Lost or Delayed Baggage: What to Claim and the Deadlines That Matter
Different rules, and the clock starts the moment you land.
Few things sink the start of a trip like watching the carousel empty with no sign of your bag. The rules here are different from delayed or cancelled flights: baggage on international journeys is governed by the Montreal Convention, not UK261, and what you do in the first few minutes matters.
At the airport: report it before you leave
Do not leave the baggage hall without reporting the problem. Ask for a Property Irregularity Report, or PIR. This is the document that proves you raised it on the day, and without it a later claim is far harder. Take photos, keep your boarding pass and baggage tags, and note the PIR reference.
If your bag is delayed
A delayed bag is not yet a lost one, but you should not have to go without essentials while you wait. You can claim back reasonable replacement purchases, things like clothing and toiletries, so keep every receipt and keep them modest. Under the Convention, a bag still missing after 21 days is treated as lost.
If your bag is lost or damaged
Where a bag is lost or damaged, the airline is liable up to a set limit, currently 1,519 units known as Special Drawing Rights, which works out at roughly £1,500 per passenger and shifts with the exchange rate. Two points matter here. It is per passenger, not per bag, so a shared suitcase does not double the limit. And it is a ceiling on what you can claim with proof, not a cheque that arrives automatically, so you will need to show the value of what was lost.
The deadlines you cannot miss
Timing is strict. Damage must be reported in writing within seven days of receiving the bag. A delay must be claimed within twenty-one days. You then have up to two years to bring the full claim. Miss the early deadlines and even a fair claim can fail.
The diaspora point: gifts, big bags and valuables
Travelling to family often means heavier bags and gifts that are hard to value or replace. Because the limit is fixed and per passenger, anything genuinely valuable is better carried in your hand luggage or covered by separate insurance, not trusted to the hold. It is also worth photographing what you pack for the people you are travelling for.
How MAJ helps
When a bag goes missing, the claim is winnable but fiddly, and airlines often reject the first attempt. At MAJ Travel Concierge we help you capture the right evidence from the start and keep the claim on track, so you are not fighting it alone. Members have this support built in, and our Disruption Advisory is there for non-members.
This is general guidance. Baggage rules can vary by airline and route, valuables are best insured separately, and the airline is the place to confirm its own process.
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