Delayed baggage compensation

Your legal right when a bag is delayed

Delayed baggage is governed by the Montreal Convention 1999. In the UK and the EU its baggage rules apply to all flights by EU and UK airlines, including domestic flights, and to most international flights by other airlines. EU261 and UK261 do not apply to bags: their fixed €/£ amounts are for delayed or cancelled flights.

Article 19 makes the airline liable for "damage occasioned by delay" in the carriage of baggage. The airline escapes liability only if it proves that it and its staff and agents took all measures that could reasonably be required to avoid the damage, or that it was impossible to take them. The burden of proving that defence is on the airline, not on you.

If both happened – the flight was 3 hours late and the bag did not arrive – you can make both claims. See flight delay compensation.

What you can claim for a delayed bag

The test is what was reasonable and necessary because you did not have your bag. The Convention gives no list; the CAA says bare essentials such as toiletries, underwear and laundry are usually reimbursed. The table below reflects how airlines and courts typically approach it – it is guidance, not a legal list.

Airlines often argue that clothes you bought are yours to keep, so they reimburse only part of the price, or nothing for items with lasting value. It helps to buy modestly and to explain in your claim why each purchase was needed. You will usually be able to justify more on the outbound journey, when you are away from home, than on the way back.

How much compensation for delayed baggage?

The law sets only a maximum: 1,519 Special Drawing Rights per passenger for destruction, loss, damage or delay of baggage (Article 22(2), as revised by ICAO with effect from 28 December 2024 and certified in the UK by SI 2025/123). On 10 November 2026 the IMF valued one SDR at £1.009910 or €1.209120, so the limit was worth about €1,837 or £1,534.

• No flat rate. You receive what you spent reasonably, not a fixed sum per day.
• One limit per passenger. If the bag is later also found damaged, or is eventually lost, the delay costs and the damage or loss share the same ceiling.
• Airline allowances. Some airlines pay an interim sum at the airport or publish a daily guideline amount. These are policies, not legal limits: if your reasonable, receipted costs were higher, claim them.
• Higher limit by declaration. A special declaration of interest at check-in (with any supplement paid) raises the limit to the declared value.

What to do at the airport

1. Do not leave the baggage hall without reporting it. Go to the baggage services desk for your airline (often run by a handling agent) and ask for a Property Irregularity Report (PIR).
2. Check the PIR before you sign: your contact details, a delivery address (home or hotel), the bag tag number, and a clear description of the bag.
3. Keep the PIR reference, your bag tag stub and your boarding pass.
4. Ask whether the airline provides an overnight kit or an interim payment, and how it will deliver the bag.
5. Note the date and time. The 21-day periods in the Convention are counted from dates, so a record helps.

The Court of Justice has held that a complaint can count as "in writing" when it is recorded in the airline's electronic system, provided the passenger can check and correct it before the deadline (Finnair v Fennia, C-258/16, 12 April 2018). That supports relying on a PIR you have checked – but it is still safest to send your own written claim as well.

Making the claim

Once the bag has arrived (or while you are still waiting, if the costs are mounting), send the airline a written claim. Use its online baggage claim form if it has one, or e-mail. Include:

• your name, booking reference, flight number and date, and the PIR reference;
• the date and time the bag was delivered to you;
• a list of each expense, with the amount and why it was needed;
• scans or photos of every receipt (keep the originals);
• a statement that you are claiming under Article 19 of the Montreal Convention;
• your bank details and a reasonable deadline for reply, such as 28 days.

Airline-specific claim routes: easyJet · British Airways · Ryanair · Jet2 · TUI · Wizz Air · Aer Lingus · Emirates.

The 21-day deadline

Article 31(2) requires a complaint about delayed baggage to be made at the latest within 21 days from the date on which the baggage was placed at your disposal, and Article 31(3) requires it to be in writing. If you miss it, Article 31(4) says no action lies against the airline, except in case of fraud. This is the single most common reason delayed-bag claims fail.

Citizens Advice words the delay deadline as 21 days "after the flight"; the Convention counts from when the bag reaches you. If you want to be safe, send your claim within 21 days of the flight whenever you can.

If the bag never arrives

A checked bag that has not arrived 21 days after the date it should have arrived can be treated as lost (Article 17(3)). You can then claim its value and contents, in addition to the essentials you bought while waiting (all within the 1,519 SDR ceiling). Our lost luggage guide explains how airlines value a lost bag and what evidence to collect. If the bag turns up damaged, see damaged luggage compensation and remember the 7-day deadline.

If the airline refuses or pays too little

• Ask for reasons item by item, and reply with any missing receipts or explanations.
• ADR (UK): if the airline is a member of an approved scheme such as AviationADR or CEDR, you can use it after 8 weeks or a final response. See ADR schemes and our ADR complaint template.
• CAA (UK): if the airline is not in an ADR scheme, the CAA's Passenger Advice and Complaints Team handles Montreal Convention complaints. See complaining to the CAA.
• EU, EEA and Swiss flights: the national enforcement bodies deal mainly with EU261, not baggage, so after the airline's own complaint route use an ADR or consumer dispute body where the country has one (our country guides list them – for example Germany, Spain, Italy, Sweden or Poland). The European Consumer Centre in your country gives free advice and can contact the airline in cross-border cases.
• Court: small claims are often proportionate for these amounts. See the European Small Claims Procedure for cross-border EU claims and the small claims court in England and Wales, and remember the 2-year limit.
• Insurance: many travel policies pay a set amount for delayed baggage after a minimum number of hours. You can claim from the airline and the insurer, but not be paid twice for the same cost.

Frequently asked questions

Do airlines compensate you for delayed baggage?

Yes. Under Article 19 of the Montreal Convention the airline is liable for damage caused by the delay of your baggage, unless it proves that it and its staff took all reasonable measures to avoid it or that it was impossible to do so. In practice this means reimbursing reasonable, necessary costs you incurred because your bag was late. It is reimbursement against receipts, not a fixed payment.

How much am I entitled to for delayed baggage?

Your reasonable, proven costs, up to a ceiling of 1,519 SDR per passenger (about €1,837 or £1,534 at the IMF rate on 10 November 2026). The ceiling is shared with any claim for damage to or loss of the same baggage. Most delayed-bag claims are far below it because they cover a few days of essentials.

What can I claim if my bag is delayed?

Things you genuinely needed before the bag arrived: toiletries, underwear, a change of clothes, laundry, and items needed for the purpose of the trip (for example, hiring equipment you had packed, or clothes for a meeting or event). The CAA says bare essentials such as toiletries, underwear and laundry are usually reimbursed. Luxury purchases, or replacing a whole wardrobe for a short delay, usually are not.

What is the compensation for delayed baggage in Europe?

The same Montreal Convention rule applies across the EU, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, the UK and most international flights: reasonable costs, proven by receipts, up to 1,519 SDR. EU261 and UK261 do not pay fixed compensation for delayed baggage – they cover delayed or cancelled flights, not bags.

How long does it take for delayed luggage to be delivered?

There is no legal delivery deadline, and how long tracing takes varies from case to case. What the law does fix is that if a checked bag has not arrived 21 days after it should have, you can treat it as lost and claim its full value (Article 17(3)). Track it with your PIR reference in the meantime.

My bag was delayed on the way home. Can I still claim?

You can, but there is usually less to claim, because you have clothes and toiletries at home. Costs such as travelling back to the airport to collect the bag may be claimable if the airline did not deliver it. Ask for delivery to your home address when you file the PIR.

Do I have to accept the airline's daily allowance?

Some airlines publish a guideline amount per day for essentials or pay an interim sum at the airport. These are the airline's own policies, not legal caps. If your reasonable costs were higher, you can claim the difference with receipts, up to the Convention limit.

This guide explains the general rules; it is not legal advice and we are not lawyers. We are an independent guide and an affiliate partner of AirHelp – see our affiliate disclosure.

Sources

1. Montreal Convention 1999 – Articles 17, 19, 22, 31 and 35 – EUR-Lex
2. 2024 Revised Limits of Liability under the Montreal Convention 1999 – ICAO
3. The Carriage by Air (Revision of Limits of Liability under the Montreal Convention) Order 2025 – legislation.gov.uk
4. SDR valuation – currency units per SDR – International Monetary Fund
5. Lost, delayed or damaged baggage – UK Civil Aviation Authority
6. Get airline compensation for lost or delayed luggage – Citizens Advice
7. Air passenger rights – luggage – Your Europe (European Commission)
8. Air passenger rights – baggage – European Consumer Centres Network
9. Judgment C-258/16 Finnair v Fennia (12 April 2018) – Court of Justice of the EU

We check every rule against the sources above. Spotted an error? Tell us – see our editorial policy.