One of the worst ways to start a relaxing holiday is to trudge off the plane to be faced with the frustration that our luggage hasn't made the journey with us.
We're left to fork out on new clothes to keep us going until our bags eventually catch up with us and the blame for the mix-up often lies with the airline.
But other times it can be our own fault - and one very simple but common mistake can be the cause.
A travel expert has revealed the silly blunder travellers make that results in suitcases being flown to the wrong destination or being lost altogether after we check in.
They explained many plane passengers get into the bad habit of not removing old baggage tags from our luggage which are usually wrapped around the handles or stuck onto the side of a suitcase.
Although they can be a pain to get off, they contain details of where our belongings should be sent to and leaving old ones on our bags can lead to confusion, as reported by News.com.au .
The expert explained on Reddit: "Not a secret, just common sense: the reason some bags miss their flight or get misrouted is because passengers don’t remove old tags.
"It confuses handlers as well as the conveyor belt scanners. I see it happen all the time."
After removing previous tags, you should also take a photo of your bag before checking in, as it will be easier for staff to find it if they know what they are looking for in the result it does go missing.
A baggage hander also recently revealed why putting a padlock on your suitcase may not make your bag as safe as you think - and could actually put your luggage at greater risk .
They explained that the lock flags a bag as one worth having a look through, as another said they act as no deterrent as it's easy to pop a zipper with a pen to open up, before using the locked zipper to close it back up.
