BA baggage delay

[Amit1989]

Just took a trip from LHR to GIB on BA490 and 3 out of our 8 checked bags have been delayed. It seemed like a purposeful delay from Heathrow as 26 bags in total were delayed, 30 were delayed in the am flight and they knew exactly which ones were not arriving.

They’ve told everyone that their bags will be here on the next day flight at 11am.

Can I claim any compensation through BA or Amex platinum for this? LHR baggage nightmare continues….

[BA Flyer IHG Stayer]

BA will not pay compensation for delayed baggage.

Amex might depending on your policy so you should read the wording yourself.

[Paul]

Amit1989 wrote:

Just took a trip from LHR to GIB on BA490 and 3 out of our 8 checked bags have been delayed. It seemed like a purposeful delay from Heathrow as 26 bags in total were delayed, 30 were delayed in the am flight and they knew exactly which ones were not arriving.

They’ve told everyone that their bags will be here on the next day flight at 11am.

Can I claim any compensation through BA or Amex platinum for this? LHR baggage nightmare continues….

Amex platinum provides £300 per passenger for baggage delays and a further £300 each after I think 6hrs but do check the policy – it is very generous. Keep receipts but spend as required. If they don’t take Amex that doesn’t matter.
Also ignore the nonsense about BA not paying. Delayed baggage is covered by the Montreal convention. You should have been told this on arrival. They will cover the costs of essentials which includes clothing. If you had been attending a formal event then a new suit etc would not have been unreasonable. There is however a limit of around £1000. Most people never get near this.
I have used Amex for a family of 4 and they paid without quibble. I suspect that they now want to see what the airline paid for first now.
I must be honest and say I often stand a the belt hoping my bag is delayed. A shopping spree is always welcome for essentials…….

Interestingly BAPP is more generous for single travellers than Platinum

[Paul]

Montreal Convention from BA website

In case of baggage delay, the air carrier is liable for damages unless it took all reasonable measures to avoid the delay or it was impossible to take such measures. The liability for baggage delay is limited to 1,288 SDRs (approximately £1,365; EUR1,600; USD 1,774).

https://www.britishairways.com/content/information/legal/notice-of-liability

[Amit1989]

Does this also count for returning home?

[JDB]

Amit1989 wrote:

Does this also count for returning home?

No, neither BA nor insurance will cover essentials when returning home, but you would be covered if any luggage was still missing after 21 days with the above Montreal Convevtion limits applying to BA with insurance potentially picking up any excess above that, up to the policy limits.

[Amit1989]

Pretty sure BA plan on who’s bags will be delayed based on if their flight is the first leg away from home or second leg home bound then. Apparently this has been happening a lot in Gibraltar.

[Ihar]

YMMV but flying F/J BA have honoured all reasonable claims. £200 for “essentials” in USA when bags were 24 hours behind, to £800 for 3 people when a bag to TFS was delayed by 6 days (plus a “free” £300 case) . Free socks always feel exquisite 😁

In most cases the difference between “reasonable” and “taking the p**s” are easy to spot. Well apart from my free BOSS underwear 😂

[JDB]

Amit1989 wrote:

Pretty sure BA plan on who’s bags will be delayed based on if their flight is the first leg away from home or second leg home bound then. Apparently this has been happening a lot in Gibraltar.

I don’t think you will find that’s even a consideration nor that check-in staff would have access to the relevant information or the organisational ability. It sounds more likely to be a weight issue or even a cargo prioritisation issue. Easier/cheaper to leave bags behind rather than people.

[George K]

Paul wrote:

If you had been attending a formal event then a new suit etc would not have been unreasonable. There is however a limit of around £1000. Most people never get near this.
I have used Amex for a family of 4 and they paid without quibble. I suspect that they now want to see what the airline paid for first now.
I must be honest and say I often stand a the belt hoping my bag is delayed. A shopping spree is always welcome for essentials…….

Interestingly BAPP is more generous for single travellers than Platinum

Semi-related question: We’ve recently attended a couple of weddings abroad and were thankfully unaffected by luggage delays, but it got me thinking about what we’d have to do afterwards had our bags not arrived. Does BA and/or Amex ask for any sort of proof that you’re attending a wedding or official function when claiming for new suits and dresses, for example?

I’ve always been very happy with Amex’s/Axa’s trip inconvenience and medical insurance but never had to put the luggage compensation to the test…

[Paul]

Amit1989 wrote:

Does this also count for returning home?

Insurance, or rather Amex Platinum excludes returning home. They will however pay for full loss as would BA, again under Montreal Convention.

It is worth claiming from BA if your bags were delayed on the way home and where you simply had to purchase something that they had delayed. But that would require receipts.

[Paul]

JDB wrote:

Amit1989 wrote:

Pretty sure BA plan on who’s bags will be delayed based on if their flight is the first leg away from home or second leg home bound then. Apparently this has been happening a lot in Gibraltar.

I don’t think you will find that’s even a consideration nor that check-in staff would have access to the relevant information or the organisational ability. It sounds more likely to be a weight issue or even a cargo prioritisation issue. Easier/cheaper to leave bags behind rather than people.

Tend to agree, a weight issue is the most likely scenario. Florence is a real problem for this due to the short runway.
Another cause can simply volume of baggage.

[rosswill]

Not that I can offer any helpful advice to this case but I can say this week is the 3rd time having an AirTag in the lost bags has been invaluable. This week I ended up taking a different connection to that my bag took due to IRROPS. I was able to persuade the staff in arrivals to retrieve my bag from a storage area at the terminal baggage hall based on my proof of location. I see Apple is rolling out the ability to share device location with the airlines which can only help. In short if you don’t already travel with an AirTag in your bags, please grab a set! All our family have them now.

[Ihar]

rosswill wrote:

Not that I can offer any helpful advice to this case but I can say this week is the 3rd time having an AirTag in the lost bags has been invaluable.

Yes 100%. An airTag (Apple or Andriod) is your friend. It won’t get your bag quicker, but it saves 30 mins at the baggage belt waiting for a fantasy bag. It’s also a quick check to know whether your bag is on the plane or not.

£30 well spent.

[Internet179]

Just another point of reference re payment from BA for delayed bags:

On our CW trip to Australia booked with a 241, they didn’t send our luggage onward from LHR. They were only returned to us after 5 days elsewhere in AUS

Our total claim came to around £1600 including a new suitcase needed for an internal flight. We didn’t shop fancy, just Zara, Target etc but my wife also bought all new makeup.

TBH at the time, I didn’t think BA would pay up but to my surprise around 2 months after submitting, they paid out the full amount!