Originally Posted by
etch5895
Because the airline's responsibility is to get it to Berlin, not Croatia. The bags would be waiting for the OP at the airport luggage office at Berlin.
If this was the case then why don't airlines make passengers return to the airport to collect their delayed bags, instead of delivering them to the passenger's final destination?
Under the Montreal Convention airlines are liable for up to SDR 1000 per passenger in case of delayed bags - that's 1173 Euro at today's rate of exchange. This will easily cover the cost of sending a bag from Berlin to the passenger's final destination, whether it's Potsdam, Leipzig or Croatia.