Originally Posted by corporate-wage-slave

I was going to say emphatically "no" because that's not what IDB is designed to cover. But then I looked at the wording again and actually while I am still saying "no", I can see an argument, even if it seems unlikely to work. Since there is a solution to avoiding IDB, as opposed to the airline giving no option at all, then I think it's a passenger's choice to be offloaded. But there have been CJEU judgements that have taken IDB well beyond what airlines regard as IDB. There is separate Montréal protection if BA losses, delays or damages the checked item, but not for hand luggage.

I have to say about this topic is that it always seems to reflect the issue of "me" rather than "them". By that I mean either BA gets criticism for taking bags off people, or it gets criticism that bags are not be taking off people. Or criticism of the last minute scramble to rearrange bags. Seemingly every person in this forum has totally compliant bags - well no, I know that's not true, sentence ends here. What I can say is that I've travelled a fair bit and in 48 years of solo travel I have only once been told to check in my bag, and that was on a busy Mount Cook / Air New Zealand ATR. I don't use bags with wheels. It may happen if you have a lot of junk, but mostly it does not.