28 September 2018

Loss of or damage to baggage

What do I do if my baggage is lost or damaged?

If on arrival at your destination, you find that your checked baggage has been lost or damaged (for which a “Baggage Identification Tag” was issued), you must fill in a Property Irregularity Report at the airport before leaving the baggage reclaim area, at the Lost and Found offices.

Checked baggage is the baggage handed over to the airline during Check-in procedures for transport in the aircraft hold and as such is inaccessible to passengers during the flight. Each piece of baggage is weighed, labelled and recorded on the passenger’s ticket for their identification on arrival.

Lost baggage

If within 21 days from opening the PIR your baggage has not been found, a detailed document should be sent to Customer Relations Office and/or Baggage Assistance Office of the airline you travelled with to start the procedure for compensation.

Recovery of baggage

If your baggage is found, within 21 days from the date it was returned, you must send all documentation to the Customer Relations office and/or Baggage Assistance office of the airline you travelled with to begin the procedure for compensation of any expenses incurred.

Documentation required for compensation

Flight booking code if ticket was purchased on line or the original receipt if the ticket is in paper format

Original PIR form issued by the airport
Original baggage identification tag and proof of payment of excess baggage
List of the baggage contents in the case of lost baggage
List of any missing contents if the bag has been recovered
Original receipts and/or fiscal documents that list the type of goods purchased (depending on wait) to replace personal effects in the baggage
Complete bank details: name of current account holder, name and address of the bank, bank and sort codes, account number, SWIFT code in the case of an overseas account.

REFERENCE LEGISLATION

Convention for the Unification of certain rules relating to international carriage by air, signed in Warsaw on 12 October 1929, in the text amended in The Hague dated 28 September 1955
Regulation (EC) No. 889/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 May 2002 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 2027/97 on air carrier liability in the event of accidents
Convention for the Unification of certain rules relating to international carriage by air, (signed in Montreal on 28 May 1999 and came into force on 4 November 2003)
Regulation (EC) No. 785/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004, on insurance requirements for air carriers and aircraft operators
Legislative Decree 6 November 2007, no. 197 on “Penalties for violation of the provisions of Regulation (EC) No. 785/2004 on the insurance requirements for air carriers and aircraft operators”.

Text by Alisè Vitri

Published on 04 April 2018
Photos: Sisterscom.com, Shutterstock