Damaged hand luggage

[colville2002]

I'm looking for some advice or experience of this situation. When disembarking the Independence on 15 May, they managed to drop my hand luggage into the water. Luckily nothing too valuable was in there but I was told on the day that they would make everything good and I should submit a Personal Property Report to Customer Services and call them when I got home and things would be well.

 

I called Customer Services the next day and was asked to email the Report over along with pictures and a list of the damaged items. I did so that night and waited several weeks for a response. It took four phone calls, each time being promised that the agent dealing with the claim would call be back before he actually did and I was told that all they would offer was $300. According to the agent this was based on the Passenger Cruise contract and was the absolute limit they could offer under the contract. I gave the example of what if I had had a £10,000 watch in the luggage that was beyond repair and he confirmed that the $300 would still be the limit. I asked for time to think the offer over and could he confirm the offer in writing.

 

I then reviewed the Contract to discover that the limitations included in it were substantially higher than $300, even for hand luggage, and were based on the Athens Convention which the cruise line had signed up to. I therefore responded to the email offer confirming that it was not acceptable, that I did not appreciate being lied to about the limits that applied in the cruise contract and I expected them to abide by these limits. Again I heard nothing for over a week so I called to chase and was told that on a review of the file, that was a final offer but I insisted this was not acceptable so they said that they agent handling the case would call me back once he was off the call he was dealing with. This last call was on 28 June and I'm still waiting for the call back.

 

Does anyone have any advice on where I go from here? The offer barely covers half of the damage caused and the customer service has been terrible. I copied in MIchael Bayley to the email rejecting the offer and complaining about being lied to over the applicable limits but that doesn't appear to have had an impact.

[ade1982]

Send again, copy Bayley's office in again, and add the fact that you've had to chase.

[Trevor Fountain]

The OP never said she had anything VERY expensive in the hand luggage.

" Luckily nothing too valuable was in there".

Hope you get this sorted. Shocking customer relations.

[purescottish]

I thought hand luggage was just that, luggage you kept to hand with valuables and meds etc... so how did it end up in the water ?

also you said there was nothing valuable in there, yet refused $300, that's valuable to me..

am I missing something here

[swoopy2110]

If there isn't £10,000 worth of damaged stuff, they ain't going to offer you £10,000..

 

It's like travel insurnace. You are covered for up to $5,000,000 of medical treatment, but they're only going to pay the cost of the treatment that's actually needed

[msmayor]

What exactly was in this hand luggage that makes your loss over $600? You said the $300 barely covers half of what was lost...do you have photos and receipts to document and demonstrate the loss?

[molsonschooner]

I thought hand luggage was just that, luggage you kept to hand with valuables and meds etc... so how did it end up in the water ?

also you said there was nothing valuable in there, yet refused $300, that's valuable to me..

am I missing something here

 

That is what I was thinking. Hand luggage is what I would call carry on.

[Mcdonaldbam]

Where in the contract does it show the limits are higher than $300?

Why wasn't a report filed when the luggage was retrieved from the water?

[cb at sea]

There is a "contract" with EVERY carrier to protect THEMSELVES. You can spend time and energy, and perhaps money trying to get them to "pay up"...but it's not going to work.

 

As far as your "hand" luggage...why wasn't it in YOUR hand?

 

I think the poster was just doing a "what if" post, though...

[lbjen]

Did you have travel insurance or pay with a credit card that provides for damage to luggage? Damage caused by mishandling of the cruise line staff is included in that, and they will seek to recoup the money from the cruise line once you tell them that the damage was caused by them. You'll still get your money regardless. If I were you I'd take that route and forget about trying to get more from them directly because it doesn't sound like they plan on giving more no matter who you ask. And in future, carry your own valuables unless you are unable to because of disability, I guess.

[dd likes to cruise]

Would love to hear more about what the OP calls "nothing too valuable" being worth more than $300.00.

 

I'm sure some folks have luggage that costs that much, but I think thats ridiculous, IMHO.

 

I too think "hand luggage" is suppose to be in the passengers hand, not the cruise lines. So whole post has many inconsistencies.

[spookwife]

$300 is pretty standard across the board. furthermore the assumption is you have personal insurance that covers any losses greater than that.

 

and just why /how did they manage to drop your carry on into the water in the first place? weren't YOU in control of it?

[setsail]

, they managed to drop my hand luggage into the water.

 

Most come home with luggage full of dirty laundry, you got a free pre-wash

[Havingfun2010]

I'm confused. Exactly what was in the hand luggage? If my hand luggage went into the water, the luggage itself would still be fine. So maybe some laundry, or toiletries? I'm thinking it's a carry on sized bag, which would mean, even in the worst situation, $300.00 would cover it unless you had electronics in it.

 

It sounds like asking for more money than the value.

[ColoradoGurl]

What exactly was in this hand luggage that makes your loss over $600? You said the $300 barely covers half of what was lost...do you have photos and receipts to document and demonstrate the loss?

 

 

There is a lot of luggage out there that costs well over $600. I have more than one dress that costs over $300 as well; shoes too. It's not unlikely that this person had $600 worth of stuff in her luggage. A pair of good jeans can cost $200, lulu lemon leggings are $100. I can think of lots of basic items of clothing in my closet that could be packed for a cruise that would take me way over the $300.

 

However, you are correct that receipts are required for the stuff that you want reimbursed (including the luggage itself). This is kind of a dirty trick by insurance companies, because it's unlikely people keep receipts for their clothing after it has passed its "return" date.

 

Some credit cards will offer additional insurance for things such as "lost or damaged" luggage, but again, they usually require receipts (mine does anyway).

 

I would call the credit card company (assuming you paid for your cruise with a credit card that offers travel insurance) and see if they will cover any additional loss to the $300 that the cruise is offering. If not, and you really did lose more than $300 of items to damage, decide if it's worth paying a lawyer to write a form letter for you.

 

 

 

 

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[colville2002]

By hand luggage, I mean it was to be hand luggage on the flight home. We put everything we didn't need for the morning on the ship in my "hand luggage" and kept what we did need in my wife's carry-on. There was no point carrying both bags to breakfast in the morning, we have a two year old son so the less items to carry around the better.

 

By nothing too valuable, I mean I almost put my good watch in there the night before but kept it in the safe instead. It's not worth £10,000 but would be more than $300. And yes, there were electronics in there - an ebook reader and a portable DVD player along with some other items including a signed book I bought before the holiday.

 

The contract refers to limts for damage to luggage and then for hand luggage specifically, referring to the Athens Convention and the limit for hand luggage is given as around £2,100 if i recall correctly or significantly more than $300 - I don't recall the exact section but I can check later when I am finished work if anyone wants (I also googled the Athens Convention to confirm exactly what it said).

 

I don't expect them to pay me the limit, just meet the cost of replacing my items) but used the £10k watch example to clarify whether the $300 limit he stated was an absolute limit in the contract or if it simply referred to my situation - he said it was an absolute limit from the contract, which is incorrect.

 

They have told me to seek anything further from my insurer but no insurer will pay me out of their own pocket until the cruise line has met the terms of their own contract - if I claim the difference from the insurance company I would expect the insurance company to then seek that difference from the cruise line until the contract has been abided by.

 

Hopefully that has explained any inconsistencies and why they had my hand luggage to deliver to the terminal. I will try Michael Bayley's office again this evening and hopefully that produces a better result

[marci22]

This is what the RC t&c says:

 

c. Limitation of Liability for Lost or Damaged Property. Notwithstanding anyother provision of law or this Agreement, Carrier’s liability for loss or damageto property during the Land Tour portion of a CruiseTour is limited to $300.00per Passenger. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or this Agreement,Carrier’s liability for loss or damage to property for the cruise (or for the cruiseonly portion of a CruiseTour) shall be limited to $300.00 per Passenger, unlessPassenger declares the true value of such property in writing to the Carrier atthe address specified in Section 10.a below and pays Carrier within 10 days offinal payment for the cruise, a fee of five percent (5%) of the amount that suchvalue exceeds $300.00. In such event, Carrier’s liability shall be limited to itstrue declared value, but not exceeding $5,000.

 

I'm not sure the Athens Convention applies in this case? but if it did, I am guessing that you would have to file suit in court, or at least get a lawyer involved, which would not make sense on a smallish claim.

 

Let us know what happens.

[swoopy2110]

This is what the RC t&c says:

 

c. Limitation of Liability for Lost or Damaged Property. Notwithstanding anyother provision of law or this Agreement, Carrier’s liability for loss or damageto property during the Land Tour portion of a CruiseTour is limited to $300.00per Passenger. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or this Agreement,Carrier’s liability for loss or damage to property for the cruise (or for the cruiseonly portion of a CruiseTour) shall be limited to $300.00 per Passenger, unlessPassenger declares the true value of such property in writing to the Carrier atthe address specified in Section 10.a below and pays Carrier within 10 days offinal payment for the cruise, a fee of five percent (5%) of the amount that suchvalue exceeds $300.00. In such event, Carrier’s liability shall be limited to itstrue declared value, but not exceeding $5,000.

 

I'm not sure the Athens Convention applies in this case? but if it did, I am guessing that you would have to file suit in court, or at least get a lawyer involved, which would not make sense on a smallish claim.

 

Let us know what happens.

 

The UK T&C Are different to the US T&C. As the OP has said the UK T&C refer to the Athens Convention

 

 

The UK T&C say: In the event of our liability for damage and loss to baggage,where baggage is deposited with the ship, this is limited to 3,375 SDR (approximately £3,200)

[colville2002]

I should clarified I'm based in the UK, so UK T&C's. Section 5.8 of these covers the liability limits towards guests (and refers to the Athens Convention). The last sentence of this section states

In the event of our liability for damage and loss to baggage,

where baggage is deposited with the ship, this is limited to 3,375 (approximately £3,200) and for damage and loss to cabin luggage this is limited 2,250 SDRs (approximately £2,100).

I haven't read each page line by line but I have completed a Search on the Abobe PDF and no results were obtained for '$300'

[marci22]

The UK T&C Are different to the US T&C. As the OP has said the UK T&C refer to the Athens Convention

 

 

The UK T&C say: In the event of our liability for damage and loss to baggage,where baggage is deposited with the ship, this is limited to 3,375 SDR (approximately £3,200)

 

It seems like the OP is communicating with Miami about this? in which case the reps are probably looking at the same contract. Maybe OP should be communicating with the UK TA who should have experience with this.

 

The original posting is a bit hard to follow so I am guessing the message might not be getting through clearly to all concerned.

 

Also accusing people of lying isn't helping matters. I think it is more miscommunication between OP and reps.

 

Also I would stop calling it 'hand luggage' because that is confusing. Just call it 'luggage'.

[colville2002]

I believe I am dealing with the UK call centre (now offshore) since I dial a UK based number to contact them but when I was not happy, I copied in Michael Bayley's office in the hopes this would have some effect.

 

The Customer Service agent said they had to send the claim off for approval to the finance office so perhaps they did not flag to the finance office that it should be based on UK T&C's.

 

I did flag to the Customer Services agent that I was referring to section 5.8 of the contract but perhaps they did not look this up. I will contact them again and ask if this is why they limited the offer to $300 - hopefully this might be enough to get to a resolution

 

On the lying, if I am talking to someone who I believe knows the situation and they tell me a contract says one thing and when I read the contract it says another, to me it seems like lying. I can see now they might have made a misunderstanding. As for referring to it as hand luggage, the cruise contract differentiates in the limits that apply so I need to differentiate it somehow. Not having a go, just clarifying why I said what I did

Edited July 5, 2017 by colville2002

[BecciBoo]

There are certain items that we never part from on a cruise, one is the backpack with electronic devices that stays on my DH's back during boarding and deboarding and the other is my carry on with jewelry/meds. We don't sweat the small stuff like clothing etc in our checked bags.

 

Anything like clothing would just need washing/dry cleaning to revive.

 

Lesson learned right? Keep the things that are irreplaceable or really valuable with you at all times.

 

I once watched the Stevedores run over several cases on the pier, get out, throw them back on the trolley and away they went.

[Mcdonaldbam]

Did you comply with paragraph 3b of the ticket contact? How about Article 15 of the Athens Convention?

[colville2002]

Did you comply with paragraph 3b of the ticket contact? How about Article 15 of the Athens Convention?

 

For Article 15, yes as noted above I completed a Personal Property Report on the pier and called them the following day, sending the report and pictures by email that night as requested in the phone call.

 

I don't see a paragraph 3b in the ticket contract?

[marci22]

As for referring to it as hand luggage, the cruise contract differentiates in the limits that apply so I need to differentiate it somehow. Not having a go, just clarifying why I said what I did

 

I see 'baggage deposited with the ship' and 'cabin luggage'. 'In the event of our liability for damage and loss to baggage,where baggage is deposited with the ship, this is limited to 3,375 (approximately £3,200) and for damage and loss to cabin luggage this is limited 2,250 SDRs (approximately £2,100).'

 

The reason I say stop calling it 'hand luggage' is because it makes it seem like you were the one carrying it and just adds confusion to the story.