Travel Troubleshooter: Air Canada destroyed my $1,000 Rimowa luggage. Can you make them pay?

Q: Air Canada destroyed my Rimowa suitcase on a flight from Toronto to San Francisco.

The airline instructed me to send the suitcase to a repair agent in Texas. The agent declared the suitcase unrepairable, despite the fact that they have no contract with Rimowa and no expertise in that brand.

Air Canada then offered me a choice of inferior replacement bags, which I declined, and recently sent me a $230 check in proposed compensation. I paid roughly $1,000 for my Rimowa bag, and it was of a quality to be a lifetime suitcase.

I have had multiple unsuccessful phone calls with Air Canada. I’ve escalated my complaint to the CEO by email. I have received no response.

I would like Air Canada to either send the luggage to an authorized Rimowa repair shop and pay for the repairs or refund me for the luggage. Can you help?

A: Air Canada should have handled your luggage with care. And if your checked baggage was damaged in the airline’s custody, it should have promptly paid for a repair or replacement. Under the Montreal Convention, which governs international flights, Air Canada’s maximum liability is $3,800.

Before I get to what went wrong, I have to say something about checking $1,000 luxury designer luggage. Elliott’s guiding principles for luggage are durability and inconspicuousness. You scored well on durability: Your checked bag was made of sturdy plastic and, in your words, it was in “perfect” shape after many years and tens of thousands of miles of air travel. But you also want your checked bag to not attract too much attention, and Rimowa is a little flashy. You were lucky it wasn’t stolen.

That doesn’t let Air Canada off the hook. It accepted your bag, and you paid a fee to have it transported. Sending your luggage to someone who doesn’t understand how to fix Rimowa luggage is not my idea of of assuming responsibility.

You bought the bag over 10 years ago and do not have the receipt. It certainly is past its five-year warranty. (The bags are now sold with a lifetime guarantee.)

Here’s where things went off the rails. Air Canada can ask for proof of your purchase when you request a replacement. If you don’t have it, you may not get the full amount. Also, given the bag’s age, there’s some depreciation.

I asked Air Canada to review your luggage claim. Air Canada says that “after further review” they are sending you an additional check, so your total compensation comes to $500.

“I still think they owe me more,” you told me, “but I’m going to call it a day.”

Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps consumers. Contact him at chris@elliott.org or elliottadvocacy.org/help.