Security expert says you should never travel with a grey or black suitcase for important reason

If you're jetting off anytime soon, you might want to think twice before packing a black or grey suitcase, as security experts have issued a stark warning about luggage that's 'easy to extract'.

There's something weirdly satisfying about spotting your suitcase on the baggage carousel and knowing instantly that it's yours.

But if it happens to be a classic black or grey case, you might want to pay a little more attention next time you're flying.

Reports suggest black is the most popular suitcase color, with around 45 percent of travellers opting for the classic shade, according to studies.

For similar reasons, grey is also a popular choice of luggage, with 25 percent of travellers opting for the understated shade - meaning a huge proportion of suitcases come in neutral tones.

But it seems that despite their timeless and classic appearance, these understated suitcase colors could actually make your luggage easier to pick out - and potentially take.

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Travel safety specialist Aran Dharmeratnam has explained how certain suitcase colours could make luggage more appealing to thieves.

Pictured: A thief's nightmare suitcase color (Getty Stock)

The expert told Metro that the first lesson he teaches clients is 'how to blend in to an environment', or at the very least, not to look like an 'easy target'.

"But thieves can also be skilled at blending in', he said. Explaining: "They will enter a venue dressed in an ordinary way aiming to appear unassuming, and then clock who has dropped their guard or who has luggage that’s easy to extract."

Paradoxically, picking a suitcase that blends in with 95 percent of all other luggage is the opposite of what you want. This is because a thief can simply grab your bag and blend into the crowd.

To understand why this is such an issue, imagine shouting in a busy airport, 'Hey! That person stole my bag, it looks just like that one there, and that one there, and that one there...'

Dharmeratnam added another dimension to this travel safety issue: "Dark luggage means as [a thief] walks away, they’re less likely to be spotted should the person suddenly get alerted to their bag being stolen."

Walking off with someone's dark-colored luggage and blending into the crowd is a classic trick employed by criminals (Getty Stock)

This advice has been echoed by other travel experts ahead of the Spring rush, with former UPS adviser Ed Burnett telling the Independent that travelers should opt for the much less prevalent colors to keep their valuables safe.

He explained: "Bright colors are a deterrent. Thieves prefer anonymous black or navy bags because they can walk away with them without standing out. A neon green bag, for example, is a liability for a thief. If you yell, ‘Stop that man with the green bag,’ everyone sees him."

This issue has even been flagged by airlines, many of which are inundated each year with lost baggage claims. It is estimated that as many as 33 million pieces of luggage go missing each year, with millions never found.

Budget airline Ryanair even blamed these black, navy, and gray suitcases for difficulties in tracking down missing possessions, stating that '99.9% of the population' use these similar colors - making it even harder to track them down by their descriptions.

But this does not necessarily mean chucking all your luggage in the garbage, Dharmeratnam advised that you can just add a colorful strap to help it stand out from the crowd.