Lost Luggage? 4 Common Travel Problems and How to Fix Them.From overbooked flights to sold-out hotels, here's how business travelers can navigate some of the most common issues.

Thetravelpart of business travel should be, at best, uneventful. But hit the road often enough, and odds are there will be times when things go awry. What then?

Plight: You've booked an airline ticket, but arrive at the gate to find there's no seat for you.

Airlines typically estimate how many no-shows there will be per flight and oversell by that number. If everyone shows up, the overbooked carrier will tempt volunteers with the promise of a travel voucher. But when they can't get willing detainees, some will be involuntarily bumped.