Dallas woman checks new BÉIS suitcase before boarding Southwest flight. Then she sees what happened to it: ‘A Ross $60 suitcase has never failed me’
She sent her BÉIS suitcase off on its maiden voyage with hope in her heart and a camera rolling. One Dallas woman innocently videoed the start of her new suitcase’s first journey. Who knew the clip would later be used in a before-and-after with shocking results?
Unfortunately, the pristine, influencer-approved hard shell came back looking like it lost a bar fight with the baggage carousel. Naturally, the internet is now asking the real question: how is it that a beat-up $60 Ross suitcase survives years of chaos, but a brand-new designer carry-all can’t make it through a single trip?
‘This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things’
Paulina (@positivelypaulina) has sadly thrown her hat into the ring of BÉIS suitcases ruined by Southwest. Does it sound too specific? It may be a bit niche, but The Mary Sue recently covered a story with the same two variables. What is it with BÉIS and Southwest?
Paulina’s eighteen-second clip with its distinct before-and-after effect has caught the eye of 642,000 viewers. The beginning shows the light blue hard shell suitcase happily rolling into the airport. Paulina comments on its beauty, and her voice wistfully hopes for a safe voyage.
“This is my suitcase’s maiden voyage. Let’s hope it looks the same after,” she says. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t. The video then cuts to the after and shows the suitcase now with a huge dent in the upper left corner.
Paulina comments that it definitely “did NOT” survive the maiden journey. “I’m so sad. This is why we can’t have nice things,” she says with her hand over her mouth.
Paulina’s text overlay reads: “No worse feeling than checking your brand new cutie suitcase for the first time.” Her caption simply says, “RIP to my brand new BÉIS suitcase.” She then tags Southwest Airlines and asks them to “help a girl out.”
What Can Southwest Do?
Southwest’s page on baggage lays out the rules rather than an in-depth process. First, they state that all claims of damaged baggage must be made in person within a certain time window of their trip (24 hours for domestic trips and seven days for international).
They make sure to mention that they are not liable for normal “wear and tear” like scuffs, dents, punctures, dirt, etc. After stating that a customer just needs to file a claim, there’s no explanation of what comes after. However, one must be thankful to TikTok for allowing a space for people to share their own similar experiences. This particularly plays a role as a similar story to Paulina’s can reveal what the outcome may be.
Gabby (@lifewchevalier) recently shared her own disappointment over her BÉIS suitcase being ruined by Southwest. However, she made sure to highlight all the steps Southwest has when it comes to this kind of situation.
The airline offers two options to the customer: get a travel voucher or submit a replacement claim. Gabby chose the latter, and the steps that followed were more drawn out. She had to leave the suitcase at the airport for the airline to first “assess” if it was worthy of a replacement. After the assessment, Gabby was sent a link to choose a suitcase of similar value to her suitcase. Her BÉIS roller was $368, and she was able to choose a Samsonite roller at $409. The company then had to FedEx her the new suitcase to her home address. She notes that the entire process took a week.
@positivelypaulina RIP to my brand new @BÉIS suitcase ??? @Southwest Airlines please help a girl out!! #damagedluggage #holidaytravel #southwestairlines ♬ original sound – Paulina
Viewers say: ‘BÉIS is the worst!’
In both Paulina’s and Gabby’s clips, a plethora of comments are made against BÉIS’s quality in suitcases. One viewer says, “Time and time again I’m deinfluenced from Beis.” Another says, “Beis is for road trips that is it!”
“If a suitcase doesn’t survive it’s first use it’s not a good suitcase,” says a third viewer. “A Ross $60 suitcase has never failed me,” says another.
A viewer asks Paulina if she contacted Beis for a replacement, but Paulina responds, “Their policy notes it doesn’t cover airline damage.”
One viewer shares game-changing advice for Paulina: “That’s why I can only buy nice brands as a carry on size not check in size. Lol.” Paulina replies, “Lesson learned.”
The Mary Sue reached out to Paulina and Southwest Airlines via email.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
