Do we need to "lock" our bags on a train?

Probably not needed, but also personal comfort preference. We have little luggage locks and we always use them, why not?

Locking them together might impede someone else from getting to their bag and off the train. Or, you as well when the time comes. I imagine myself being stuck on the train because I couldn’t unlock my bag. That would be me. LOL As a result of this thought, I have never locked my bags to anything. Besides I have nothing important in my suitcase. The important stuff is in my purse, which stays with me. If you are nervous, when the train stops to let passengers off, just watch your bag at that time.

We travel extensively by train and have never locked our bags. They’re usually not far from us, every train has a baggage area, and when the train stops we watch our bags so no one takes them.

Totally not necessary in Germany. I have never done that.

Having your luggage locked on the rack I've never seen in all train rides in Germany, if it impedes someone, you just might run the risk of getting yelled at.

No but don't put anything you can't afford to lose like your cash or expensive stuff, passport etc.

I have seen a security alert called on a train, with all passengers evacuated because of exactly that - a suitcase locked to a pole.

Please do not do it, as it can be problematic if someone comes with cumbersome luggage and needs to move your stuff a bit. Just take essentials / valuables with you at your seat (and if you are worried, take them even when you go to the bathroom).

I've been riding on the trains in Germany for the past several weeks and have not locked them. I only have one bag that is lockable and I usually either put it overhead or keep it with me.

Sounds like most think it's not needed. So that's what we will do. We may stand near the luggage when the train stops. Thanks all.

We may stand near the luggage when the train stops.

That might get old if you are riding on a Regionalbahn that makes all the stops.
Most train cars have a mix of seats facing forward and backwards. Where the seats are back-to-back, there is a space between that can fit a larger bag. Then you don't have to worry.

"Where the seats are back-to-back, there is a space between that can fit a larger bag"

Hey, that's my spot you're giving away.

not needed on German trains.

It’s extremely impolite to have a suitcase on the floor by you at your seat when there is a baggage storage area.

We will have a couple large bags.

I've been looking at the seven deadly sins of the Bible trying to figure out which one overpacking is. I'm really surprised that it isn't mentioned all by itself as one of the sins, but it's probably included in one of the others. Gluttony (self-indulgent excess) or Sloth would be my first thoughts, although some people seem to take Pride in the fact that they overpack, so maybe that's it. Anyway, I'm sure that worrying about luggage being stolen is God's punishment for overpacking.

I've never had to worry about securing my luggage because there has always been room for my less-than-regulation-carryon-sized bag in the rack above me or on the seat beside me on the train, or at worst on the floor at my feet or in my lap.

But Germany? I have found Germans to be the most honest people. Kind of reminds me of the US in the 50s, when no one bothered to lock their doors. But then today, with transportation what it is, bad actors from other countries can get to Germany, so you can no long feel so safe.

Lee, Wow. I hope you are happy with your response to my question. (And you are obviously proud of your ability to pack light.)
Thankfully, many other kind people on this forum answered my question.

Adding to @lynne - I see zero value in packing light and travelling on the cheap when going on vacation - vacations should be about living it up a little.

Would you care to comment on the following statement?

As far as I'm concerned, spending more for your hotel just builds a
bigger wall between you and what you traveled so far to see. ...
"In-ter-con-ti-nen-tal." That means the same everywhere — designed for
people who deep-down inside wish they weren't traveling,

My first trip to Europe, in 1986, was a 2-week business trip, and, except for three nights, the company put us up in only 4-star hotels. One night we stayed what is now a 3-star hotel, but it is the highest rated hotel in town according to Booking.com.
The last two nights were in Munich, near the company's German headquarters. They put us up in a small, family run, non-star-rated hotel in the outskirts of Munich, near the headquarters. They would have put us up in a nearby 4-star hotel, but it was booked due to a fashion convention in Munich.

That experience completely changed my opinion of accommodation ratings. Nobody on the hotel staff spoke English! I loved it; I felt I was finally in contact with the local population. My next trip, on my own dime, I traveled differently. Because there was no Internet back then, I had to use Michelin Guide to find accommodations, but I booked exclusively 1-star hotels, and I felt that my cultural experience was far richer than it would have been in 4-star hotels. My opinion of those 4-star hotels the company put us up in was that they could have just as well put us in the Holiday Inn in Peoria, IL, and put pictures of Europe in the windows. That's how much you really experience Europe staying in 4-star hotels.

I've stayed at both higher end and lower end places. I've stayed at the same Pension in Berlin for over 135 nights - where at breakfast parties sit at tables by themselves and converse amongst themselves. Although, at the Bar just a couple of doors down from the Pension, the bartenders know me very well. I've stayed at small inns in Hessen where they have a Stammtisch table, never seen anyone share the table, preferring to sit at there own table at breakfast, even as singles. Is that what you mean by getting closer to ground zero?

I've stayed on the Club Floor at the Sheraton Warsaw, best stay I've ever had in a European hotel, where, guess what, everyone just minded their own business.

We have thrown our luggage in the luggage bin and never worried about watching it at a stop. Not sure how big a problem luggage theft is. Rarely see any positing here about theft. Personal I think the biggest concern is that someone might grab your bag by mistake since many bags look alike. We travel with two carry on size bags, that are similar in looks, and we use a short cable lock to lock the handles together. We place our bags in a corner or somewhere that is unlikely needing to be moved. With the two bags hooked together the thought is that if someone grabbed one bag by mistake it would be obvious when the second bag tagged along. Probably overkill but I don't see it as causing any inconvenience for anyone. And we have done it for years. I would never lock anything to a solid part of the train. We have used the three dial combo locks and have had two of them fail over the years. If I have to I can easily carry both of our locked bags off the train. When we leave day bags on the overhead rack by our seat we will wrap one of the back pack straps around part of the rank just to prevent someone from walking by and grabbing the bag. Noting lock -- just entangled.

On my second business trip to Europe (1989), I spent my last two days traveling on my own (but the company was paying for it). I ended my trip in Zürich. Although I'm sure the company would have paid for me to stay in an in-ter-con-ti-nen-tal hotel in Zürich, I found, instead, a small, less expensive place just 2 km from the Hbf. When I came into the breakfast room, there was only on non-occupied table, and I took it. A few minutes later a couple came in, saw that all of the table were occupied, but I was alone at a 4-person table, and they motioned to me if they could sit there. I motioned that they could. After a while we started conversing. My German back then was pretty limited (and they didn't speak English), but we had a very friendly, simple conversation. I would not have missed that experience for the world (nor for an in-ter-con-ti-nen-tal hotel).

But Germany? I have found Germans to be the most honest people. Kind
of reminds me of the US in the 50s, when no one bothered to lock their
doors. But then today, with transportation what it is, bad actors from
other countries can get to Germany, so you can no long feel so safe.

I've been traveling to Germany off and on for nearly 50 years. In those early days, it was, in my eyes anyway, just as Lee described it. Respect for the possessions of others was an absolute among Germans. Of course back then, there was no EU. Borders between Germany, France, the Czech Republic etc. were real, and were actively policed. Crossing borders by train was not super-unusual for Europeans back then, but such trips were relatively more expensive and less common than they are today; the destitute just didn't make such journeys. Rare were the trips between east-block and west block countries. Still, as a European resident at the time, I could always count on stern, uniformed, armed police asking for my passport and travel documents; security was tight in stations and on trains - in part because of threats from 70's leftist movements. So any thief or ne'er-do-well from inside OR outside the country had to pass muster. I sometimes met other traveling Americans who'd followed "Let's Go" or other guidebook advice to be constantly vigilant about their valuables and potential thieves. But it was quite clear to me that in Germany, any security measures would be overzealous because the actual risk of loss was terribly, terribly small.

Today it's a very different train world over there. The routes commonly traveled and the rail client base are much more international, the passengers much more numerous than before and much more economically diverse - and less predictably "travel companions you can trust." Rail travel of yesteryear and rail travel today differ like SMALL TOWNS differ from BIG CITIES. And on trains, the watchful eyes of the authorities are largely absent. So if I were traveling with an outsized bag (which I never do) instead of my small carry-on (which I always keep near me as Lee advises) I would probably not be comfortable leaving it on the common storage racks near the exit. Because big bags ARE tricky to store nearby at times, I second Lee's (and Rick Steves') advice to pack light. Maybe Lee and Rick are brothers?

Packing light isn't just about saving time or money — it's about your
traveling lifestyle. Too much luggage marks you as a typical tourist.
It slams the Back Door shut. Serendipity suffers. Changing locations
becomes a major operation. Con artists figure you're helpless. Porters
are a problem only to those who need them. With only one bag, you're
mobile and in control. Take this advice seriously.

I would also be alert to diversion scams, which have become more common than before. This report tells of a 54-year-old female business traveler who several months ago suddenly had a wild-eyed man outside her train window pounding away at the glass and yelling at her. The train left the station, but in her moments of distraction, she failed to notice that her bag had left her side with the help of the wild-eyed man's companion-thief. The contents-free bag was later found near the station.

The German Federal Police make a point in their public crime report to highlight the need for caution in stations, on trains and other public transport, especially during rush hour in busy locations and vacation destinations. This isn't just a GERMAN problem but a Europe-wide concern with an EU campaign behind it:

https://stop-pickpockets.eu/Webs/SPP/EN/Home/home_node.html

As a German, I find the discussion of the external threats who have supposedly degraded our rail safety frankly relatively disturbing.

As for the question at hand: One advantage is that many German fast trains have luggage storage for bulky items not just near doors, but also in the middle of the wagons. I, personally, would not leave large luggage with valuable objects outside of my line of sight. Nor would I lock things to the racks: I would simply position myself so that I could see the bags. Having small luggage that is light enough to lift over your head is very much an advantage, as that means it can go in the racks above the seats. Also, I would always take valuables out of such luggage and have them with me at my seat.

Honestly, as others have said, the trains are not a great way of transporting large bags--the system is not exactly built for that (it is great for carry-on sized luggage), and there often is not enough storage for them on busy routes with airport connections.

Traveling in Germany in the 1970s I made three trips, focusing on the German part out of the entire trip, 7 weeks in 1971, three weeks in 1973, and four weeks in 1977, the only trip when decided to skip Berlin...I know, poor judgement. Needless to say, quite different from now, a half century later, not merely concerning with all the tech advances, etc but also expectations, attitudes, behaviour, etc.

I never had any problems, concerns with "security" issues on trains or the ferry, or at passport control, dealing with so-called officialdom (Beamtentum), There was one young German who asked why I was doing a second trip to Germany, I simply told her if I had not judged my experiences positive and enjoyable the first time, maybe I wouldn't come back. Chances of that were one to a million.

I could count on locals to help me out, advice-giving, etc, kindness too, as I always used the target language. You learn the cultural cues too. No safety concerns either, no fears of getting jumped in the streets American style.

I went to the typical tourist places, Munich, Rüdesheim am Rhein, Heidelberg, Frankfurt, but could have visited a lot more places...Cuxhaven, Flensburg, Husum, Hameln, Hildesheim, Bamberg, Minden, etc. due to the lack of imagination or laziness.

True, you could expect your passport and train ticket checked and promptly too.

I still have the brochures (in German) given to me by the Grenzschutz in the Lüneburg train station on witnessing a crime or a potential crime, ie, how one could help the authorities without obviously putting oneself in danger. That was in 1987, first time I had seen them in any train station. They didn't ask if you wanted it in English then, it was expected that you knew the language.

I'm trying to visualize someone grabbing large bags and running with them. Personally, I'm not seeing it happening. Can't imagine a theft dragging luggage behind them, with increased risk of being caught, for what will most likely be a bunch of clothes. Doesn't seem like a worthwhile payout versus risk proposition.

@Gail: The German Federal Police annual reports use a special category of property crime for "theft of bags and hand luggage." The incidents reported to them from 2017 through 2019 - the pre-covid period - averaged around 28,800 annually. Not all of those took place in trains and train stations, of course, but trains do carry a big chunk of the passenger traffic. Only about 6% of these cases typically result in arrests, as I understand it. So relatively speaking, it's the kind of crime that doesn't carry a really high level of risk to the thief, and it may be the type of crime that doesn't always get reported in the first place, especially by victims who only lost a nylon backpack with a gym suit and tennies in it. Of course the millions and millions of passengers who use DB in one year took their trips largely unscathed. But these things do happen. And odds are good that when they do, the victim was less cautious than they might have been.

The unfortunate victims these days often tote around electronics and more valuable stuff. The business traveler in the article I referenced anecdotally lost €2000 worth.

I get the bags and hand luggage, but I'm wondering what the volume is for large bags? Purses and backpacks are easy to snatch, but I wouldn't think large luggage would be in the same category.

But, hey, I could be completely wrong.