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OVERVIEW

*airlines name redacted, but if you were to put 2 and 2 together

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A major airline was experiencing a significant increase in call center volume due to lost or delayed baggage inquiries.

This created a poor user experience during an already stressful travel moment and placed a substantial financial strain on the business. The airline lacked any in-app functionality for users to report or receive updates on their luggage.

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Under strict financial and system constraints, which prevented the implementation of a live-tracking feature, I was tasked with leading the end-to-end UX design for a new self-service baggage claim feature.

My role

Lead UX/UI Designer

Timeline

Feb 2025 - Ongoing

PROBLEM

Bags are frequently delayed, with no way for customers to track or receive updates on their location

The core issue was a critical lack of transparency and an inefficient reporting process for users. The existing system for reporting a missing bag was a source of significant anxiety and frustration:

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  • Users had no way to report a baggage issue directly within the app or website.

  • The only options were an outdated online form or a lengthy, frustrating call to a help desk.

  • Once a report was made, customers received no status updates, leaving them feeling anxious and uninformed.

Current user's submitting claim journey and the missing bag's lack of journey

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CONSTRAINTS

Strategic approach & constraints

The primary challenge was a hard business constraint: the inability to provide real-time bag tracking. This forced us to find a creative workaround. Instead of viewing this as a roadblock, I collaborated closely with product owners and developers to design a solution that felt transparent and empathetic, using existing systems. Our approach focused on:

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  • Leveraging Existing Infrastructure: We utilized existing backend systems and contact center workflows to streamline the reporting process.

  • Empathetic Communication: We designed a system for AI-generated messages to reduce the agent workload while delivering timely, human-like updates to customers to build trust and ease stress.

  • Automated Updates: In the absence of in-app push notifications, we enabled automated email updates throughout the case journey, ensuring users remained informed.

Based on constraints & ideas, how can we streamline the new claim process within the app?

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Ideation & Low-fidelity prototyping

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1. STREAMLINED ENTRY POINT

I established a clear path for users to find the new feature by placing it within the existing "more" section of the app.

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2. SIMPLIFIED CLAIM FLOW

The journey was broken down into a simple, logical sequence: Start Journey > New Claim > Input Details. This was designed to reduce cognitive load during a stressful time.

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3. INPUT DETAILS

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4. CLAIM

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5A. MESSAGE DELIVERY EXPLORATION

I created two initial concepts for how users would view updates: a combined "all claims" page vs. a separate page for each claim. This was a key area for future user research to determine the optimal interaction model.

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5B. MESSAGE DELIVERY EXPLORATION

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AI

We’ll use AI to craft human-like, empathetic messages that reassure users they’re being heard, creating a sense of genuine support and timely updates, even without live human interaction.

Refinement & Mid-fidelity mockups

Based on initial feedback, I moved to mid-fidelity mockups, focusing on refining the details to create a more intuitive and reassuring experience.

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1. SMART FORM DESIGN

To minimize user effort, the form was designed to pre-fill passenger names, leaving only a few key fields for the user to complete.

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2. SIMPLIFIED CLAIM

We consolidated the claim view to a single page, using a chevron to expand and view details. This reduced the need for multiple pages, saving the user steps and reducing clutter.

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3. PROACTIVE STATUS INDICATORS

I introduced visual cues like an exclamation mark ! to indicate a new message, and a 'journey' section that shows the claim's current status and next steps. These were designed to provide clarity and reduce user anxiety.

Progressive Disclosure & Simplification (2024 - Current) Variant 2

Better price breakdown table

Transparency in designs and content/price

Removal of green ticks

Better page spacing UI

Personal thought: I was initially frustrated by the budget constraints that prevented live tracking, which I know would have been the ideal user solution. However, this challenge forced me to think more creatively about rebuilding trust and reducing stress without the ideal technical solution. It pushed me to explore empathy and strategic communication as core design pillars.

The AI-powered empathy solution

A key design decision was to leverage AI to craft reassuring, human-like messages. This was a critical part of our strategy to rebuild user trust in the absence of live tracking. It created a sense of genuine support and timely updates, ensuring the user felt heard even without real-time human interaction.

NEXT STEPS

Validation, refinement & testing

The project is now in the validation phase, where we will refine the designs based on real feedback and data. Our next steps include:

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  • Usability sessions: Conducting sessions to observe how easily customers can report issues and interpret the status updates on their claim.

  • Stakeholder collaboration: Meeting with customer support and baggage operations teams to uncover edge cases and refine internal workflows.

  • Data review: Analyzing support call metrics and email engagement to measure the impact of the new feature and identify areas for improvement.

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