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Problems with baggage
Although we work closely with our ground handling partners, it can happen that an item of baggage arrives late at the destination airport or is damaged en route. Of course, we will take all necessary measures to recover your baggage as quickly as possible or to compensate you for the damage caused.
- If one or more of your items of baggage cannot be found, please report this immediately online and keep all flight documents, in particular your boarding pass and baggage tag receipt.If you only report the delay five days or more after your flight, please use our contact form. The statutory reporting deadline is 21 days after your flight.
You will then receive a confirmation and a reference number by email (PIR number, e.g., FRA4Y12345). Please be sure to keep this so that you can find out about the status of the baggage search. Alternatively, you can report your missing baggage at the baggage tracing counters of your destination or transfer airport.
We find the vast majority of missing bags within 24 hours. As soon as your baggage has arrived at your destination airport, we will contact you to arrange its delivery.
In rare cases, it happens that a piece of baggage cannot be found within five days. In this case too, we will contact you to ask you to complete a list of the contents of your delayed baggage. By means of the content list you have completed, an intensive content search for your baggage will be carried out. This content search enables us to allocate the majority of delayed baggage. For this reason, we ask you to fill in the list of contents giving as much detail as possible about your baggage.Request compensation
If your baggage arrives late at your destination, you can purchase necessary items such as clothing and toiletries and submit the receipts for reimbursement. Please keep all receipts so you can later make your claims. After reporting the delay of your baggage (at the airport or online), please request reimbursement for the documented expenses by using our contact form.Please note:- Please take valuables such as jewellery, money or medication with you in your carry-on baggage.
- You are required to keep the expenses connected to the purchasing of replacement articles in the event of a baggage delay as low as possible (duty to mitigate damages). Discover Airlines will contribute subject to proportionality.
- Replacement purchases after arrival at home are also considered for reimbursement. However, each passenger is particularly subject to the duty to mitigate damages here. Reimbursement for replacement purchases that likely were available at the home location may be refused.
- Items that you can continue to use (e.g. clothing) will be reimbursed at 50% whilst hygiene items or items for one-time use will be reimbursed at 100%. Exceptions apply to the USA and Canada due to local legislation (US DOT and CTA).
You can apply for reimbursement of replacement costs within 2 years after your flight, provided you have reported your baggage as delayed.Loss of an item of baggage
You are entitled to compensation for the loss of your baggage under the following conditions:- You have reported your baggage as delayed within the reporting deadlines (at the airport or online)
- You have completed the contents list on the baggage status page
- Your baggage is delayed more than 21 days
If this is the case, you must make a claim for your compensation for the loss of your baggage within two years.
The liability of airlines for baggage is regulated by law. The compensation entitlement is granted according to the Montreal Convention. The compensation itself is specified in Special Drawing Rights (SDR). The Special Drawing Right (SDR) is an artificial accounting unit created by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Currently, the maximum liability amount is 1,288 SDRs which currently equates to approx. €1,500. This amount is subject to exchange rate fluctuations and may therefore change.
The Montreal Convention only applies if the following parameters are fulfilled: The law applies both to domestic and international carriage between the contracting states. In the case of checked baggage, the airline is liable, regardless of fault, for the delayed baggage. The right applies only if the Delayed Baggage Report and the claim for compensation have been submitted within the time limits specified in the agreement. - If your baggage is damaged after your flight, please report it immediately online or at the baggage tracing desk at the airport so we can address your request as swiftly as possible. Be sure to keep all your flight documents, particularly your boarding pass and baggage claim tag.If you notice the damage five days or more after your flight, please use our contact form. The statutory reporting deadline is seven days after your flight. You must also provide proof that the damage occurred while the baggage was in the care of the airline.Once you've reported the damaged baggage, you will receive an email confirmation with a reference number (e.g. FRA4Y12345). Please keep this number safe. The confirmation will detail all the next steps.
Our partner Dolfi will check the damage report and assess the damage according to our guidelines. Dolfi will then contact you about possible compensation or take care of repairing or replacing your baggage.
Typically, you will be contacted within a few working days. In case it takes slightly longer, we kindly ask you for your patience. Rest assured, once your damaged baggage has been reported, we will work actively towards a swift resolution.
If you have reported your damaged baggage within the legally required period, you can claim settlement of damages under the Montreal Convention. To process your claim, we need an assessment of the value and damage of the item or a purchase receipt for the damaged baggage. The current value is always considered when determining the refund amount. For each year of use, 15% of the value is deducted. - In the excitement of going on vacation, sometimes passengers accidentally leave personal items on board. But there is no need to worry. Our crews drop off all left-behind items at the airport's lost property office at the corresponding destination. Items will be kept there for three months.
Items lost at Frankfurt Airport or on flights to Frankfurt:
Please use the Notification of Loss at Frankfurt Airport form to report your loss. Alternatively, you can also go directly to the lost property office. It is located in Terminal 1, Area A, Level 0 and is open Monday to Sunday from 08:00 to 16:00 hours.
