Be careful with which airline you fly!

Lost and mishandled baggage

When flying, you'd better avoid big airport hubs, and in particular Heathrow and BA...

The UK's Air Transport Users Council (AUC) has published a report on mishandled baggage. It includes data provided by the Association of European Airlines (AEA). According to the airlines' own data, the major European network airlines mishandled over 5.6 million bags in 2006, of which 85% were delivered within 48 hours. This figure, however, relates only to the twenty-four airlines that are members of the AEA.

The 2006 figures show that the AEA airlines that tend to have the worst performance are the larger carriers. The three biggest carriers – Air France, Lufthansa and British Airways – have the worst records (together with the smaller TAP-Air Portugal - of course...). The worst performing AEA airline in 2006 was British Airways with 23 lost luggage per 1000 passengers. The problem is that Heathrow also has the worst record of flight delays! And Brussels the best!

Airlines that operate most of their flights from major hub airports, where many of their passengers take connecting flights, show a higher risk of mishandled baggage. And of course, passengers on connecting flights are exposed to the highest risk of all.
The Montreal Convention The Montreal Convention sets out airlines’ liability for passengers and their baggage (it also covers liability for cargo). The good thing about the Convention is that it says that an airline must accept liability for passengers’ baggage. The bad thing about it is that it limits an airline’s liability to around £800 (depending on exchange rates) per passenger. An airline will typically need to be convinced that a lost suitcase, for example, really did contain what we say it did. And that is easier said than done.
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