Consumer and banking · Air travel · checked baggage
Lost or damaged airline baggage: claiming from France
Lost, delayed or damaged checked baggage requires a claim separate from flight disruption. Under the Montreal Convention, retain the PIR report and also send a written protest to the carrier: the periods differ for damage, late return and loss. Compensation depends on supported actual loss under the journey’s applicable regime; the per-passenger ceiling is not an automatically payable flat sum.
- Baggage status
- Supported loss
- Ceiling in SDR
- Official texts cited
- Sources checked on
- Drafted with AI assistance, our method
General legal information with official references and dated checks. It is not personalised advice: for a decision that commits you, have your situation checked by a qualified professional.
Julie by AlphaDeep
Do the seven days start when damage is discovered at home?
The text uses receipt of the baggage. Keep the actual handover date and report damage promptly.
Read the referencesYour baggage is lost, late or damaged: let’s separate the protest, evidence and journey’s legal regime.
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Is a PIR report enough to claim from the carrier?
A PIR records the incident and helps trace the baggage. Retain it with the tag, booking and boarding pass. It does not by itself replace a written protest to the carrier within the appropriate period. Keep the complaint and evidence of sending.
Related step: Consumer and banking
Convention de Montréal du 28 mai 1999, articles 17, 19, 22, 24, 31 et 35, publiée par le décret du 17 juin 2004DGAC : perte ou détérioration de bagages
How can you prepare the baggage protest and loss account?
The fictional example separates necessary purchases, repair or lost items, then payments already received.
Fictional example · Your preparation worksheet
Prepare a written carrier protest within the seven-day framework after receipt. Also retain the PIR and supporting records.
Draft for review · starts with a fictional example
Damage-protest date marker
2026-10-19
Entered items less payment received
€200.00 of loss to document
Subject: claim concerning the checked baggage described in my PIR.
I enclose the baggage tag, travel documents and evidence for the stated items. The entered balance of €200.00 remains subject to verifying actual loss and the liability regime.
Please confirm receipt of this protest and identify any missing records and your itemised position.
Keep the booking, boarding pass, baggage tag and PIR report.
Send a written complaint to the carrier; the PIR alone does not replace it.
Attach receipts and an inventory without double-counting purchases and lost items.
Example under the Montreal regime, to verify for the journey. Date markers do not certify an extension. The 1,519 SDR ceiling is per passenger, not a euro flat rate or a payment promise.
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Which periods apply to damage, delay and loss?
Under Montreal, checked-baggage damage must be protested no later than seven days after receipt; delay, no later than twenty-one days after availability. Acknowledged loss or non-arrival after twenty-one days is a different situation. These markers are not the flat compensation for a delayed flight.
Related step: Delayed or cancelled flight: what follows a complaint to the airline in France?
Can the 1,519 SDR ceiling be claimed without receipts?
No. DGAC identifies the current Montreal ceiling as 1,519 SDR per passenger. It is neither a price per suitcase nor a fixed euro amount. Support necessary purchases and lost-item values; a special declaration, inherent defect or cabin-baggage conditions need separate examination.
Related step: Cancelling a package holiday in France: the fees, the free cases and the refund deadline
Convention de Montréal du 28 mai 1999, articles 17, 19, 22, 24, 31 et 35, publiée par le décret du 17 juin 2004DGAC : perte ou détérioration de bagages
How can the flight-ticket and baggage claims be kept separate?
Flight delay or cancellation follows a different framework from baggage liability. Separate case references, facts, sums and evidence. For baggage, record whether it was checked, when it was returned and what is actually damaged or missing; the regime also depends on carrier and journey.
Related step: Train delay compensation in France: refunds and rights
Code des transports, article L6421-3 : régime des passagers et bagagesConvention de Montréal du 28 mai 1999, articles 17, 19, 22, 24, 31 et 35, publiée par le décret du 17 juin 2004
What does the governing text say about checked baggage?
La responsabilité du transporteur aérien titulaire d'une licence d'exploitation délivrée en application du règlement (CE) n° 1008/2008 du 24 septembre 2008 établissant des règles communes pour l'exploitation de services aériens dans la Communauté est soumise, en ce qui concerne le transport aérien de passagers et de leurs bagages, aux dispositions du règlement (CE) n° 889/2002 du 13 mai 2002 modifiant le règlement (CE) n° 2027/97 relatif à la responsabilité des transporteurs aériens en cas d'accident et aux stipulations de la convention pour l'unification de certaines règles relatives au transport aérien international signée à Montréal le 28 mai 1999.
In plain English: Baggage liability depends on journey and carrier; protest, loss evidence and court action remain separate.
Which dossier matches the baggage status?
| Situation | Central evidence |
|---|---|
| Damage | Condition at handover, photos and repair |
| Delay after return | Handover date and necessary purchases |
| Loss | Tracing, inventory and supported value |
| Court action | Journey, carrier and separate deadline |
Code des transports, article L6421-3 : régime des passagers et bagagesConvention de Montréal du 28 mai 1999, articles 17, 19, 22, 24, 31 et 35, publiée par le décret du 17 juin 2004DGAC : perte ou détérioration de bagages
Does the baggage complaint remove the need to track court limitation?
No. Montreal Article 35 provides two years with starting events tied to arrival, expected arrival or stopping the carriage. Correspondence with the airline must not be treated as automatically preserving that action. Check jurisdiction, regime and the deadline if the dispute continues.
What else should you know about checked baggage?
Do the seven days start when damage is discovered at home?
The text uses receipt of the baggage. Keep the actual handover date and report damage promptly.
Are emergency purchases automatically reimbursed?
They need necessity and evidence under the applicable regime. An itemised list alone does not establish recoverability.
Convention de Montréal du 28 mai 1999, articles 17, 19, 22, 24, 31 et 35, publiée par le décret du 17 juin 2004DGAC : perte ou détérioration de bagages
Is the Montreal baggage ceiling calculated per kilogram?
No. DGAC describes it per passenger; do not import another liability regime.
Does never-returned baggage use the same date as late-returned baggage?
No. Distinguish acknowledged loss or non-arrival from delay after availability.
Which sources explain checked baggage?
- Code des transports, article L6421-3 : régime des passagers et bagagesLégifrance
- Convention de Montréal du 28 mai 1999, articles 17, 19, 22, 24, 31 et 35, publiée par le décret du 17 juin 2004Légifrance
- DGAC : perte ou détérioration de bagagesMinistère chargé des transports / DGAC
Texts cited last checked: 20 October 2026