LEVEL baggage: delayed, lost or damaged
A baggage problem on a LEVEL flight is not assessed under EU261 at all — it falls under a completely separate legal framework, the Montreal Convention 1999, with its own liability limit and its own reporting deadlines. That distinction matters because the rights, the amounts and the paperwork are all different from a delay or cancellation compensation claim, even when both happened on the same disrupted trip.
Free eligibility check
Check your case in the form
Enter your route, date and type of disruption. We will check whether your case qualifies for a claim under EU 261/2004 or UK261.
What happened to your flight?
Claim up to €600 for a delayed or cancelled flight.
Choose the situation that applies to your flight:
Use the compensation calculator for delay or cancellation compensation separately; this guide covers baggage specifically.
The liability limit
Under the Montreal Convention, as revised with effect from 28 December 2024, the liability limit for baggage loss, delay or damage on an international flight is 1,519 Special Drawing Rights per passenger — an IMF-defined unit that converts to a fluctuating amount in euros or dollars depending on the exchange rate at the relevant time. This is a ceiling on the airline's liability, not a guaranteed payout: LEVEL still assesses the actual proven loss, up to that ceiling, based on the value of the contents and any receipts or valuation evidence provided.
Reporting deadlines that cannot be missed
| Situation | Deadline to notify the airline in writing |
|---|---|
| Damaged baggage | Within 7 days of receiving the bag |
| Delayed baggage | Within 21 days of the bag being made available to the passenger |
| Lost baggage | Generally treated as lost once the airline confirms it cannot be located, commonly after around 21 days of active tracing |
Missing these windows can weaken or eliminate the claim entirely, regardless of how strong the underlying evidence otherwise is. File the written notice as early as possible rather than waiting for a final decision on whether to pursue a full claim — a preliminary notice preserves the right to follow up later with full documentation.
Filing the report at the airport first
Before leaving the baggage claim area, report a missing or damaged bag to LEVEL's ground handling desk and obtain a Property Irregularity Report, commonly referred to as a PIR. This report, created at the airport with a reference number, is the starting point for any later claim and establishes a documented date for when the problem was first raised — important given the notification deadlines above.
What to do for each type of problem
Delayed baggage. Keep receipts for any essential items purchased while waiting for the bag to arrive — reasonable, itemised purchases directly caused by the delay are generally reimbursable up to the Montreal Convention ceiling, separate from any later claim if the bag turns out to have also been damaged.
Damaged baggage. Photograph the damage before repairing or discarding anything, and note whether the damage appears consistent with normal handling wear or with mishandling. Some airlines apply a reasonable-wear exclusion for minor scuffing; genuine structural damage — broken wheels, a snapped handle, a torn frame — is generally treated differently from cosmetic wear.
Lost baggage. Continue to cooperate with LEVEL's tracing process during the active search period. Once the airline confirms the bag cannot be located, the claim shifts from a delay claim to a loss claim, with the full contents value assessed up to the Convention ceiling rather than only the interim purchases made while waiting.
Evidence that supports a baggage claim
- The Property Irregularity Report from the airport
- The original baggage tag and boarding pass
- Receipts for the original contents where available, or a reasonable itemised list with approximate values
- Receipts for any essential purchases made while the bag was delayed
- Photographs of any damage, taken before repair or disposal
How valuation works without original receipts
Not every passenger keeps receipts for every item in a checked bag. Where original receipts are unavailable, a reasonable itemised list — describing each item, its approximate age, and a fair current value — is generally accepted as a starting point for negotiation, though it may be weighted less heavily than documented purchase evidence. Photographs of the packed bag taken before departure, where available, can help support a valuation that would otherwise rely entirely on memory.
Special items and excess-value declarations
Some items — electronics, camera equipment, medical devices, musical instruments — carry a value that can exceed what a standard baggage claim would recover under the Montreal Convention ceiling once divided among everything in the bag. Where an item is genuinely high-value, check at booking or check-in whether LEVEL offers an excess-value declaration for an additional fee, which can raise the airline's liability for that specific item beyond the standard per-passenger limit. This is worth doing before travel rather than after a loss, since it generally cannot be arranged retroactively once a bag has already gone missing or been damaged.
If LEVEL's initial offer seems too low
An airline's first response to a baggage claim is not always its final position, particularly where the passenger's own valuation was more detailed than the initial reply actually engaged with. If the offered amount does not reflect the evidence submitted — receipts, itemised lists, or photographs of a packed bag — respond specifically pointing to the evidence that was provided and ask for the assessment to be reconsidered against it, rather than accepting a low offer simply because it arrived first. A short, itemised response referencing the original PIR number is generally more effective than a general complaint about the amount offered.
How this interacts with a separate compensation claim
If the same disrupted journey also involved a qualifying delay, cancellation or denied boarding under EU261, that claim is entirely separate from the baggage claim and should be submitted as its own request with its own supporting evidence. See the compensation amount guide for how that separate figure is calculated, and the step-by-step claim guide for the general submission process — baggage claims typically go through LEVEL's dedicated baggage reporting channel rather than the general compensation claim form.
FAQ
Is baggage covered by EU261 like a flight delay?
No. Baggage loss, delay and damage are governed by the Montreal Convention, a separate international treaty with its own liability limit and its own deadlines, distinct from EU261's fixed compensation for flight disruption.
What is the maximum I can claim for lost or damaged baggage?
Up to 1,519 Special Drawing Rights per passenger under the current Montreal Convention limit, based on the actual proven value of the loss up to that ceiling.
How quickly do I need to report damaged baggage?
Within 7 days of receiving the bag, in writing, to preserve the claim.
What if my bag is delayed for several days but eventually arrives?
You can generally claim reasonable, receipted essential purchases made during the delay, within 21 days of the bag being made available to you, separate from any later claim if the contents were also damaged.
Do I need a Property Irregularity Report to make a claim?
It is strongly recommended. Filing a PIR at the airport before leaving creates a documented starting date for the claim and is generally the first step LEVEL expects before a baggage claim is assessed.