enough wiggle room to make some changes in the days and weeks ahead.

Of course, we'll keep monitoring for potential updates to the program, but Delta's statement also left me wondering what might be next for the Bags on Time policy.

Regardless of what's in store, here's what I'd like to see Delta do to make its guarantee more useful — and give itself more flexibility in keeping it intact.

Right now, claiming compensation for a delayed checked bag requires filling out a (simple) online form within three days of your flight.

Many travelers likely forget (or don't even know how) to complete this process, which means they don't receive compensation.

But if Delta automatically granted this compensation — after all, the airline already has the data on flight arrival times and baggage delivery scans — more travelers would become aware of this offering, especially if the airline proactively emailed (or sent a push notification to) each affected traveler about the compensation it granted.

Sure, it would cost Delta more miles, but it could also position this compensation as a key competitive advantage for traveling with the airline. After all, I'd much prefer checking my bag with an airline that guarantees delivery within 20 minutes. (The only other one in the U.S. that currently does this is Alaska Airlines.)

Along the same lines, Delta might be looking for ways to limit the amount of compensation that it doles out for delayed bags.

Even at Delta's sky-high redemption rates, SkyMiles tickets (usually) come at the expense of paying passengers.

So, instead of offering 2,500 miles to each passenger with