Damaged suitcase after a flight: how to claim

Updated 18 October 2026
General information, not legal advice. The outcome depends on the facts of your case.

Your suitcase came off the belt with a broken wheel, a torn handle or a cracked shell. The airline usually has to pay for the repair or the value of the bag.

The deadline is short: send the airline a written claim within 7 days of getting the bag. Before that, show the damage at the baggage desk, take photos and keep the bag. Below is how, what you can get and where to go if the airline says no.

What to do in the first 7 days

1. Show the damage at the airport, before you leave the baggage hall if you can. The baggage desk writes a report and gives you a reference number. This report is called a PIR (Property Irregularity Report). If the desk is closed, take a photo of the bag, the bag tag and the closed desk.
2. Take photos of the damage, the whole bag and the bag tag, before you unpack and throw anything away.
3. Keep the bag. Don't throw it away or have it repaired before the airline has answered. It may ask to see it.
4. Send a written claim within 7 days of getting the bag. Use the airline's online form or email. Give the PIR number, describe what broke, attach the photos and say what you want: a repair or the value of the bag.
5. Get a repair quote, or a written statement from a repair shop that the bag can't be repaired. Send it as soon as you have it. It can come after the 7 days, as long as your claim went in on time.

Is the airport report enough?

Not always. Some airlines ask for a separate written claim within the 7 days, even when the damage is in their own system. Norwegian refused a claim on that ground. Sweden's complaint board ARN said the first damage report was enough and recommended 2,499 kr, but Norwegian still had not paid (Råd & Rön, February 2026). The EU Court of Justice has accepted a complaint recorded in the airline's own system as written notice (C-258/16 Finnair, 2018). Send your own written claim within 7 days anyway. It costs nothing and removes the argument.

Your deadlines

Day the flight landed Day you got the bag back (leave empty if it's still missing)

Counted from the dates you enter. Claim as early as you can.

• Damage to the bag or its contents: a written claim within 7 days of getting the bag (Montreal Convention, article 31(2)). Miss it and the claim is gone, unless the airline acted fraudulently.
• Damage found after a delay: the 7 days run from the day the bag was handed back to you.
• Court: 2 years from the day the flight arrived (article 35). A complaint to the airline, a board or a consumer centre does not stop this clock.

When the airline has to pay

Bags fall under the Montreal Convention, the international treaty on what airlines owe for passengers and bags. EU261, the rule behind the €250 to €600 for late flights, does not cover bags.

• Checked bags: the airline is liable for damage that happened on board or while the bag was in its care. You don't have to show that it did anything wrong (article 17(2)).
• The one exception: the airline is not liable if the damage came from the bag itself, what the treaty calls an "inherent defect, quality or vice" of the bag. That means a fault in the bag, such as a seam that was already coming apart. It does not mean ordinary handling on the way.
• Cabin bags: here the airline is only liable if it, or its staff, was at fault.
• Limit: up to about €1,836 per passenger for damage, delay and loss together (article 22(2)). The treaty sets it as 1,519 SDR. SDR stands for Special Drawing Rights, a currency unit of the International Monetary Fund, so the euro amount moves slightly with the exchange rate. It is a maximum. You get what the damage really cost.

Scratches, wheels and handles

Most airlines write in their conditions that they don't pay for scratches, scuffs, small dents or normal wear. SAS, Transavia and Iberia say so on their own pages. Light marks from normal handling are often not treated as damage at all.

A broken wheel, a torn handle or a cracked shell is different. That is damage, and the airline can only refuse on the narrow "inherent defect" ground. A term in the conditions cannot lower the airline's liability below the treaty (article 26). Boards and courts decide this case by case, so be precise: say exactly what broke, and add a photo of the bag from before the trip if you have one.

If you added to the damage

If an overpacked bag burst, or something fragile was badly packed, the airline can pay less or nothing for that part (article 20). Fragile items, electronics and valuables are often excluded in the airline's conditions for checked bags. Pack them in your hand luggage next time.

What you can get

• The repair: with a quote or an invoice from a repair shop.
• The value of the bag, if it can't be repaired. Airlines deduct for age, so you get what the bag was worth, not the price of a new one. There is no fixed legal rate for this cut. In one Danish case the board valued a two-year-old suitcase at 1,600 kr. If the bag was new or hardly used, say so and add the receipt.
• Damaged contents: list each item with its age and price, and add photos.

The airline's repair partner

Some airlines send you to a repair company. Finnair and SAS name Dolfi1920, and Finnair also Bag Support or a Samsonite store in the Nordics. Accepting a repair is fine. If the repair shop says the bag can't be repaired, ask for that in writing and claim the value.

Which airline to claim from

Was it one booking with several airlines? Then you can claim from the first airline, the last one (the one that handed you the bag) or the one whose flight it was damaged on (article 36(3)). They are liable together. Pick the one that is easiest for you. On separate bookings, claim from the airline of the booking your bag travelled on.

Travel and home insurance

Many travel and home insurance policies pay for a damaged suitcase, and some airlines tell you to try your insurer first. You can claim from both, but you can't be paid twice for the same damage. Insurers also deduct for age.

If the airline says no: where to complain

• Finland: the consumer disputes board (KRIL) takes baggage claims, free of charge. A baggage claim on its own must be in Finnish or Swedish. For a foreign airline, contact the European Consumer Centre first.
• Sweden: ARN takes damaged bags. The fee is 150 kr and isn't refunded, but you can ask in your complaint that the airline pays it back, and ARN can recommend that. For travel disputes the claim must be at least 1,500 kr, and you must file within a year of your claim to the airline.
• Denmark: Trafikstyrelsen does not handle bags. Nævnenes Hus does, but only against companies registered in Denmark. Mediation there costs 100 kr, which is not refunded. If the case goes on to the board (Forbrugerklagenævnet), the fee is 400 kr, which you get back if you win. For a foreign airline, use Forbruger Europa.
• Norway: Transportklagenemnda, free. File as soon as the airline has said no, and at the latest one year after your written claim to the airline (transportklagenemndforskriften § 5-2).
• United Kingdom: AviationADR or CEDR, depending on which scheme the airline belongs to. Bags are covered and it is free for passengers. You can go there after the airline's final answer or after 8 weeks.
• Germany: the Schlichtungsstelle Reise & Verkehr (formerly söp) for member airlines, otherwise the conciliation body at the Federal Office of Justice (BfJ). Free, for claims from €10 to €5,000.
• Spain: AESA does not take baggage claims. Use the European Consumer Centre for a foreign airline, or the court: the Tribunal de Instancia, Sección de lo Mercantil (formerly Juzgado de lo Mercantil). Claims up to €2,000 need no lawyer or procurador. Before you sue in Spain, you must be able to show you tried to settle with the airline: keep your claim letter, the reminder and the proof you sent them.
• Elsewhere in the EU: against an airline from another EU or EEA country, the European Consumer Centre in your country helps for free.

Court is the last step, within the 2 years above. In the Nordics these are mostly the same bodies that handle flight delays. See the Nordic complaint boards.

Was the bag also late, or did it never arrive? See delayed or lost baggage. The limit is explained in the Montreal Convention baggage limit.

FAQ

I only noticed the damage at home. Is it too late?

No, as long as you are within 7 days of getting the bag. Send the written claim now, with photos. Some airlines also have an online damage report for a few days after the flight. If you didn't report anything at the airport, the airline can say the bag was handed over in good condition (article 31(1)), so your photos and a quick claim matter.

The airline offers a voucher or a cheap replacement bag. Do I have to accept?

No. You can ask for the repair or the value of your bag instead. Compare the offer with a repair quote or the bag's value after a fair cut for age.

Something inside the bag broke, but the bag is fine. Can I claim?

Yes, damage to the contents of a checked bag counts too, within the same 7 days and the same limit. Expect the airline to check whether the item was allowed in checked bags and well packed.