Originally Posted by mmff

That guideline is pretty useless because, by their own admission, expenses "should [always] be handled on an individual basis up to the limit of liability". IME LH/OS do a good job covering expenses when bags go AWOL.

Originally Posted by SK AAR

There are 2 reasons why I got annoyed reading the initial post.

First of all it is another example of "I want compensation/how much can I get in compensation" which we freguently meet in this forum for even events where there is no monetary loss (OS has agreed to reimburse the OP). At least in Europe compensation is paid when you have a (monetary) loss; not when you feel inconvenienced, have spent time trying to get answers that you deem fit etc.

The second issue I have with the post is the following: why did it make a difference to the OP whether he/she got a clear answer from OS on how much would be reimbursed? The OP should only purchase items that were neccessary to overcome the unfortunate situation with no luggage; no more. The OP bought what was neccessary and will be reimbursed by OS. However, the OP is annoyed that he didn't get clear guidelines om how much would be reimbursed as then he/she would most likely have purchased more despite such items, clothes etc not being absolutely neccessary but the OP still expecting a full reimbursement (as long as it was within the allowance set by OS). From the following it is clear that the OP is annoyed that he/she missed that opportunity:



and even wants compensation. Sorry, but I don't find this approach/attitude very sympathetic and is the reason I worded my post quite harshly.

Originally Posted by jcaitsith

wow, that was a sour response...
anyway I can see where the OP is coming from. In my experience US airlines will tell you in advance what their expense reimbursement CAP is.
It makes sense to ask nonetheless. I see no reason why one should feel so strongly and be so get aggressive about this; it's just common sense.
Depending on where you end up without your luggage and how long it takes them to return it to you, the expenses may actually build up quite quickly...
For instance Delta cleary states on their website:

"...Delta requires that receipts be presented for all reasonable expense reimbursements incurred due to the delay of your bag(s). Reasonable expenses generally are $50 per day for the first 5 days the bag is delayed. The guidelines for reasonable expenses are NOT daily limits or a cap and additional expenses may be incurred and should be handled on an individual basis up to the limit of liability. Any disbursements will be deducted from the final settlement if the bag is not located..."

In another occasion copy of the reimbursement policy (stating the max reimbursement) was provided to me after filing my baggage claim at the airport. The agent handed me a copy without having to ask. The flight was operated by AA...

Frankly not letting your passenger know this information in advance is quite unfair and appears as a sneaky way to try to get away from reimbursing anything, as there is no certainty as to what "reasonable" according to OS entails..

Originally Posted by Often1

Neither AA, DL, nor UA will any longer provide exact determinations of reimbursement. That is because there is no way of determining what is reasonably necessary at the time the bag does not show up and because circumstances may differ.

As a rule of thumb, do not spend more than you would spend if you knew that you would not be reimbursed. That keeps things in perspective. In addition, given that generous carry-on allowances mean that one ought to have at least the first 2-3 days of clothing in hand, what is reasonable? Are you headed home where your replacement needs are likely minimal? To a beach holiday? To a set of formal meetings?

What happens if the carrier believes that it will have the bag to you in 8-10 hours and it becomes 8-10 days?

All of these are variables unknown at the time of the report.

OP frankly wasted his own time. Why file anything until one has the bag in hand? At that point, the expenses are fixed, one has receipts and one can confirm that there is no damage to the bag itself.

While there are some carriers at some stations which distribute a prepaid card loaded with a smallish amount to help tide one over, that is only useful if one is really strapped for cash.