Lawsuit over British Airways lost luggage to proceed

www.britishairways.com

The bid by British Airways to have a class-action lawsuit over lost luggage dismissed, has failed.

On Monday, the lawsuit initiated by US passengers against the British carrier involving their lost luggage was given the green light in a New York court by US District Judge Nicholas Garaufis.

The lawsuit contends that British Airways was knowingly reckless in the way it handled passenger baggage and that the $1,500 compensation limit, set by the international air travel agreement known as the Montreal Convention, should not apply in this case.

Thousands of passengers on British Airways either lost their luggage or had delivery of it extensively delayed when they traveled through Heathrow Airport in London a few years ago. Originally filed in 2008, the lawsuit seeks compensation for affected passengers at the actual amount of their financial loss, and not limited by the Montreal Convention’s $1,500 maximum.

Donald and Joan Smith, from Tacoma, Washington, were two of the first travelers affected, when they took a British Airways flight in June 2007, to Italy. Their luggage was lost for weeks, and when it was eventually found it was wet and severely damaged, according to the Seattle law firm that filed the suit.

The case, Smith v. British Airways, is looking to represent US passengers flying on BA flights between September 5, 2005 and September 5, 2007, whose luggage was damaged, delayed or lost.

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