Guide · Baggage
The bag didn’t make it.
The law did.
Baggage claims run under an international treaty with real teeth and brutal deadlines: written complaint within 7 days for damage, 21 for delay. Move fast and the law is squarely behind you.
1.The airline is liable, up to a set ceiling
For destroyed, lost or damaged checked baggage, liability attaches to the airline automatically:
Carriage by Air Act 1961 · Sch.1B art.17 · Article 17—Death and Injury of Passengers—Damage to Baggage
"The carrier is liable for damage sustained in case of destruction or loss of, or of damage to, checked baggage upon condition only that the event which caused the destruction,"…
In plain English: Airlines are legally responsible if you are injured or killed while on a plane or during boarding and leaving. They are also responsible for any loss or damage to your checked luggage while it is in their care, unless the damage was caused by a fault in the bag itself.
2.Delay is covered too, and so are the sums
Carriage by Air Act 1961 · Sch.1B art.19 · Article 19—Delay
"The carrier is liable for damage occasioned by delay in the carriage by air of passengers, baggage or cargo. Nevertheless, the carrier shall not be liable for damage occasioned by delay if it proves that it and its servants and agents took all measures that could reasonably be required to avoid the"…
In plain English: Airlines are responsible for financial losses caused by flight delays. However, they can avoid liability if they prove they took all reasonable steps to prevent the delay or that it was impossible to avoid.
Carriage by Air Act 1961 · Sch.1B art.22 · Article 22—Limits of Liability in Relation to Delay, Baggage and Cargo
In plain English: Article 22 caps the airline's liability for baggage at a set number of special drawing rights per passenger, an international currency unit; the figure is revised periodically.
The Carriage by Air (Revision of Limits of Liability under the Montreal Convention) Order 2025 · art.3 · Certification of the revision of limits of liability under the Montreal Convention
"Article 21128,821151,880Article 22, paragraph 15,3466,303Article 22, paragraph 21,2881,519Article 22, paragraph 32226"…
In plain English: The current certified limit for baggage is 1,519 special drawing rights per passenger, in force since 28 December 2024.
3.The deadlines that decide everything
Carriage by Air Act 1961 · Sch.1B art.31 · Article 31—Timely Notice of Complaints
"In the case of damage, the person entitled to delivery must complain to the carrier forthwith after the discovery of the damage, and, at the latest, within seven days from the date of receipt in the case of checked baggage and fourteen days from the date of receipt in the case of cargo. In the case"…
In plain English: Written complaint within 7 days of receiving damaged baggage, 21 days for delayed baggage. Miss them and the claim can die. A bag missing for 21 days counts as lost.
4.What to do
- Report it before leaving the airport and keep the PIR reference.
- Put your complaint in writing to the airline now: the app chat usually doesn't count as written complaint. A letter or email does.
- Keep receipts for essentials you had to buy: that's the recoverable damage.
- Court claims have a hard two-year limit from arrival. Don't let "we're looking into it" run the clock.
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The Montreal Convention applies to international carriage by air, which covers virtually all UK airline journeys abroad. This is guidance to help you understand your
rights, not formal legal advice, and we're entirely independent: no
affiliation with Citizens Advice, GOV.UK or any law firm. Every quotation
above links to the official text so you can check us. Law verified
current at July 2026.