Q: I was traveling with my niece and the handle on her suitcase was damaged. Are airlines responsible for repairing damaged suitcases? My assumption is that if you’re traveling and you give them your suitcase that they have a responsibility to return it to you in the same condition.

A: It certainly would be nice if your assumption was standard operating procedure for U.S. airlines. Alas, that’s not the case. Every airline has a different baggage policy so you need to check the specific airline’s website. Northwest Airline’s policy, for example, does not take responsibility for broken wheels or feet, lost pull straps, damage resulting from over-packed baggage, damage to oversized bags and damage to retractable baggage handles.

I talked to AAA  Minneapolis and they said that while suitcase repairs often end up being surprisingly inexpensive, the best way to protect yourself from shelling out money for a broken wheel is to buy travel insurance.  They also told me that  several high end luggage companies offer guaranteed free repairs for luggage that is damaged during transit. Those companies include:

• Briggs & Riley
• Travelpro (Platinum Series only)
• Eagle Creek (Exploration and Velocity series only)

This entry was posted on Monday, July 6th, 2009 at 4:17 pm and is filed under airlines. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.