DEAR TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER: Air Canada destroyed my Rimowa suitcase on a current flight from Toronto to San Francisco. The airline instructed me to ship the suitcase to a restore agent in Texas. The agent declared the suitcase unrepairable, even though they don’t have any contract with Rimowa and no product experience on this model.Christopher Elliott, the Journey Troubleshooter
Air Canada then provided me a alternative of inferior substitute luggage, which I declined, and just lately despatched me a $230 examine in proposed compensation. I paid roughly $1,000 for my Rimowa bag, and it was of a top quality to final a lifetime. So, neither of those choices is suitable to me.
— Donna Wells-Boyle, Portola Valley
ANSWER: Air Canada ought to have dealt with your baggage with care. And in case your checked baggage was broken whereas it was within the airline’s custody, it ought to have promptly paid for a restore or substitute. Underneath the Montreal Conference, which governs worldwide flights, Air Canada’s most legal responsibility is $3,800, which is significantly greater than you have been claiming.
Earlier than I get to what went improper, I’ve to say one thing about checking luxurious designer baggage that’s value $1,000. I noticed this just lately once I was standing in entrance of a five-star resort in Barbados. (I used to be not staying there — too costly!) One other visitor had Italian designer baggage that was unfit to be checked, even on a non-public jet. It was strictly for present.
Elliott’s guiding ideas for baggage are sturdiness and inconspicuousness. You scored properly on sturdiness. Your checked bag was manufactured from sturdy plastic, and in your phrases, it was in “perfect” form after a few years and hundreds of miles of business air journey. However you additionally need your checked bag to carry as much as the trials of journey with out attracting an excessive amount of consideration, and expensive Rimowa baggage is just a little flashy. You have been fortunate it wasn’t stolen.
This doesn’t let Air Canada off the hook. It accepted your bag, and also you paid a price to have your baggage transported. Sending your baggage to somebody who doesn’t perceive the best way to repair Rimowa baggage will not be my thought of of assuming accountability.
To procure the bag over 10 years in the past and sadly don’t have the receipt. The bag’s serial quantity would inform me the precise yr of buy. It actually is previous what was its five-year guarantee on the time. (I imagine the luggage are actually bought with a lifetime guarantee.)
You stored a wonderful paper path between your self and Air Canada, which confirmed that you simply adopted all the right procedures. However right here’s the place issues went off the rails just a little. As I discussed, your baggage is well-worn, and also you don’t have a receipt for it. Air Canada can ask for proof of your buy while you request a substitute. In case you don’t have it, you could not get the complete quantity. Additionally, given the bag’s age, there’s some depreciation.
It appears such as you appealed this to one of many govt contacts for Air Canada that I publish on my shopper advocacy website, Elliott.org. And it additionally appears like Air Canada didn’t hassle to reply. Not good. I requested Air Canada to evaluation your baggage declare. Air Canada says that “after further review,” they’re sending you a second $270 examine. So, your whole compensation with the 2 checks involves $500.
“I still think they owe me more,” you informed me, “but I’m going to call it a day at this point.”
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Initially Printed: November 25, 2024 at 4:15 AM PST
