Ryanair lost my luggage for a week

[Matt1507]

Can anyone tell me what I am entitled to.

 

My partner and I booked a weeks cruise where we flew out to Barcelona with Ryanair. When we arrived at the airport, our luggage and about 8 other couples luggage were all left in Birmingham where we flew from. I explained to Ryanair that me and my partner were leaving Barcelona that night and won't be back for another week, vWe were advised that the chances of us getting our luggage to the ship are practically none. All we had were the clothes on our back and a pair of shoes in the hand luggage.

 

We had no choice but to go to some local shops and pick up items to get us by so went and bought the essentials toiletries and about 2 tops, a pair of shorts, some underwear and my partner bought similar as and cheap dress for her to wear in the evening.

 

We had a call 2 days later saying luggage is at the airport for when we return to pick it up. We had no choice but to go and buy some other items the next day as what we had wouldn't last for the week. We went and bought a few more things for day and evening and the ship we were on offered free laundry service to help us, which was a god send. In total we spent 547 EUROS.

 

On our return we put a complaint into Ryanair for all the hassle and expense we had incurred along with how the holiday was ruined as we couldn't do everything that we wanted to, such as gala night etc.

 

We heard off them this morning with a letter saying the expense is excessive and will offer 50 euro per day the bag was missing. This totals 350 euro. To me this isn't good enough as we spent £3000 on a holiday we couldn't fully enjoy and we had to clothe both of us for a week where we wore the same items over and over.

 

Am I wrong in thinking this is not good enough and Ryanair have to compensate me for what I spent and the the holiday they ruined. I believe what we spent was not excessive for what we had to do.

 

Look forward to hearing off you

[BankFodder]

I think you are right. The offer from Ryanair is derisory. I think you should be able to recover not only your out-of-pocket expenses, but also a reasonable sum for loss of enjoyment.

 

I think that it was entirely foreseeable that if your luggage was lost that this would impact upon your holiday. I think that you need to come up with an achievable sum and write to Ryanair rejecting the offer and tell them that is what you want. You might consider beginning with £1500 and then eventually settle for 750. Of course, it will all depend on whether you are prepared to take County Court action.

 

You can get into some protracted discussion with Ryanair about it if you want but they will probably test your resolve by sticking their heels in until you have shown that you are prepared to issue court action. Then they will start to consider your claim rather more seriously.

 

I don't think that you can pluck a figure out of the air. I think you will have to itemise very carefully why you consider that your spoil enjoyment is equal to whatever value you decide. You have to bear in mind that you did eventually buy clothes and so that enables you to enjoy the holiday – probably to a great extent.

 

I think that you need to start writing down a complete account of what happened and also, how much time it took you to buy clothes, how much extra time it took you to have them laundered et cetera. To what extent your reduced wardrobe impacted on the holiday.

 

Was the holiday a routine holiday? Or was it some special occasion such as an anniversary? Besides your clothes, did anything else go missing? Razors, cosmetics, – also, cameras?

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[Matt1507]

Id like back what the items cost me that I bought over there and some compensation for the inconvenience. We lost 2 days of our holiday shopping for things and paid for an excursion that only led us to shops because we had nothing. We had to buy everything, we didn't even have a toothbrush. Everything was packed in the luggage.

 

Ryanair have been sent all receipts of what we have bought and can see we have not gone mad at all. I can honestly say we missed out a lot on the cruise as we had no clothes to dress up in for the evening events. We booked to stop in the Yacht Club, which is an exclusive part of the ship where it really up market. Because of what happened we were not able to fully use all the facilities that were there as we had not got the clothes, such as gym, special; evening events and the black tie gala. Th e ship company did launder anything we needed for free and were more accommodating than we could have asked for.

 

If taking Ryanair to court is the only way to get a reasonable result out of this then so be it. I am only asking to be compensated for my losses. We even had to pay for taxis to and fro from the shops, taxi at the airport to get from one terminal to the other after we picked up the luggage and now we are back all the clothes are creased to hell and I have a load of Armani jackets and suit that will need dry cleaning to get them back into shape having been in a case for over a week.

 

The holiday was not a special occasion as such but a holiday that we had booked a long time ago as these cabins on the ship are very few and hard to get hold of. Nothing went missing from the cases thank god, but the cases did take a battering by the looks of it and I paid £1100 for them about 2 weeks before we went away.

 

What makes a flight company think that doing very little to put something right is acceptable and then to add insult by offering an amount that doesn't even cover what I had to pay out is insulting. If they had done there job right I wouldn't have had to pay a penny out and in my eyes I had a contract with them to fly me and my luggage to the destination which was not fulfilled by themselves. I should be able to recover all expenses.

 

Sorry if I went on

[reallymadwoman]

Sorry if I went on

 

Perfectly justified in my opinion. Like all big companies they think they can do what they like because you'll give up after a while and just accept whatever pittance they've offered. I'd be writing back - no desperate rush, you're in for the long haul (pun intended!) - take your time and get it right, itemising every single thing you bought as against what was in your suitcase, such as primark jacket instead of the Armani one - and every single activity you missed out on. Since you did miss some of the pluses from your posh cabin, you might even try claiming some of the cabin cost back - how much more expensive was it? If you missed 20% of the activities that came with it, claim 20% of the extra cost. After you've done the numbers, tell them how you felt about missing 2 days of your holiday to shop for the stuff they failed to deliver on time and missing activities and I bet some of the other guests looked at you funny for not being dressed up, at least until they knew why.

[Mr.P]

Nothing went missing from the cases thank god, but the cases did take a battering by the looks of it and I paid £1100 for them about 2 weeks before we went away.

 

I flew a transatlantic route a few years back with a brand new flight case. On collecting it from the over-sized luggage area, I found a large hole punched through one of the covers. Wrote a very stiff letter to Mr Branson on my return deploring the fact that they took better care of the passengers than the did of the luggage. Virgin refunded the cost of a new case in full without any real argument.

 

However, Mr O'leary has a reputation of playing hardball, so I would expect the courts may be your only real option.

[Matt1507]

Ive had another reply off them with an increased offer now to 437.50 euros. I am now going to write back to them with a breakdown of my costs and that they should cover all my losses and that a compensation on top of my losses needs to be addressed also with not being able to fulfill my holiday experience. I don't think i'll tell them about court action at the moment and see what they come back with.

 

What do you think?

[Old Cogger]

The Montreal Convention

 

According to the Montreal Convention, airlines are responsible for the bags they allow you to check in, although their liability is limited.

 

If you're carrying something valuable, either get a 'special declaration of interest in the delivery of your luggage' from the airline or carry the item in your hand luggage.

 

For mishandled baggage claims, the liability limit of airlines is €1,131 per passenger.

 

This is a maximum limit. Claims are assessed in two ways:

 

damage or loss caused by delay of passengers, baggage or cargo

damage caused by the destruction, loss or damage to baggage

Damage is considered by airlines to be costs such as expenses incurred by passengers buying essential items when luggage is delayed, or compensation for loss of baggage.

 

However, it can also be incidental expenses related to the mishandling of baggage. These expenses may include the cost of transport to pick up a delayed bag from the airport.

[Old Cogger]

Buying replacement items

 

When you arrive at your destination without your bag, you'll probably need to spend money on essentials.

 

But don't go on wild shopping spree - buy only what you need and keep receipts.

 

In most cases, the airline will quickly trace your bag and will have it delivered to you, free of charge, in the next day or two.

 

How to make a claim

 

If your luggage has been damaged or lost, you can claim compensation from either the airline or your travel insurance provider.

 

Unless you make a 'special declaration of interest in the delivery of your luggage', the most an airline can pay you is €1,131 Special Drawing Rights.

 

If you want to claim compensation for damage, write to the airline within seven days of receiving your luggage.

 

For delays, write within 21 days from when you handed your luggage to the airline.

 

If your bags haven't turned up after 21 days, they are considered lost.

 

To claim compensation you must write to the airline within seven days of the luggage being declared lost . You can use our template letter to do this.

 

Airlines, however, generally do not accept any liability for inconvenience, stress or any consequential losses arising from the delay or loss of baggage, although if the flight was part of a package, you should put in a claim for this against the tour operator.

 

But be warned: the compensation you receive is unlikely to cover the full cost of replacing the items, and you may be better off claiming on your insurance policy.

[Old Cogger]

In July 2014 survey of 2079 UK adults, problems with luggage

[Matt1507]

Ive sent back a reply rejecting thier offer and put a breakdown in of my costs. I put in a breakdown of my costs and that I would not have incurred them if they had transported my luggage as agreed. I said I entered a contractual agreement with them and they did not fulfill there side of the agreement. Any costs that I incurred due to their error should be paid in full.

 

Lets see what reply I get

[Matt1507]

If I don't get a reply from Ryanair I am going to submit a claim in the small claims court. What address would I send the papers to as the one they have registered in uk is dormant. Can you send court papers to southern Ireland from the uk?

[Old Cogger]

slow down buddy -- do not get carried away:-

 

if no reply then you send letter before claim and give them 7/14 days to respond, then decide if you issue a N1

[Matt1507]

Sorry, I must have sounded a bit to the point.

 

I've just had a reply saying the €437.56 is their final offer and that a refund of £70 for the luggage cost to put on the plane is being refunded back the debit card.

 

They have also said that if I am not happy with their offer to contact my insurance company.

 

Their offer still falls way short of what I have had to pay out, along with the inconvenience and loss of holiday days.

 

What should I do as to deal with this in the best way because I don't see why they should get away with this and I shouldn't be out of pocket.

 

Look forward to hearing from you with your help.