So, we are American and within the United States. We traveled by air across the country to visit our grandchildren. Somewhere in the journey, my wife has lost her driver’s license (with RealID) and a debit card. She has other credit cards with her name on them, but no photo ID of any sort.
The problem: how do we get through TSA at the airport to go home? The TSA website is rather scant on details about what to do. All they say is
"In the event you arrive at the airport without proper ID, because it is lost or at home, you may still be allowed to fly. By providing additional information, TSA has other ways to confirm your identity, like using publicly available databases, so you can reach your flight.
If your identity cannot be verified, you will not be allowed to enter the screening checkpoint."
Surely one of the Teeming Millions has gone through this. What happens?
In the event you arrive at the airport without valid identification, because it is lost or at home, you may still be allowed to fly. The TSA officer may ask you to complete an identity verification process which includes collecting information such as your name, current address, and other personal information to confirm your identity. If your identity is confirmed, you will be allowed to enter the screening checkpoint. You will be subject to additional screening, to include a patdown and screening of carry-on property.”
I once misplaced my driver’s license at the airport. TSA told me I would be able to fly anyway, although I was going to have to answer a lot of questions or something. Then I found my license (I’d put it into the wrong pocket) and the whole problem dissolved. But they were a lot nicer and more helpful than I expected.
I’ve heard the recommendation to get to the airport earlier than usual, because the identity verification process will take longer than normal. (And you might take a photo of your driver’s license and passport and store them on your online mail account, like Gmail, or some other place online where you can get to them along with on your phone.)
Yes. I have gone through this. I had already cleared security but I had so much time until the flight I decided I would go have a cigarette (back when I smoked). Of course I would need to exit the secure area to go outside. I had been chatting with some nice people waiting for the same flight and they said they would watch my carry-on bag, etc. until I got back.
Cool. Went and had my lung snack, then headed back to security.
Oops. Turns out I left my ID with my stuff in the waiting area at the gate.
In a panic I placed myself at the mercy of TSA. They proceeded to ask me several questions about myself that I presume they got from some special online searches. Stuff like previous addresses and phone numbers.
I passed their tests and they sent me on my way. Now, in my case I told them that my I had already cleared security 30 minutes before, which they checked and saw I had. That may have helped but my understanding is that my experience is representative of the what happens when someone forgets or loses their ID
I was super anxious but they were calm and nice about it.
My guess is that the “identify verification process” is like those disconcerting questions you get asked on the phone sometimes when talking with banks or other places very concerned with security. I always find it creepy that they can access so much historical knowledge about me, but the questions are easy for the “real” individual.
If you don’t know what I’m referring to, the questions are usually multiple choice and along these lines:
Which one of these streets did you once live on: Elm, Oak, Midway, or none of the above?
Which one of these persons is related to you: Janice Franklin, Elizabeth Franklin, Lilly Franklin, or Minnie Franklin?
Which of these states were you living in in 2005: Texas, Idaho, New York, Tennessee, or none of the above?
How many sisters does [name of spouse] have?
And so on. If you hit one you can’t answer, I think they are pretty nice about it as long as you unhesitatingly get most of them right.
Perhaps too late for the OP, but I happen to have photos of my driver’s license and passport on my phone. I’ve never been in the OP’s situation, but now that I’ve read this thread, if I do, I hope I’ll remember to pull them up for TSA.
About 15 years ago I bet someone I could get on a plane without any form of ID. They had me go up ahead in the line so I was alone and had nobody to vouch for me. The questioning was done in a side room and was a little intense but didn’t take more than 20 minutes. Weird thing is, almost all my properties, including my home, vehicles and such are held under an incorporated business name. It’s pretty hard to find me online. I still won the bet.
My wife once lost her DL when she was visiting family in another state. She preferred not to go through the verification process at the airport. I overnighted her passport to her and she was good to go. But she still had a few days left to stay there and had some time to receive it.
About 2 weeks later, whereever she had left her driver license, someone mailed to her. That was kind.
One thing we can all get is a Passport, and the Passport card. The card should be kept separate, and it solid ID. Leave the actual passport at home when traveling domestically.
They’ll use one of those identification verification services over the phone that pulls personally identifiable information.
I’ll give you a trigger warning now. They might pull personal stuff from your past that you’d like to forget. Names of dead relatives, former spouses or addresses that you lived at and want to forget are all fair game.
I have a Real ID driver’s license, as well as a passport, and even when I fly domestically, I bring both. I zip my passport in an inside pocket in my carry-on, and put my driver’s license in my wallet, where I keep it normally. I also have color photocopies of both.
So far, I’ve never misplaced anything, but I feel better having back-ups.
Also, I don’t have one, because I have a passport, but in my state, you can have a state ID in addition to a driver’s license. So if you travel a lot, and want a back-up in case you lose your license, you can get a state ID if you live in Indiana. That is, assuming you qualify for a driver’s license, and don’t have just a state ID in the first place.
I know those answers don’t help if you are already some place where you have lost your ID, but if you want to avoid the situation, there are some ways to do so.
So my drivers license fell out of my pocket someplace when I was in Chicago.
TSA let me on the plane back to Minneapollis after examining the stuff I did have left in my wallet (insurance ID, credit cards, whatnot), a pat-down, and swabbing all of my belongings. They asked a few questions about why I didn’t have ID and who I was but it didn’t seem like an Israeli customs interrogation.
They probably cut people more slack if you’re trying to catch a flight home.
A lot of the questions the ask you, for example, a street you lived on in 2007, how much is the payment on your loan with [bank] is, who your employer is, can all be gathered from your credit report. If you provided them with your SSN, they can access that. Other questions like what school you went to, who you lived with, who you’re related to, what color your [specific make/model/year] car was are gathered from other places. Insurance companies, DMV, and, I’m sure, anywhere else that has the data and is willing to sell it (or provide access to it) to identity verification services.
When I got my passport , it was something like an extra $30 to get the card so I did. I leave my passport at home when I travel domestically. Wherever I go I keep whichever document I don’t need to have with me in the hotel safe. For example, foreign cruise ship port- passport card in the safe. Las Vegas- passport at home, passport card or license in the hotel safe.
The passport card can also be used instead of a Real ID driver’s license. (Of course so can a passport booklet, but the passport card fits in wallets.)
I actually had this happen recently, had my wallet stolen in Hawaii and obviously there was no way for me to cross the ocean without having to go through this.
Here’s my process
I went to the local police department and filed a police report regarding my stolen wallet. Police questioned me 5 minutes about where I lost it and what it had in it in case they recovered it, then they gave me a signed Hawaii Police form with two signatures that basically tells the TSA that I legitimately lost my wallet. Apparently the TSA told me this was a good idea since it meant it vouched for my story.
When I got to the line I told them the wallet story and showed them the papers, they then took me aside in a walled off area by the metal detectors and asked me if I had the following
Any photo ID that wasn’t just my drivers license (Medical ID, Passport, College ID)
Any credit cards in my own name that had my signed signature on the back (so signature could be cross-referenced)
Any health insurance cards or general insurance cards
Since I didn’t have any of them (apparently the police report and one of those would have done just fine to get me on) I then had to wait 5 minutes as they called up some phone number and asked me the following questions
How long had I been working at my current job (year I started)
My current home phone number or any phone number associated with my house (wife’s cell phone etc.)
The closest public school to my house
I was able to answer all 3 questions 100% and they then allowed me on the plane. I was told if I had missed a question they would have asked me one more, but if I failed another one they would have not let me on the plane for 24 hours upon which I would have to come back to airport and take the test again.
Damn, I would hope I’d get three different questions. I’m self employed and have no idea how long I’ve owned/operated my business, as there was some period during which I had a partner and am lousy with dates. I do not “know” any phone numbers without referring to my contacts list on my phone, and I have no landline. Did they allow you to look at your phone? We live roughly equidistant between two schools. My kids are grown, so I don’t know/care the school names.
